The internet has transformed the way businesses operate. An increasing number of businesses are relying on their e-commerce store as their primary source of income because selling online offers many advantages over traditional brick-and-mortar stores. For one, selling online gives businesses a much wider reach. They can sell to customers all over the world, instead of being limited to their local area. Additionally, e-commerce stores are open 24/7, so customers can buy products whenever they want. Finally, setting up and maintaining an online store is usually much cheaper than running a physical store. All of these factors make selling online a very attractive option for businesses of all sizes.
However, one thing that a business wants to avoid is cart abandonment. This is when a customer adds items to their online shopping cart but then leaves the site before completing the purchase. There are a number of reasons why this might happen, such as high shipping costs or complicated checkout processes. Whatever the reason, it’s important to try to minimise shoppers abandoning their shopping carts if you want to be successful with your e-commerce store.
Is your website plagued by cart abandonment? If so, Resurge Digital can help you turn things around and increase your profits. Our digital marketing agency specialises in optimising website design to reduce shopping cart abandonment and improve conversions. Contact us today at 1300 659 035, through email, or get in touch online.
Top Reasons for Cart Abandonment
User experience
In e-commerce, user experience can be the difference between making a sale and losing a customer. Shopping cart abandonment may occur if a user has a poor experience on your site.
Some factors that can contribute to a poor user experience, may include a confusing or cluttered layout, slow load times, poorly designed forms, and non-responsive designs. If you want to keep customers from abandoning their shopping carts, focusing on improving the user experience on your site is an important step. Making small changes to improve the overall experience can have you seeing more customers go through with their payment details.
High shipping costs
If your shipping costs are too high, shoppers may abandon their carts and go elsewhere. Usually, consumers won’t realise how high the shipping costs are until they reach their shopping cart. To avoid this, make sure your shipping options and costs are clearly displayed before customers add items to their cart.
This way, they won’t be surprised by the cost when they reach the checkout page. If you offer free shipping, make sure that’s prominently displayed as well! Customers are more likely to complete their purchase if they know the shipping costs upfront, resulting in less shopping cart abandonment.
Unclear return policy
It’s important to have a clear and concise return policy that gives shoppers the information they need to make a purchase with confidence. Otherwise, an unclear return policy can cause shopping cart abandonment. It may create uncertainty about whether they will be able to return an item if they’re not happy with it. This can be a particularly big issue for items that are expensive or difficult to replace.
An unclear return policy can make it seem like the seller is not confident in their product. This can make shoppers feel like they’re taking a risk by buying from the site and be inclined to abandon their shopping cart. By offering customers a fair and clear return policy, you’ll avoid cart abandonment more often than not.
No alternative payment method
One of the other main reasons for cart abandonment is the lack of diverse payment methods. Nowadays, consumers want the convenience of using their preferred method of payment and some customers may even abandon their shopping cart if they don’t see their preferred payment method listed. By offering a range of payment options, you can make it more likely that customers will complete their purchase
Many e-commerce websites have installed plugins for alternative payment options such as paying via PayPal or Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) methods. For some consumers, the buy now pay later scheme is ideal because they can expand their shopping cart beyond what they have available to spend on the day and pay a fraction of the cost. This is ideal for some as it may save them from having to pay for multiple shipping costs.
Lack of safety for their details
Most online shoppers are pretty concerned about security and safety when shopping online. After all, there’s always the threat of hackers getting their hands on your personal information. But did you know that one of the biggest reasons for shopping cart abandonment is that they don’t feel safe or secure?
If a website looks like it might not be secure, customers are likely to click away and take their business elsewhere. So if you’re running an online store, it’s important to make sure that your website is as secure as possible. Such as using a reputable e-commerce platform that is known for its security, keeping your software and plugins up to date and regularly scanning your website for malware and vulnerabilities.
Website crashes
If you’re experiencing crashes on a website, it’s likely due to poor design. There are a number of things that can cause this, but the most common culprit is code that isn’t optimised for performance. This can result in slow load times and eventually, crashes. To avoid cart abandonment, business owners need to make sure their website is designed well and running smoothly.
Ready for an optimised e-commerce website?
If you’d like to know more about cart abandonment and building an e-commerce website that works well, contact Resurge Digital to discuss our leading Brisbane website design at 1300 659 035 or through email. Alternatively, you can get in touch online and our friendly team will get back to you.