Shopping Cart Abandonment Solutions That Really Work

Are you losing customers during the checkout process?

 

Probably. Shopping cart abandonment occurs when a shopper places at least one item in their cart and bounces from checkout. According to Barnard Institute, a UX research hub, 69.99% of shopping carts get abandoned by online shoppers. To see how your business measures up to this multi-industry average, you can divide your total completed transactions by the number of sales initiated by your shoppers.

 

If you have a high cart abandonment rate, the bad news is that you are losing out on sales and revenue. The good news is that you are not alone, with e-Commerce businesses losing out on $18 billion in sales to cart abandonment every year. Because there’s so much to gain by tackling this issue, businesses in every industry are devising solutions that improve the customer journey and boost conversions.

 

Keep reading to learn why so many abandon their shopping carts and how you can apply shopping cart abandonment solutions to your own business to curb lost sales this holiday season.

Common Reasons for Cart Abandonment While Shopping

Comparing the average conversion rate for brick-and-mortar stores to e-commerce businesses, there’s a steep decline from 20–40% to 2–3%, respectively. Online business operators must do everything they can to make the most of relatively low conversions—that means understanding pain points on the customer journey and optimizing the checkout process to reduce shopping cart abandonment.

 

While shopping cart abandonment occurs in the world of brick-and-mortar retail, it has historically been challenging to track. Inside a physical store, shoppers might leave without buying anything for several reasons, from intending only to browse to lacking time and not wanting to wait in line. Though advancements in location and proximity technology present opportunities to learn more about cart abandonment in stores, online shopping has given us the ability to track the online phenomenon at scale and in real-time.

 

According to the Baymard Institute, a significant portion of abandoned carts in e-Commerce are just a product of how we shop online. "Many users will be doing window shopping, price comparison, saving items for later, exploring gift options, et cetera,” the report explains. “These are largely unavoidable cart and checkout abandonments.”The rest of the abandoned carts represent easy opportunities for businesses to improve their checkout processes and secure those sales.2022 data shows that shoppers cited 10 main reasons for abandoning their carts during checkout:

• 48% said that extra costs associated with shipping, taxes, and other fees were too high
• 24% abandoned their carts because the site wanted them to create an account
• 22% said delivery was too slow
• 18% didn’t trust the site with their credit card information
• 17% found the checkout process too long or complicated
• 16% said they couldn’t calculate the total order cost up-front
• 13% experienced site issues
• 12% cited an unsatisfactory return policy
• 9% said there weren't enough payment methods
• 4% of shoppers' cards were declined

The data suggests the keys to a better checkout experience are transparency, convenience, and simplicity.

Lack of Convenient Payment Options and Security

Consumers want a safe and convenient checkout experience.27% of shoppers in the Beymard Institute study claimed that issues with the payment process made them abandon their carts. Two-thirds of those respondents shared concerns about payment security on an online store, while another third wanted more payment options to be accepted.

 

You can easily apply these learnings to your checkout process. Operating on a secure and PCI-compliant e-Commerce platform and adding an SSL certificate to your store can go a long way toward gaining your customers' trust.

 

You can also expand your accepted payment methods with new and secure options customers prefer. Payment gateways like PayPal are popular with consumers because their security measures make shoppers feel safe. Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) options are becoming even more popular because of their flexibility, ease of use, and manageability.

Complicated Checkout Process With Hidden Fees Tacked On

The data also shows that an opaque and complicated checkout process can encourage shoppers to drop off.

 

It can be tempting to lure customers into your checkout flow with a shockingly low price, but if their final total is higher than expected, they may end up feeling more hoodwinked than excited about your product.No one wants to apply an amazing coupon code only to find out that after taxes and fees, it isn’t worth as much as advertised. Similarly, no one wants to get halfway through checkout before finding out that shipping is an extra $30.A transparent checkout process without hidden costs will allow shoppers to buy with confidence.

How To Solve Your Cart Abandonment Issues

Buy Now Pay Later is an effective customer experience solution that business owners can seamlessly integrate into their online and in-store checkout processes. Think of BNPL as the best of both worlds: a payment option that simplifies checkout and encourages customers to spend.

Secure and Streamline Your Payment Options With BNPL

One of the best ways to streamline your payments is by making the options your customers want easily accessible at checkout. BNPL is a secure solution without hidden fees or credit risk, making it an enticing option amongst other contenders like credit cards and cash.

Be Honest About Any Additional Costs Upfront

Another way to reduce shopping cart abandonment is optimizing your checkout flow for transparency. Be clear about pricing upfront and you'll gain loyal customers who think about how they can fit their purchase into their budget instead of ditching their carts.BNPL adds an additional element of transparency because it breaks down purchase plans so clients can budget around each of the four interest-free payments they'll be making.

Reduce Sticker Shock and Buyer's Remorse With BNPL

A BNPL service can also help mitigate sticker shock at checkout. Facing a large bill can make any shopper reconsider their financial goals and deprioritize a purchase. By offering a BNPL payment option, you can give your customers a solution that allows them to buy without guilt or fear of breaking the bank.

Offer 4 Equal Installments Using BNPL To Lower Upfront Costs

50% of U.S. consumers have used BNPL to make a purchase as of 2022, and that number is growing. Some shoppers even prefer BNPL solutions to other payment methods, citing the ease of set payments and lack of interest charges.

 

A $300 purchase might feel like a big investment if a customer has to pay it all upfront, but four installments might feel more manageable. Shoppers are even proven to spend more with a BNPL option because they can approach payment one installment at a time.

 

With BNPL, you can give shoppers the option to pay in four interest-free installments at checkout, whether in-store or online. With Gratify Pay, you'll get the full balance upfront, keeping cash flowing while curbing lost sales.

Reduce Your Shopping Cart Abandonment Rate With an Easy BNPL Solution

Giving your customers more power over how they pay goes a long way toward making the initial sale and building lasting relationships with them. If you want to reduce shopping cart abandonment, you should be using a BNPL solution.If you want to explore BNPL and see how it can increase sales, Gratify Pay can help.