Imagine the situation: you used money and time to attract customers, paid for advertising, prepared special offers, optimized the website for SEO. Then the customer goes to the online store, chooses the product, and wants to buy it. It would seem that you can calculate profits, but no. The user adds the desired product to the cart and throws it without making a purchase.
Why did he do so, what is threatening the online store and how to bring the buyer back? Disassemble in order.
According to research by marketing companies SaleCycle and Listrak, 70 to 80% of baskets in online stores abandon.
Why throw baskets with selected goods?
The reasons for abandoned baskets can divide into two groups:
- Independent of you. These include reasons that cannot influence: the customer first went in without intending to buy, just wanting to know the product’s characteristics, and added to the cart accidentally or for ease of viewing.
- Influenced. These reasons can correct by making the website more convenient and attractive, simplifying the payment process, and convincing you of your reliability.
There is nothing you can do with the reasons from the first group, a significant part of the added goods will not be bought – you will have to accept. But the grounds from the second group can and should be corrected. It would seem that a person did not want to buy a thing – not scary. Unpleasant but not critical, the online store is not damaged. But the situation is more serious: you had already spent resources to bring the customer to the choice of goods, and divorce when he wanted to make a purchase will be unprofitable. Spent resources will waste. So you lose money. But the situation is not hopeless: such a customer can return to the store.
How to return the user to the discarded trash?
To return the buyer and convince to complete the purchase, use several tools and techniques.
With the help of marketing tools, return up to 30% of customers who threw their baskets.
Most of these tools aim to improve the usability of the online store, communicate with the user, and send emails reminding you of abandoned purchases. They allow you to analyze the causes of abandoned baskets, eliminate them and return customers. But first, you can conduct an independent analysis.
We analyze the convenience of buying goods on the website
If it is inconvenient to buy in an online store, many abandoned user baskets cannot avoid it. But how to find out whether it is convenient for the user or not?
Does the store work at all?
Let’s start with the first stage: what happens when the buyer clicks the “Add to cart” button? The user needs to see that his action made sense and the function worked. If he understands this – everything is ok. Let’s move on.
Little information about the product
The user must have complete information about what he is buying. He may like the price, he will add the product, but then he doubts. Without finding detailed characteristics that would dispel doubts, he will go to another website. To avoid this, fill in a detailed description of the positions, add illustrations, reviews, instructions, and reviews.
Abandoned basket: maybe they just don’t see it?
There are several unwritten rules in the design of online stores: a bright and noticeable “Buy” button, a search bar at the top of the page, etc. Such rules include the location of the basket. The user must be able to find it quickly so that it not abandon. It is most common for this element to be in the upper right corner of the page. And if you highlight it with contrasting colors and display the number of added products, then the user will throw the cart without noticing it will reduce to a minimum. How to make the website design convenient read here.
Is this exactly what I chose?
The buyer wants to be sure that there is no error in making a purchase, and he pays exactly what he chose. Instead of a black iPhone, he will not buy gold. Instead of a microSD memory card, he inadvertently did not add a miniSD. Therefore, the main characteristics of the product must duplicate in the basket. After adding the product, the user can stay on the website for a long time and, during this time, forget what he chose. Therefore, your task is to remind yourself about it, and one name will not be enough. Also, allow the user to delete purchases from the cart, adjust their number and characteristics (for example, color, size), so that he does not have to return to the product page every time.
Payment methods, delivery terms
It is essential for the customer to immediately understand when the order will deliver to him and how much it will cost. If this information hides from him to the last, he becomes suspicious and loses confidence in the store.
According to Ecommerce Illustrated, 37% of buyers do not complete the purchase because delivery information is provided only in the late payment stages.
An essential factor in the prevention of abandoned baskets is the variety of payment methods. Some people are used to paying by bank card. Others trust only PayPal. Others – in the old way pay in cash. The more payment methods you have on the website, the less the customer wants to leave without completing the order.
I paid too hardand you
And now to the main thing – the payment process. It should be convenient and easy for the user to give money in your online store. The longer this process takes, the less the buyer’s desire to place an order. It is crucial to reduce the number of stages of ordering to the required minimum, which will be intuitive to the buyer. The linear sequence of payment will help with it. Its principle is that the user consistently goes through four stages: 1. Confirmation of choice. 2. Enter your data. 3. Choice of delivery terms. 4. Payment.
