Over 70% – this is the shopping cart abandonment rate in 2023. This means that you could be missing out on even 70% of potential income coming into your business. How to prevent this? Read our ultimate guide on abandoned cart recovery and never miss a purchase again!
What is abandoned cart recovery?
Abandoned cart recovery refers to the process of re-engaging with customers who have added items to their online shopping carts but didn’t complete the purchase. It involves implementing strategies and tactics to make these potential customers return to their abandoned carts and complete the transaction.
Why your online store shoppers abandon their carts
Before every abandoned cart, there are certain reasons.
According to a 2023 study by Baymard, these are the most popular ones:
#1 “I’m not ready to buy” – 47%
Sometimes, people are just looking around and trying to decide what they really want.
They put things in the cart, but then they realize they need more time to think before they make a final decision.
#2 “The extra costs are too high” – 47%
Imagine if you wanted to buy a toy for $10, but when you go to pay, they also add $5 for shipping and $3 for taxes.
That might make the total cost seem too high, and some people decide not to buy because of these extra costs.
#3 “I didn’t want to register an account” – 25%
Before you could buy something, some ecommerce stores will ask you to make an account with your name, email, and password.
Some people don’t like that because it takes time, so they leave the cart and find another store that doesn’t ask for an account.
#4 “Delivery is too slow” – 24%
If you’re excited about getting what you bought quickly, waiting for a long time can be disappointing.
So, if the store says the delivery will take too long, some people change their minds and leave their cart.
#5 “I didn’t want to share my credit card details” – 19%
Just like in a real store, you need to pay for things online too.
But some people worry about giving their credit card information on the internet. If they don’t feel safe, they might not buy anything and leave the cart.
Other reasons include:
- too long of a check out process (18%)
- unclear/confusing total costs (17%)
- unsatisfactory return policy (16%)
- buggy website (14%)
- not enough payment methods (11%)
- declined credit card (6%)
Why should you recover abandoned carts? 5 reasons
Fighting with card abandonment is vital for a wide range of purposes.
Some are less and some are more obvious.
Examples include:
#1 Increase revenue and sales conversion
Recovering abandoned carts is crucial for online shoppers. That’s because of the substantial impact it can have on revenue and sales conversion.
The over 70% shopping cart abandonment rate signals a significant portion of potential sales left unfinished.
If you implement effective abandoned cart recovery strategies, your e-commerce website can capture a portion of these abandoned transactions and turn them into completed purchases.
This directly contributes to increased revenue and improved e-commerce conversion rates.
Example: Companies could increase their conversion rate by nearly 36% if they only focused on solving checkout usability issues. Looking at all the e-commerce sales in the US and EU, that’s $260 billion worth of lost orders. Sounds worthy of the effort, doesn’t it?
#2 Gain insights into customer behavior & preferences
When customers let go of their carts, it’s an opportunity to gain insights into their behavior and preferences.
Understanding why customers abandon their carts (e.g. encountering unexpected shipping costs) can help your e-commerce store identify pain points and make necessary improvements.
Analyzing these patterns allows businesses like yours to tailor their offerings, website design, and pricing strategies. All this in efforts to align more closely with what their customers are looking for.
Ultimately, this will enhance the overall shopping experience of users.
Example:
Customer behaviors:
- Comparing products: customers often browse through multiple products, comparing features, prices, and reviews before adding items to their cart. They might spend time reading descriptions and looking at images to make informed decisions.
- Adding to cart: customers add items to their carts when they’re interested in buying, but they might not complete the purchase immediately. They might add several options to the cart before deciding which one to buy.
- Abandoning carts: some customers leave the website without completing their purchases. They might be distracted, still deciding, or encountering unexpected costs.
Customer preferences:
- Free shipping: many customers prefer free or discounted shipping and might abandon their carts if shipping costs are high.
- Clear pricing: customers appreciate transparent pricing with no hidden fees. Unexpected costs during checkout can lead to cart abandonment.
- User-friendly checkout: purchasers prefer a simple and efficient checkout process. Long forms and too many steps can deter them from completing the purchase.
- Guest checkout: some customers prefer not to create accounts and appreciate the option to check out as guests for a quicker process.
- Secure payment: shoppers value secure payment methods and assurances that their credit card details are safe.
#3 Improve customer retention and loyalty
Not letting full carts go to waste demonstrates a commitment to customer satisfaction and retention.
Sending targeted abandoned cart emails (especially when customers resign because of unexpected shipping costs) shows a proactive approach to addressing their concerns.
As soon as you address them and offer solutions (e.g. free shipping or discounts), your e-commerce website can build customer loyalty and trust.
