Scaling Facebook Ads For Ecommerce [Ultimate Guide]
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Shopping cart abandonment has got to be high one the list of frustrating things every ecommerce store must deal with. You’ve done the hard part getting traffic to your site, providing great products and even offering exclusive discounts. You can see customers browsing and adding products to their cart, inching closer to a sale.
But then, all of a sudden they leave your site. What happened?
There are a number of reasons why ecommerce cart abandonment happens. And while not all cart abandoners can be stopped, luckily I’ve got 8 successful tactics for reducing shopping cart abandonment in 2022.
Let’s dive in.
Shopping cart abandonment is when a customer has clicked “Add to Cart” on one or more items in an online shop, then left the site without checking out. Sometimes they may have simply forgotten, but the most likely reason for this is they changed their mind or the process took too long to complete.
As you can imagine, shopping cart abandonment is something you want to avoid. As an online retailer, it’s important that your customers complete the entire checkout process from start to finish, rather than giving up halfway through.
There are a number of reasons that potential customers might abandon their cart without completing their purchase. Understanding the common reasons for cart abandonment can help you figure out how to fix this.
Whether it’s the cost of the item(s) they were considering buying or the cost of shipping, sometimes prices can drive potential customers away.
For shipping, sometimes the best way to get around this is:
As we see here in the top left corner of clothing retailer Express’s website, they offer free shipping on orders of $50 or more.
Maybe your website went down, crashed, or couldn’t process payment information. If something like this happens, customers can get frustrated and simply leave the site rather than trying to go through checkout all over again.
Be sure to have your development team regularly run through the checkout process and keep an eye on analytics to make sure there are no bugs causing customers to drop off without buying.
Some buyers are browsing your website and adding products they want into their cart, then leaving them with full intention to come back and complete the sale after they’ve done a bit more research into the products or what they want.
There isn’t much you can do to combat this, but at least a lot of these buyers will make a purchase at a later date.
Finally, one reason that people abandon their carts – and unfortunately, it’s a reason that you can’t do anything about – is because they were simply browsing around your site, building a wishlist, and window shopping virtually.
Shopping cart abandonment can never be eliminated completely, but we do have some high-impact strategies on how you can reduce this issue.
Tired of the “almost purchases?” The “so close but no cigars?”
We get the frustration. Read through these eight tactics to see which you can implement for your ecommerce business in order to reduce shopping cart abandonment and help your customers see their purchases through to the end.
Potential buyers want to make sure they’re purchasing from a reputable company and that their payment information is going to be secure.
In order to show customers that they can trust you, there are a few key pieces of information you should make easy to find.
First, your shipping, return, and refund policies should all be easy for customers to find. Plant retailer The Sill has a link in their footer to this shipping FAQ page with all the information a concerned first time buyer might need.
Make sure your own policy pages are easy to find. Place them in your footer and all throughout the checkout process so customers are fully aware of if they can return products and how to do so.
Add any trust marks or badges you’ve earned on the header or footer of your site, like “Fair Trade Certified.” During checkout, include icons for all of the different payment methods you accept, like Visa/Mastercard, Google Trusted Store, PayPal, and more.
Help customers feel more at ease about buying from your business by including customer reviews on your website.
In this example from Edloe Finch, they’ve included customer reviews and product photos at the bottom of each product page to prove that their products are reputable.
Or think to how Amazon’s product pages are laid out. Each product includes a star rating, written reviews, and customer photos to prove legitimacy.
Ecommerce merchandising is all about creating a cohesive online shopping experience for your customers. While brick-and-mortar shops have the luxury of creating table setups and grouping similar items together, the ecommerce experience tends to be a bit different.
To help improve the customer experience in your online shop, test tactics like the following:
Take advantage of website analytics so that you have a clear understanding of how your customers use your website. Use that information to improve the overall flow of your website from one product to another.
One thing that could potentially stop a customer from making a purchase is the lack of customer support they need to feel secure in your business.
Don’t let that be a factor for your customers. Investing in excellent customer service is key.
Provide a phone number, email address, or contact form on your website that’s easily accessible from any page. Better yet, add a live chat option onto your website.
There are tools like Drift and Olark that make it easy to implement something like this. Simply add the plugin to your site and make sure you have someone manning the web or mobile app to respond to questions.
Depending on the size of your business, people won’t always expect an immediate answer. If you’re only available for customer support during certain hours of the day, make sure to include that on your contact page so people reaching out know when they can expect to get a response.
To see online customer service in action, ake a look at this support dropdown from Contigo. They’ve placed this right at the top of their website so that anyone looking for help is immediately provided options.
If you’re looking around and noticing that your competitors are offering free shipping, you need to figure out how to do the same or you’ll lose business to them every time.
Social media ad retargeting is a powerful way to bring customers back to your site. Statistics show that the CTR for retargeting campaigns is 10 times more than regular display ads. You’re targeting people who were already mid-purchase, making them much more likely to return to your website and complete their order.
However, it never hurt to entice them even further.
Set up a remarketing campaign that puts the products they almost bought right in front of their eyes again – but this time, include a small discount alongside it if they complete their purchase. 10% off or $10 off is plenty (depending on the cost).
Another option is to send an email reminder with a discount, or simply a friendly nudge.
Here’s a great example from 7 For All Mankind. Not only does it include images of every product the recipient almost purchased, they’ve also provided a 15% discount the next time they take a look at their cart.
If you compare the two, we see that the gold watering can has 4.5 stars with over 400 ratings. The tin watering can has none, leading us to believe that it has been purchased much less often (if at all).
High-quality product photos matter.
Your images should be visually appealing and clearly display what each product is in detail. They should target your audience. Showcase your product in action using your customer’s aesthetic so they’re drawn in.
It’s also a good idea to showcase your product in context. Include photos of someone trekking up a mountain trail in the hiking boots you’re selling. Take photos of your water bottles being used by someone at the gym. Style furniture with trending decor.
Get creative and be unique so your products stand out the most and give the best insight into your product.
Our last strategy recommendation for reducing shopping cart abandonment is to provide a completely seamless online shopping experience and ensure your ecommerce store is optimised for conversions.
The entire store should be easy to navigate and the overall checkout process linear and clear.
First, make sure the cart icon is right at the top of your website and as easy as possible for shoppers to locate when they’re ready to check out.
Next, don’t add too many steps to the checkout process. Make it quick and streamlined to go from reviewing the cart to providing shipping information then payment information.
Additionally, take a page out of AYBL’s book and offer a variety of ways for your customers to pay. Some people have specific preferences on how they like to pay for things, so do your best to accommodate for those.
Finally, test and review your checkout process often to make sure no bugs are popping up that are causing issues and frustration for your customers.
Providing a seamless shopping experience should be your number one priority, both for generating and retaining customers.
You should be just about ready to start improving your checkout processes and ensuring your customers stop abandoning their shopping cart. To learn more about improving your overall ecommerce marketing, get in touch today.
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