What is ‘Cart Abandonment’ and how can it affect your online channels?



Cart abandonment in an offline sense, is like walking around a supermarket and filling your basket with items, only to change your mind and walk out with nothing.

This is a reality for e-Commerce sales channels and there are multiple reasons why customers do this; it may be that they are saving the items for later, browsing for gift ideas or comparing prices. Whichever of these reasons it is, the truth is that it has never been easier for customers to abandon their basket in comparison to a physical experience. In fact, it has been reported that on average e-Commerce stores are seeing an abandonment rate of c.70%. This however presents huge opportunity if your e-Commerce strategy recognises this and responds effectively.

This is something to consider when looking at the different elements of the customer experience of your store. There are many factors which can effectively reduce cart abandonment rates, increase conversions and improve retention rates - as these go hand in hand.

Why do customers abandon their cart?

Beymard have conducted extensive research into customer behaviour online and presented some interesting findings on why customers abandon the checkout process. The biggest reason being unexpected shipping costs which drives the customer away. In addition, making it compulsory to register an account is a major driver for increased cart abandonment. At Omni Automotive, we constantly look to simplify and improve the customer journey, taking into consideration the latest research and insights.

Cart Abandonment

How can you reduce this?

Although the average abandonment rate is nearly 70% there are a number of strategies that can be adopted to reduce this figure. It is crucial to take a customer centric approach, with organisations such as Amazon now offering ‘1-click checkout’, customers expect a simple and quick process to buy.

Take a look at your store from a customer perspective; for example - is it easy to checkout? are you requesting more information than required to fulfil the order? are you clearly communicating your delivery costs throughout the journey? These are just a few aspects of how the customer journey should be at the centre of your approach.

There are many other areas to consider and the landscape is continually changing as customers’ expectations heighten. Omni Automotive continually look to improve the customer journey for our clients and regularly review analytics surrounding abandonment to deliver the best results.


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