A positive recovery experience can leave a lasting impression, encouraging customers to return for future purchases.
Enhance marketing strategies through targeted follow-ups
Abandoned cart recovery strategies go beyond a one-time interaction.
They provide an avenue for ecommerce stores to establish more personalized and effective marketing strategies.
Following up with customers who abandon their carts allows for:
- targeted communication,
- presenting additional products,
- giving special offers or recommendations based on browsing history.
This level of personalization can increase the chances of changing cart abandonment into successful sales.
#4 Reduce losses from potential customers leaving mid-purchase
Customers leave their carts for various reasons, including unexpected or too high shipping costs. This leads to potential losses for e-commerce stores like yours.
Implementing an abandoned cart recovery strategy (especially one that addresses the concern of unexpected fees) can help you reduce these losses.
Offering free shipping or clearly communicating all costs upfront can let you minimize the number of potential customers leaving mid-purchase.
#5 Optimize inventory management thanks to understanding shopping patterns
Fighting with abandoned carts gives insights into shopping patterns and trends.
E-commerce stores can use this information to optimize inventory management.
If you make the effort to understand which products are frequently abandoned and which ones are successfully converted, your businesses can adjust stock levels accordingly.
This prevents overstocking or understocking of items. The result? More efficient operations and improved profitability.
How to prevent shopping cart abandonment in online store
Stopping your shoppers from leaving products in their carts is easier than you think.
Get to know our expert strategies:
Optimize page loading speed
Optimizing web page loading speed is a crucial aspect of enhancing the user experience on an online store.
Slow-loading pages can lead to frustration and impatience, causing potential customers to abandon their shopping carts and leave the site.
When your web pages load quickly, you not only improve the overall shopping experience but also increase the likelihood of conversions.
Tools like Google’s Page Speed Insights can be used to check and analyze the loading speed of a webpage.
Even a slight delay in loading time can result in lost sales. This is why making page loading speed optimization is a priority for online retailers like you.
If the site loads as it should, businesses can retain customers, reduce abandonment rates, and ultimately boost their bottom line.
Provide clear pricing (no hidden fees)
Customers appreciate transparency in pricing.
Display all costs associated with the purchase upfront. And by “all”, we mean “ALL”. This includes taxes, shipping fees, and any other charges.
Hidden fees that only appear during checkout can lead to frustration and cart abandonment.
Clearly stating the total price early in the shopping process builds trust and reduces the chances of customers leaving their carts.
Offer multiple payment options
Diverse payment options cater to different customer preferences.
Include credit/debit cards, digital wallets, and alternative payment methods.
When you provide various choices, you create a more inclusive shopping experience and reduce the likelihood of customers abandoning their carts because of payment method limitations.
Implement a progress indicator during checkout
A progress indicator during the checkout process gives customers a sense of how far they are in completing their purchase.
This visual guide reduces uncertainty and provides a clear expectation of the steps remaining.
As customers see their progress, they’re more likely to complete the purchase rather than abandon their cart.
Allow instant checkout without mandatory registration
Forcing customers to register on your e-commerce website before checkout can be a deterrent.
So we recommend that you provide an option for guest checkout. Allow customers to complete their purchase without creating an account.
Once the transaction is successful, you can offer them the option to save their information for future purchases.
This streamlines the process and minimizes abandonment.
Display trust seals and security certificates
To get rid of security concerns, be sure to display trust seals, SSL certificates, and secure payment icons throughout your site and especially during checkout.
These visual cues assure customers that their personal and financial information is safe.
As such, you enhance their trust in your online store and reduce cart abandonment.
Offer free shipping (or discounted)
Shipping costs are a common reason for cart abandonment.
Offering free shipping or discounted rates at a certain order threshold can incentivize customers to complete their purchases.
Clearly communicate the shipping options and costs early in the shopping process to manage expectations.
Provide easy navigation & an intuitive checkout page
A user-friendly interface and an intuitive checkout page make the process seamless.
Minimize distractions and unnecessary fields. Guide customers through the steps with clarity in mind.
A clutter-free and easy-to-navigate checkout page reduces confusion and encourages completion.
Implement exit-intent popups with special offers
When customers show signs of leaving the site, trigger exit-intent popups with enticing offers. Those could be discounts, freebies, or exclusive deals.
These pop ups can capture the attention of hesitant shoppers and provide the extra push needed to complete their purchases.
Deliver comprehensive customer support (live chat, FAQs)
Accessible customer support can address concerns and uncertainties in real-time.
Implement live chat and maintain a detailed FAQ section to assist customers during their shopping journey.
Clearing doubts promptly can prevent cart abandonment due to unanswered questions.
