Your website is complete, your online marketing in Houston implemented and you’re getting traffic. Why are sales decreasing? Consider the reasons listed below when you are determining why consumers are abandoning their shopping cart. A better understanding of why and when they are leaving your website will help in developing a solution.
Twenty-five percent of shoppers leave websites without buying simply because the website is too complicated (study by Statistia). Websites that are not user-friendly, require forced registrations, authorize disruptive advertising, or have extensive check out procedures can dissuade shoppers from completing their purchase and send them to your competitors.
To understand why shoppers are not transacting, you need to look at what point in the purchase process they are leaving your website. If your website analytics show that most your visitors are never getting to your shopping cart you can conduct user experience studies to identify where the roadblocks are. When you make the shopping experience easy, intuitive and enjoyable you are well on your way to increasing your sales.
One of the most common reasons people leave a website after they get to the shopping cart is because the checkout process is too complicated. Too many steps, long forms, and repetitive tasks can all make a simple process too complex for your shoppers. Consider the user interface of your checkout flow and whether a single-page version is more efficient than clicking through pages. In addition, you can provide users with the option to save their payment and shipping information to make their checkout easier the next time around. Shortening forms, and simplifying your checkout process can considerably decrease your cart abandonment rate and increase sales. Ensure you choose an experienced website developer in Houston when building your ecommerce website.
Fifty-six percent of the shoppers in the Statistia study left a website before paying because they were presented with unexpected costs. Thirty-six percent said they left because they found a better deal elsewhere, and thirty-two percent said the price was too high.
Make sure that your product pricing is in line with industry standards, and track your competitors sales and promotional offers. Distinguish yourself from competitors by educating your consumers into making good buying decisions. The value offering should always be communicated clearly and quickly.
Attracting people who are at the very beginning of their buying cycle is inevitable. These visitors will not convert to buyers simply because they are not ready. You can still leverage their visit by providing incentives to leave their email address in exchange for something of value, such as a first time buyer discount. Implementing a lead management program can help convert top of the funnel browsers into buyers when they’re ready to buy.
According to an online survey by Forrester Research, only 16 percent of people believe that online merchants are trustworthy when it comes to protecting their personal information, and more than half of consumers are concerned about identity theft. Ecommerce providers can build trust with consumers by developing and openly promoting their system security features, ensuring that security certifications are prominently displayed.
An unexpectedly high shipping cost or long delivery time frame can deter consumers from making a purchase. The Statista study reported that 16 percent of shoppers left websites because the shipping options were not suitable, and a recent Comscore study found that 61 percent of shoppers would leave a website that didn’t offer free shipping.
If your shipping options are limited or expensive investigate lower cost options. If you find that delivery times are growing, look for expedited delivery options.
Remember, shoppers will make a decision whether or not to stay on your website within the first 5-10 seconds of visiting. Ensure your website analytics are in place and that you understand the motivations behind abandonment. Start a survey, ask for feedback, or perform user testing. Get to the bottom of why you are losing out on revenue and new relationships with online shoppers.
