While shopping can be fun, it also takes a great deal of effort. You have to search through products, compare them, read descriptions and reviews, and finally add the product to your cart. So why would someone abandon a shopping cart full of products after taking all that time and effort to gather them? I’ll give you a hint: It’s not because they don’t want to buy the products.
Top reasons for abandonment include:
- The checkout process is too difficult (too much information is being requested, the form is hard to read/understand, there are errors the user doesn’t understand how to resolve).
- The cart does not feel secure
- Sticker shock (shipping and taxes add up)
- User may worry about return policies if the product is defective or doesn’t work for them
It’s easy to address those main concerns and reduce abandonment:
Eliminate Steps
Consumers don’t like to enter in excess information to buy a product. Consider allowing customers the option of one-time quick checkout, as well as the option for first time buyers to register for an account. Make sure to explain to users that registering for an account will make future purchasing easier and more efficient, but give them the options. This will reduce shopping cart abandonment due to frustration and confusion over the checkout process steps.
Link To Products
Make sure your shopping cart displays all of the chosen products clearly, and that each product links to the product details. This helps customers to quickly check to make sure that they have purchased the right product without leaving the shopping cart page, and will save them time and make the checkout process easier and less stressful.
Present Options Early
Provide shipping options and costs early on in the checkout process. This will allow customers to decide right away which options they prefer and calculate the cost as they go along, eliminating the unpleasant surprise of higher-than-expected totals at the end of the process.
Use Security Badges
Any third-party endorsements, security badges or even simple lock graphics can go a long way to helping the buyer feel like your site is safe.
Make Return Policies Easy to Find
No one wants to buy a lemon and be stuck with it. Be sure to eliminate this concern by putting your return policies in an obvious place. This will help to make the purchase a no-risk proposition.
Making your shopping cart more professional, user-friendly and credible will increase your sales by decreasing buyer hesitation. If you need a shopping cart that helps drive sales contact us – it’s what we do!
About the author: Jeune Ortiz is VP of Marketing and Creative Director at future-ink. With more than 20 years of experience in graphic design and marketing, Jeune brings extensive knowledge and creativity to each website and internet marketing solution to grow your business.
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6 Comments
Geno Prussakov | July 20, 2010
Great tips, Jeune. Love the one about the quick checkout. One-page checkout pages really convert much better than multiple-step ones.
Another thing I would add to the above is: Make Registration Optional. You don’t want to lose the people that won’t want to register. Offer a simple “Guest” or “Checkout without registering” checkout option too.
Jeune Ortiz | July 20, 2010
Absolutely right Geno!
No one wants to be forced to create an account before they buy something. It can feel invasive and pushy. If your site tracking/analytics relies heavily on user registration be sure to communicate the benefits that registration will give your shopper. This will help them feel like they are getting something in return for the information they’re providing. But ALWAYS give them a choice.
Tiffany | May 10, 2011
Absolutely love this information! We have over $5,000+ dollars (calculated) In customers shopping carts but not 1 sale! At beautyanstyle.com it would seem as though we’ve made things easy for customers to shop, and that the check out process is short and simple! We’ve taken the necessary steps to ensure that our site is a safe environment to purchase from, and the shipping price is reasonable (9.99 flat rate)…what else could it possibly be?!
Jeune Ortiz | May 10, 2011
Hi Tiffany!
Well it certainly sounds like you’re doing everything right. Without doing some conversion testing it’s hard to tell for sure what else could be stopping your visitors. I took a quick look at your site and these are just a few things that came to mind that might help you.
1. Consider that your cart might be broken at some stage of the purchase process. Test it thoroughly and use products from the abandoned carts to determine if the problem might be with specific products.
2. For Ecommerce websites gaining your visitor’s is critical. Some vital trust signals I felt were missing were:
A. The logo of your shipper (UPS/FedEx). It’s not clear during the purchase process if I’ll be able to track my order.
B. Also guarantee verbiage was absent. Or maybe I didn’t see it. In any case it should not be hidden. People want to know that if the product was damaged they can return it and you’ll take care of them.
I hope these ideas help. They will at least give you a place to start looking. If you need more help, please let me know. We do conversion consulting and can help resolve where your customers are getting stopped.
Tiffany | June 1, 2011
Thank you soooo so very much for your help! We have currently revamped our site and immediately began making sales! Check our the new beautyanstyle.com and tell me what you think of how it looks and if shopping has been made easier! Once again, thank you for your response!
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