5 ways to reduce the number of abandoned shopping carts in an online store

Failure to optimize the checkout stage in online stores is one of the major challenges facing large companies and marketplaces today’y. It is also a fact that customers nowadays find it more and more difficult to complete a purchase.

Add to this the growing importance of mobile devices as new platforms for digital sales. E-shops need to know how to adapt the final stage of order placement to the needs of users shopping via phone.

We have prepared a short guide containing 5 tips, How to reduce shopping cart abandonment at checkout.

Allow for different shipping methods.

A variety of shipping methods is always best strategy to reduce cart abandonment. The customer should never be forced to choose between two options, they should make the choice. To achieve this, multiple carriers should be included in shipping solutions, as they will ultimately be responsible for fulfilling the order. Also, if you only work with one courier, shipments to certain destinations will likely be more expensive or take longer to transport than if you use multiple shipping companies.

The solution to this problem is to expand your carrier network and offer your store customers a greater choice of delivery methods. The customer will appreciate being able to choose between home delivery, in-store pickup, drop-off or carrier pick-up.

A very good way to implement this plan is to working with a tool like Outvio. The software allows you to manage many key post-sale processes. From integrating different carriers into one interface to make the user or his customer could choose the most appropriate shipping method, or sending email notifications to your customers about current delivery status, all the way to automated returns management or tracking of private label shipments. The tool has mobile app version, so you can manage your store from anywhere.

Create a checkout page for the mobile version.

Getting to the port is complicated when the route to follow is not very well mapped out. In e-commerce it is exactly the same – it is necessary to minimize the inconveniences that inevitably move the buyer away from conversion. To this end, the latest and most results-oriented trend is to Concentrating all the steps required to finally process an online purchase on a single page, called the checkout page.

There is just one thing to keep in mind, and that is that while it is true that these types of sites can give very good conversion rates if they are optimized and information properly synthesized, it is also possible to get the opposite effect. An inadequate approach to site structure will result in a wider gap in the purchase funnel, as the user-friendliness of the site will be significantly reduced.

Requirements to have a good one-page checkout for mobile devices:

• Keep it simple. Show what is really relevant to your goal, and get rid of unnecessary sections. The most important fields are product description, shipping information and payment methods.
• Dynamism. The information displayed by the checkout must be updated with every move made by the user. This way, the shopper will never have to leave or refresh the page when the total price displayed is not automatically updated after a change is made.
• Inclusivity. Finally, an element that can be applied to both single and multi-page checkouts. It is worthwhile to enable a quick and seamless shopping experience for visitors and anonymous customers. Forcing the user to sign up can be beneficial from a remarketing or database building point of view, but it is also a pretty visible barrier to real conversion in online commerce.

1. Add a pop-up chat.

One of the main missions of an online store is to maintain direct contact with the customer, regardless of the link in the sales funnel. We mention this because there are many online stores that design airtight checkouts, with no way to communicate with the customer.

This practice is quite harmful because sometimes the buying must ask a question to the sales or support team of the online store to ask about price, shipping terms or return policy. Whatever the reason, it’s important to be there to address any concerns.

If you integrate checkout chat into your online store, you can make your customers feel the difference between a regular checkout and one that fully meets their expectations. In addition, The chat box generates a sense of calm when completing the purchase, because it signifies the professionalism and care of the online store in question.

Keep the user’s attention.

The number of online stores has increased significantly over the past few years, so it is quite normal for users to have doubts when choosing between one online store and another.

In addition, it is important to remember that when shopping on mobile devices, users tend to perform several activities at once, which leads to their greater distraction. It is important to catch their attention from the first moment.

Success relies on accurate Know the real reason why customers buy your products, and on keeping the balance between what is useful and what is creative. This way, you can place those elements at strategic points that you think will attract your audience and create an eye-catching call to action.

Create trust in the mobile version of your checkout

Mobile checkouts are not as secure and widely accepted as their stationary version. Whether the customer pays by credit card, bank transfer or cash on delivery – making the buyer feel secure at the time of payment is A fundamental psychological factor towards success in this arena.

It is important to maintain an appropriate price to quality ratio of the product, because for some unknown reason many online stores tend to hide costs, usually shipping or taxes and live in the fictitious belief that the buyer will not notice it.

In order for the checkout to inspire maximum trust, the following elements are necessary:

• SSL certificate. It is a validation that confirms the identity of the company or online store. The certificate usually appears as a green bar with a padlock, right next to the domain url, but can also be placed in the middle of the page.
• Opinions of other users. What others say matters to us, and it matters a lot, so it’s a good idea to add a section with positive reviews from previous buyers so that a current customer has no doubts about the authenticity of the site.
• Payment verification. It is proof that the e-Commerce store in question has launched the payment gateways it claims to have. Options such as PayPal increase user trust because it shows that a particular online store’s checkout has passed certain security filters. Ideally, your payment service provider (PSP) allows you to take advantage of the latest trends in this field, such as digital wallets, deferred payments, or Bitcoin.

Abandoned shopping carts are a silent pest, which unnoticed grows in strength until it becomes a serious problem, so it is worth constantly optimize the checkout stage of the online store, in terms of devices used by the customer. Do not hesitate to put into practice what has been explained in this article, use the application we recommend: Outvio. You will see that the management of e-Commerce logistics will become easier, turnover will increase and customers will be more satisfied.