The owners of online store develop a marketing strategy aims to attract customers to their products and services offered on the stores, to build a strong relationship with them, and to make them visit the store several times until they purchase some products. Therefore, these marketing plans give great importance to the shopping cart and provide all facilities, as the shopping cart plays a pivotal role in e-commerce, and it perhaps the main reason for the anxiety that the owners` of store feel when customers abandon it. This is due to many reasons that must be clarified and how to address them, and this is what we will focus on in the following article.
Read Also: Top steps to gain customers trust in e-stores
What is shopping cart abandonment?
First of all, it is necessary to know the meaning of shopping cart abandonment, which has a pivotal role in payment processes, and covers everything related to accepting payment from customers, managing shipping data, distributing information to the seller, conducting payment transactions, etc.
So, shopping cart abandonment is when a potential customer starts a check out process for an online order but drops out of the process before completing the purchase. Any item that enters the shopping cart but never makes it through the transaction is considered to be “abandoned” by the shopper.
Some owners of online stores believe that the design of the online store is a major reason that drive the customer to leave and cancel the purchase process. So, tracking the rate of abandonment of shopping carts in a specific store helps to knowing the problems facing it, as this requires from the owners of online stores to conduct a detailed study of all pages and the purchasing process to reduce the phenomenon of abandoning the shopping cart.
So to solve this problem, it is necessary to highlight the most important reasons for abandoning the shopping cart, and to know the solutions that reduce this disturbing phenomenon.
Top Reasons for cart abandonment in online stores:
There are many fundamental reasons that make customers to abandon the shopping cart despite their desire to purchase products, the most important reasons are:
High costs; taxes, shipping, and product fees: This is one of the main reasons that leads the customers to abandon the shopping cart. As unexpected costs added when a customer adds an item to the cart makes the customer rethink their purchase. Some customers will even add items to their cart just to view a final total. Once they see the fees that are added, they are less likely to proceed.
So it is better to view all costs upfront, including any shipping costs, or you can make shipping free. The customers are more likely to follow through to purchase.
Forced account creation before completing payment: It for the sure that the information of customer is very important for your online store and for whole marketing process, but it should be taken into account that some customers do not have enough time to register in the store and create an account before completing the purchase, which leads the customer getting bored and abandoning the shopping cart, as some other customers do not want to share a lot of their information on online stores.
Therefore, e-stores can make this process concise as possible, and just collect emails, name, address, and card number to complete the purchase process for the visitor.
Limited online payment options: The owners of online store must provide several e-payment methods, as they allow customers to choose the appropriate method for them when paying. So, the multiple electronic payment options reduce the rate of shopping cart abandonment by 8%, as your mobile applications must also be good and do not contain disadvantages of use.
Failure to display security policy: The online store may provide all the protection and security standards on the purchase page, but if you do not show these standards, many of your customers will change their minds and not complete the purchase process.
Therefore, your online store approved by the SSL certificate, and show the approved payment icons must so that all customers can see them very clearly, as customers must be reassured that your online store is approved and reliable when entry their personal data and providing their credit information, as these seals and payment icons enhance the customer`s confidence about the store, which increases which increases your sales.
Lack of information and details about the products: Many customers search for the specifications and details of a product to verify the information before buying it. Some customers also compare the products provided by online stores, and when they do not find sufficient information, they will abandon the shopping cart.
This show the importance of providing information, formulated professionally and presented in an attractive manner.
Inadequate return policy for products: Customers often get information on the return policy and warranty of items after adding items to their cart. An insufficient return policy will cause customers to leave and seek a better place to buy the product. While they may return, they might find a better return policy elsewhere.
In addition to the previous tips, we recommend using e-mail when a customer abandons his / her shopping cart, as it is the most personalized tool for the customer. E-mail reminds them of their pending shopping cart and their ability to complete procedures to buy the product, as the e-mail sent to customers can also include some offers that may get them interested to complete the purchase.
Read Also: Impact of online shopping on customer behavior in Middle East
Meta Description:
The shopping cart plays a pivotal role in e-commerce, and it perhaps the main reason for the anxiety that the owners` of store feel when customers abandon it.