How Prodport can help with abandoned cart recovery
As you already know, abandoned shopping carts are a common challenge that can lead to missed sales opportunities.
However, with the right tools and strategies, you can recover those lost sales and boost your revenue.
Since you already know about our recommended strategies, it’s about time we also show you a tool that can help you further.
Enter Prodport – a powerful solution designed to help you create personalized product pages that convert.
Let’s explore how Prodport can assist you in effectively tackling abandoned cart recovery:
Create personalized product pages that convert
- Build product pages for each audience
Prodport empowers you to create personalized product content tailored to the preferences of individual shoppers. When you customize images, titles, and descriptions, you ultimately enhance the shopping experience and drive higher conversion rates.
- AI-driven content generation
The platform uses AI-powered technology to generate fresh product titles and descriptions. This means you can easily optimize your product content without the hassle of manual creation.
- Lightning-fast content delivery
With Prodport’s headless product page architecture, content delivery is lightning-fast. As a result, you deliver a seamless shopping experience for your customer. This can lead to higher engagement and reduced bounce rates.
- Advanced segmentation
Prodport allows you to segment your product pages based on different audience groups. This feature is particularly precious for targeted campaigns and maximizing the impact of your marketing efforts.
Maximize email and SMS campaign revenue
Prodport goes beyond just optimizing product pages. It also integrates with email and SMS campaigns to boost revenue and conversion rates. Thanks to personalizing the product page experience using first-party data, you can create a consistent and compelling journey for your customers.
How it works
- Connect to your store: sign up and connect Prodport to your store.
- Select a product for testing: Prodport will automatically generate new versions with updated content and images for testing.
- Analyze and optimize: gain insights into various metrics, such as bounce rate, time on page, and add-to-cart increase – this data helps you analyze the effectiveness of your changes and make informed optimizations.
Our success stories
Prodport’s effectiveness is evidenced by real success stories. Businesses like Chirp have increased their conversion rates using our platform. This, and other companies, are tangible evidence showing the impact Prodport can have on your bottom line.
Recover abandoned carts with Prodport – try our tool for free today.
Key takeaways of abandoned cart recovery
- Abandoned cart recovery is the process of enticing customers who left their online shopping carts without completing purchases to return and finalize their transactions through targeted methods such as emails and incentives.
- Among the most common reasons for shopping cart abandonment are: unexpectedly high extra costs, like shipping fees, lengthy or complicated checkout procedures, concerns about payment security, slow delivery times, and the need to create user accounts.
- E-commerce business owners should reduce abandoned carts because it helps maximize conversions, boosts revenue, and enhances customer relationships. Understanding customer behavior through recovery strategies can lead to improved user experience and increased sales.
- It’s possible to prevent shopping cart abandonment with the right strategies. They include clear and transparent pricing, streamlined and user-friendly checkout processes, offering free or affordable shipping, displaying trust badges and security assurances, or providing guest checkout options.
- Prodport is an excellent tool for minimizing cart abandonment by your online shoppers. The solution creates personalized product pages that cater to individual shopper preferences, thus increasing engagement and conversion rates. It enables AI-driven content generation, lightning-fast content delivery, and advanced segmentation to optimize product page experiences and campaign results. As a result, you get to recover abandoned carts easily.
Start with abandoned cart recovery today
Cart abandonment doesn’t have to be a source of lost sales.
Armed with the knowledge of why customers abandon carts and with the right strategies, you can transform these missed opportunities into thriving conversions.
Remember, every abandoned cart represents a potential sale waiting to happen.
Seize the opportunity to enhance customer experience, boost revenue, and build lasting relationships.
Take the leap towards a more successful e-commerce journey today!
Ready to turn abandoned carts into sales? Explore the power of Prodport’s personalized product pages now and take your e-commerce business to new heights!
FAQ
What is cart abandonment recovery?
Recovering abandoned carts involves targeting customers who abandon their shopping carts, aiming to recover those abandoned carts through strategies like personalized emails and incentives.
What are some of the best abandoned cart recovery strategies?
The best abandoned cart recovery strategies include sending reminder emails, offering discounts (e.g. you could offer free shipping), using urgency, and simplifying the checkout process to entice customers back to complete their purchases.
Where should I look for abandoned cart email templates?
You can find shopping cart abandonment email templates from e-commerce platforms, email marketing services, or by consulting marketing experts. Customize these templates to match your brand’s tone and style.
Why should my ecommerce website have a cart abandonment recovery strategy?
Implementing an ecommerce store abandoned cart recovery strategy can rescue potential sales, enhance customer relationships, and boost revenue. It addresses customer concerns, optimizes the shopping experience, and maximizes conversion rates.