It’s already 2023. Still, cart abandonment remains a major problem among most eCommerce businesses. Per SaleCycle, the latest cart abandonment rate is 81.08%. The travel sector tops at 87.08% followed by the fashion industry (84.43%) and the retail sector (77.01%).
Nothing is more frustrating than potential customers abandoning their carts. Why? You’re already one step to making successful sales and doubling your conversion rates.
But whether you are an online seller on Amazon, eBay, or even Walmart, you should segment and understand your target customers. Specifically, find out their top reasons for abandoning their carts. Then, and only then, will you address the problems in your checkout process to boost your sales.
This page will tackle the top reasons for shopping cart abandonment in 2023. Keep reading to learn some practical solutions for avoiding such.
What You Need To Know About Cart Abandonment
In eCommerce, abandonment describes people visiting websites and leaving without converting them into customers. Shopping cart abandonment is one example referring to online shoppers putting items in their carts but not completing their purchases.
Often, visitors drop by your website and become interested in your products. They then add the items to their digital carts. But while they begin the checkout process, they soon drop out of the checkout flow. For some reason, they end up not buying those items at all.
Unfortunately, cart abandonment is tantamount to lost business opportunities. The estimated value of abandoned products in online carts was four trillion dollars in 2021. Imagine how much money eCommerce businesses could have made out of these abandoned items.
As an online entrepreneur, know your cart abandonment rate as a vital metric to track. This refers to the percentage of interested customers who add items to the cart without making a successful purchase. You can calculate this by dividing the total product purchases by the total initiated shopping carts.
There are a handful of reasons prospective customers would abandon their carts. It might have to do with the website, checkout process, pricing, personal reasons, and more. Read below to learn the top cart abandonment reasons in 2023 and what you can do about them.
Why Online Shoppers Abandon Their Carts in 2023
Baymard Institute researched the reasons for cart abandonment. Almost 70% is the average cart abandonment rate based on 48 studies, it revealed.
Also, Baymard found that over half of online shoppers in the U.S. abandoned carts because “they were just browsing but weren’t ready to purchase.” However, there’s more to this than meets the eye.
Below are the top reasons for online shopping cart abandonment:
1. Unexpected Cost
Baymard identified unexpected costs as the top cart abandonment reason. Almost half of the respondents abandoned their carts due to extra costs. They find shipping costs, added taxes, and other fees on top of the regular product prices too high. Hence, they end up not buying the items at all.
It’s best to be transparent on the product pricing right at the outset. First, make sure to already include the taxes in the total prices. Also, consider offering free shipping for your online business. It should even be a part of your eCommerce sales strategy.
2. Account Setup Requirement
Next to unexpected costs is the account creation requirement as a cart abandonment reason. Almost one-fourth of the respondents said the websites asked them to sign up for an online account. Because of this, they chose to exit and leave the checkout process incomplete.
As an online entrepreneur, give your customers the option to create an online account. However, never force them to sign up for one before completing a purchase. Chances are, they’ll leave out of annoyance or irritation.
3. Slow Delivery
Yes, consumers are highly critical nowadays, especially with the delivery timeframe. They don’t like to wait far too long. They want products to get delivered right at their doorsteps as soon as possible. Hence, slow delivery turn-around-time (TAT) in the eCommerce business is a big no-no.
Per Source, 41% of consumers are willing to pay a charge for same-day delivery. Also, one-fourth of shoppers said they’ll pay more to receive packages within one to two hours. Hence, offer same-day options and partner with the right courier to speed up your TAT.
4. Untrusted Website
Online stores must create a reliable and trustworthy brand. They should have this reflected on their business websites. Also, make online security a top priority. Doing so builds trust and confidence among customers. That’s how you get visitors to buy your products online!
Unfortunately, some customers abandon their carts due to an untrusted website. They are about to make a purchase when they find your checkout process unsecured. Per the same report from Baymard, 18% didn’t trust the sites with their credit card information.
