All photos: Kaboompics
You’re attracting customers to your online store, they’re adding items to their cart, but they’re not checking out. What gives? While it can be frustrating to lose customers at the final hurdle, shopping cart abandonment is actually very common. In fact, most sites have a shopping cart abandonment rate of about 70%, which means 7 out of 10 customers leave items in their cart without completing the purchase.
There are many reasons for customers not carrying out purchases to completion. Here are just some of the most common reasons for online shopping cart abandonment.
#1. Forcing customers to create an account:
While getting customers to create an online account can have advantages (such as access to extra customer data and the option to provide personalized deals), many customers don’t want to create an online account. They either have too many online accounts to keep track of or do not have the time to create an account. This is why you should always provide a guest checkout option – it should only ask for the basic customer information required to make a sale, so as not to annoy customers who are in a hurry.
#2. Making the checkout process too lengthy:
This relates to the last point, but is worth delving deeper into. Many people shopping online are in a hurry and do not have the time to complete a lengthy five-page checkout form. While the checkout process can be a chance to upsell products, ask survey questions, and encourage customers to join your mailing list, you should be careful not to go too overboard, as you could end up putting off customers.
If a lengthy checkout process cannot be prevented due to the nature of the product, consider providing a progress bar so that customers can clearly see how much information they still need to fill in before it is complete.
#3. Setting the price too high:
Before committing to a purchase, some customers like to shop around – just to check that they can’t get a better deal elsewhere. It’s possible that customers are adding items to their cart, comparing other websites, and finding the same product at a cheaper price. Take the time to compare competitor pricing to make sure that your prices aren’t set too high.
#4. Surprising customers with hidden fees:
It’s better to be transparent with all fees. While adding on shipping fees, packaging fees, and tax at the end may make the initial price look more attractive, customers on a tight budget still aren’t going to proceed with their payment. Many may just feel deceived and may deliberately look elsewhere because of this (especially if you’re surprising customers with high shipping fees). It’s better to advertise these fees upfront in the product listing so that customers know exactly what they will be paying.
#5. Being too restrictive with payment options:
Accepting different forms of payment is important for maximizing customer satisfaction. A mistake that many online stores make is only accepting debit card payments. While credit card payments do incur additional fees for the seller, a lot of people prefer to shop online with a credit card – so it’s worth looking into credit card processing from North or another processing service. Meanwhile, if you’re selling your product worldwide, make sure that you’re willing to accept a range of foreign currencies.
#6. Not providing fast shipping:
A lot of customers will abandon their purchase if a product cannot be shipped on time. While next-day shipping is more expensive, there are many customers who are willing to pay for it – especially when it comes to items that are typically bought in an emergency (like car parts) or as last-minute gifts (like flowers). Consider partnering with a courier that can provide fast shipping if you need it. Fast shipping will be harder to provide to international customers, although you may be able to use drop-shipping tactics to still speedily ship certain products.
#7. Ignoring slow loading times and webpage errors:
A lot of customers will also quit the checkout process if pages take too long to load. Explore different ways of speeding your site up, such as making sure the code isn’t too bulky or using a faster website server. You should also be careful of webpage loading errors that could be preventing customers from proceeding with sales.
These issues need to be fixed immediately. If you’ve noticed that you’re not getting any sales, test your website's checkout process to ensure there are no bugs. Such errors may require working with a website developer to patch up.
Final Thoughts...
To wrap things up, remember that the goal is to make the online shopping experience as frictionless as possible. By addressing the common mistakes we've covered, you can significantly reduce cart abandonment, increase conversions, and boost your bottom line. To create loyal customers from potential shoppers, your checkout process needs to be seamless, transparent, and easy to use. What's one change you're ready to make to your checkout process today?
