As more businesses take their business online, it is no surprise that Ecommerce has positioned itself as one of the most popular and profitable retail forms for many retailers.
With its global reach, accessibility, and data insights, ecommerce has revolutionized the shopping experience while empowering businesses to adapt and thrive in the digital online market.
That said, online also presents its specific challenges such as fraud and identity theft vulnerability, adapting to returns and reverse logistics, ensuring data privacy and security for customers, website optimization, cart abandonment, and customer retention.
What is cart abandonment?
Cart abandonment in ecommerce refers to the situation where customers add items to their online shopping cart but do not complete the purchase.
It is a situation that occurs naturally in the e-commerce industry, with an average cart abandonment of nearly 70% and represents a big challenge for retailers not to result in lost revenue.
Many factors contribute to cart abandonment and businesses need to record, analyze, and understand their visitors’ behavior to adjust their tactics and funnel strategies so that they can maximize their client conversion and sales.
The most important reasons why people do not complete a purchase in an online store
There are many factors why people leave abandoned carts. Mostly, customers expect an effortless checkout process, they don’t like to encounter unexpected charges or extra costs, over-priced or limited shipping options, or not being able to complete their order without registering an account.
Here’s a detailed list of the most common reasons for e-commerce cart abandonment:
Technical Issues
If a cart is glitchy, the checkout has broken pages or links, slow loading times, errors, or is not easy to navigate, customers will get frustrated and just completely quit the website.
Unexpected charges or extra costs
Customers are not happy when encountering unexpected charges or find extra costs to be too high. If the original price of the items versus the total before checking out is too big, customers will feel discouraged or even scammed and leave the site.
Long or complicated checkout process
Customers nowadays expect everything to happen fast and easily, and this includes the checkout process as well. If the process has too many sections, steps, or information to complete customers will bail.
Limited delivery options
When the delivery options are very limited or overpriced, customers most likely abandon their carts and try to find another retailer offering more flexible or convenient delivery choices.
Having to create an account
Not everybody wants to register an account at every website they purchase from. Requiring customers to create an account during the checkout process without options to bypass it usually represents a hassle to these clients who are not interested and they will leave their checkout process incomplete.
Security Concerns
If the website doesn’t inspire safety, the payment method doesn’t seem legitimate, etc.; customers might worry about their personal and financial information being compromised, suspect scams, or if they do not trust the online store with their data overall, they won’t complete the purchase.
No clear return policy
Unclear or not compelling return policies can cause customers to hesitate and abandon their carts, as customers want to feel safe about their purchase having peace of mind knowing they can return their items in case it’s needed.
Unclear shipping information
Similar to the return policy, customers want to see all the details on their shipping including delivery times, transparent shipping costs, and familiar carriers.
Limited payment options
One of the most important things for retailers online is having many different payment options available. When there’s only a certain type, customers may not have a preferred payment method or may be unsure about the payment process and abandon their cart.
How to reduce ecommerce cart abandonment
Besides avoiding the main reasons mentioned above that discourage online customers from completing their checkouts, different strategies can be implemented to reduce ecommerce cart abandonment. Some of the most effective ones are:
1. Abandoned Cart Emails
You can implement it yourself, or use an automation service to send automatic email reminders to be sent to who left items in their cart. You can even include a special discount to encourage them. There are many affordable services out there that you can compare and hire according to your needs.
2. Rewards Program
Loyalty programs encourage customers to complete their purchases, you can offer seasonal rewards or discounts for new and repeat customers, special gifts for signing up, etc. Customers are more likely to finish their purchase with these types of incentives, and also they’re more likely to become returning clients.
3. Live Chats
Customers are more likely to go through with their purchase when immediate support is available when they encounter any issue or a doubt arises. There are many options in the market, from automated chatbots to actual live agents responding to your customer’s needs.
4. Offers many Payment Options
Another way to reduce ecommerce cart abandonment is by providing a variety of payment methods that make checkout easier, and more convenient; target different customers, and leave a door open for customers to try a different payment method when the first one fails.
5. Use Exit Intent Pop-Ups
Exit pop-ups are messages that show up when customers are about to leave the site, reminding them there are items in their carts, and encouraging them to complete the purchase. It can also contain discounts so that they go ahead and finish their checkout.
Make sure the pop-ups are inviting and noninvasive, and that they comply with the white SEO practices to boost your site even more.
6. Use Social Proof
Show customer reviews, ratings, and testimonials to build credibility and trust among other customers to reduce ecommerce cart abandonment. The more genuine and solid your business feels to them, the more likely they will feel comfortable to finish a purchase.
Include your social media channels, and pictures and facilitate the commenting and contact with you so that your customers feel they’re being heard and that it is easy to reach out to a real person when needed.
7. Optimize for Mobile
Ensure that the checkout process is optimized for mobile devices, since it’s mainstream for online browsing and purchasing.
Different devices and browsers need to be taken into consideration. Hence, the best practice is to have a responsive theme for your ecommerce site as well as a dedicated developer team to be able to address any technical issues.
8. Use Cart Abandonment Expertise
Consult specialized cart abandonment specialists, who can help you build an online marketing strategy specifically tailored to your business and audience, identifying and addressing issues on your website and improving conversion rates.
Having an expert team at your service is always a best practice recommendation, especially if your business is new to the online environment or if your clientele is rapidly growing.
9. Ensure that your e-commerce fulfillment is on point
Reducing long delivery times, and offering competitive shipping options are also crucial to reducing ecommerce cart abandonment as clients feel confident they will receive their goods on time. When it comes to e-commerce logistics, EP Logistics is your one-stop shop for seamless shipping and delivery solutions.
This is a crucial aspect as there’s not much point in having an optimized and beautiful store with attractive looks and discounts for customers; if their order fails to be fulfilled on time, there are delays or customers encounter other issues that can’t be timely addressed.
How does having effective ecommerce fulfillment help reduce cart abandonment in an online store?
As mentioned in the last point, customers often abandon carts due to long delivery times or shipping options that do not cater to their needs.
By optimizing the ecommerce fulfillment process and leveraging expedited shipping options, online stores can offer faster delivery, meeting customer expectations and reducing cart abandonment.
Having a proper Ecommerce fulfillment strategy or partner is essential to ensure the inventory is accurately managed and displayed in the store. Making attractive and hassle-free returns and exchange policies available so that customers feel confident when ordering their products and completing their purchases.
Providing customers with real-time tracking and delivery updates, having responsive customer support, and delivering products in high-quality, branded packaging enhances your customers’ experience.
These are all advantages that Ecommerce fulfillment brings to your process to reduce cart abandonment.
Also, having efficient ecommerce fulfillment strategies like optimizing shipping routes and negotiating better rates with carriers helps online stores offer more competitive shipping prices or even free shipping when possible.
By focusing on these aspects of ecommerce fulfillment, your store can have a seamless and satisfactory customer experience, reducing cart abandonment and encouraging more purchases.
Ultimately, a well-executed ecommerce fulfillment strategy reduces cart abandonment and fosters trust, loyalty, and repeat business. With the ability to deliver a good experience by prioritizing effective fulfillment as part of the ecommerce strategy, you can unlock the full potential of your sales funnel.
Get in touch with EP Logistics and allow our 20+ years of experience to guide you and help you optimize your business. With a large array of essential logistics solutions ranging from warehousing to Ecommerce fulfillment. Our expertise provides the strategic boost your business needs to stand out from the competition.