5. Social Media Presence
As any eCommerce business owner knows, maintaining a strong social media presence is essential for success. Before making a purchase, shoppers will often check out your social media accounts to get a sense of your brand and see what others are saying about you. If they don’t see a strong presence, or if there are negative comments and reviews, they may be less likely to take the plunge. That’s why it’s so important to have a clear plan for maintaining your social media accounts. Of course, managing a social media presence can be a daunting task, especially if you’re resource-constrained. However, by careful planning and proper resource allocation, it is possible to maintain a consistent social media presence that will benefit your business.
6. Long or Complex Checkout Process
Per Cloudways, 18% of customers abandon their carts due to a long or complex checkout process. Customers don’t want to wait too long just to make a purchase. Neither do they want to figure out how to complete a purchase due to a complicated process.
The best course of action? Make sure to simplify your checkout process. Start by asking only a few questions like name, address, and contact number. If not, opt for a buy-now button rather than a lengthy form. Plus, offer multiple payment options so customers can easily and quickly make a successful purchase.
7. No Total Cost Calculation
One of the biggest eCommerce mistakes is to have no calculation of the total cost. You don’t want your customers to do the math when adding items to their carts during the checkout process. They’ll most likely bounce out of your web page before even making a successful purchase.
Understand that convenience and transparency are keys to successful sales. It will be a lot more convenient for the customers if the total cost reflects on the web page. Also, transparent pricing is for the protection of both the consumers and entrepreneurs.
8. Website Error
Nothing can be more annoying than having website issues. About 70% of consumers said page speed determines their purchase decision from online retailers. Imagine customers placing orders online when your site becomes slow or suddenly crashes. When this happens, they might immediately exit your web page and swear never to return to your site.
Website optimization is crucial to eCommerce businesses. Make sure to audit your site regularly. Pay particular attention to the checkout part to avoid cart abandonment. Per Baymard, your online business can gain a 35.26% conversion rate increase if you were to address checkout usability issues.
9. Unsatisfactory Returns Policy
Returns policy entails describing the rules retail merchants establish for returning items. It also details how customers return or exchange unwanted or defective items purchased. Unfortunately, interested customers abandon their carts right after reading the returns policy. They disagree with its terms and conditions.
Understand that the return policy is an extension of your customer service. Make sure it’s clear and understandable for your customers. Ultimately, it should be fair to both parties serving as legal protection.
10. Lack of Payment Options
Providing multiple payment methods is crucial to eCommerce success. Think of consumers showing interest in your online products. They are about to complete the transactions when your site doesn’t have their preferred payment option. That can translate into lost sales!
Sure, credit cards remain the most popular payment method for virtual shopping. Also, many online shoppers have money sitting in PayPal for their online purchases. However, it’s best to offer various payment options for your customers. Take it from Oberlo’s top global online payments:
- Digital or mobile wallet (49%)
- Credit card or charge card (21%)
- Debit card (13%)
- Bank transfer (7%)
- Buy now, pay later (3%)
- Direct debit, prepay, prepaid card, post-pay, and others (1%)
11. Declined Credit Card
Per the same Baymard report, 4% of online shoppers abandoned their carts due to a credit card decline. It’s inevitable as it happens almost all the time. And you have no control over your customers’ finances.
However, there’s something you can do about this. First, offer other payment options like those mentioned above. Your customers might have funds in their other accounts. If not, track them and turn them into leads. You can reach out to them next time for remarketing. Who knows? They might finally buy your products.
Reduce Cart Abandonment Rate and Boost Your Sales Revenue
It’s time to decrease your shopping cart abandonment rate this year. As an online entrepreneur, perform due diligence to know why your potential customers abandon their carts.
That said, be sure to consider the top reasons discussed above. Check if one or some of those apply to your eCommerce business. Most importantly, follow some of the recommended resolutions to avoid abandoned carts.
With these in mind, you’ll have those items on the cart converted into actual sales in 2023. Ultimately, you’ll cap the year with a boost in your sales revenue — and beyond!