Additional steps mustn’t wedge into this sequence: registration, data collection forms, surveys, etc. – this scares the buyer. Even better if you visually show the person the succession of his actions. For example, number these steps and tell him what stage he is at. On average, it did not recommend splitting the payment process into more than five stages not to reduce the online store’s conversion.
Spend more time on registration?
User registration on the website is valuable – you receive customer data, follow his preferences, send letters, select individual offers, remind yourself. But the call to register when ordering is annoying and often leads to an abandoned cart. And so you need to choose the product, delivery terms, pay, and here is a whole page with many required fields to fill. And then go to the mailbox, look for a letter from the store to confirm registration – you will forget what you came for. It scares and demotivates.
There should be no mandatory registration, but if you do not want to clean it at all, here are two options to make it less intrusive:
- Simplify registration. Let the user enter only the name, mail, and password without any confirmation – leave it for later. An alternative is to register via social networks.
- Give a choice, a bright button “Register” and less noticeable “Checkout without registration”. Those in a hurry will notice the button, and the rest will register.
Remind the user about the discarded cart
You can try to return the buyer if you know his contacts: email and phone are best. If a person has registered or simply reached the ordering stage, they have probably left this information. What can do with them?
- Set up targeted advertising. In Google and Facebook, you can set up an advertising campaign aimed at these users: to remind them of discarded baskets, to recommend other products.
- Send an SMS with a reminder. Be sure to include relevant links to your shopping cart.
- Send emails. Unlike other ways, there is room for creativity. In addition to the usual reminder to the user about the remaining purchase, prepare for him a discount, promotion, individual offer, etc. This will increase the chances of returning the buyer.
How to write a letter to return to the abandoned basket
To customer want to return to the abandoned basket, it is vital to work on the content and design of the letter.
- Personalize the letter: Enter the name and city of the client if you know them. No official phrases are needed. Write like a good friend – with care, respect, and a desire to help.
- In the letter’s subject, indicate the name of the left product so that the recipient immediately understands what it is about. For example, “LG 500 TV awaits payment in the store …”
- Remind in the letter about the benefits of your store: convenient delivery conditions, warranties, return options – this will help convince the buyer to complete the order.
- Insert a relevant link in the letter, which leads not just to the store’s main page but directly to the abandoned cart so that the user does not have to do unnecessary actions.
- Don’t forget the call to action. In your case, this is the “Place Order” button.
- If the discarded goods are not from expensive categories, send a letter within the first 12 hours after the buyer left the website. You can do this in several stages for expensive items: a day, then three days, and a week.
We configure tools that reduce the likelihood of an abandoned basket
How else, in addition to the convenient process of payment for purchases, as well as letters and address reminders, to reduce the percentage of baskets thrown by users? Additional tools on the website will help.
Inline consultant
Connect the widget of the inline consultant so that the user can clarify essential details at any time: delivery, discounts, warranty. This tool will also help support the user at the stage of payment: if you get confused in filling in the fields, he will instantly receive a message from you with a hint and complete the registration.
Callback
Not everyone is comfortable looking for the right information on the website and browse the categories searching for the right thing. Some want to be immediately asked questions of interest, not in a letter, but orally. For such cases, connect a pop-up requesting a callback. So you can convince the buyer of your reliability and push to complete the transaction, and at the same time – to collect phone numbers for further mailings.
Pop-ups with unpaid goods
If a user has added an item to the cart and continues to view other pages on your website, it is unnecessary to wait until it is completely gone to remind you to complete the purchase. Set up a pop-up on the website to remind you that selected products are awaiting payment.
Special proposals
Enter a system of personal discounts and incentives. For example, make a pop-up window with a letter promising the buyer a 5% discount if he places an order within the next hour.
You need to work with abandoned baskets in three directions.
- The first is website optimization; You can make the website convenient and pay special attention to the payment process.
- Second, return users if you have their contacts: write trigger letters, set up targeted advertising.
- And third – set up special marketing tools that reduce the likelihood of abandoned baskets: widgets, pop-ups.