Report reveals consumer attitudes on shopping cart abandonment

Durham, N.C. -- Marketers are constantly combating shopping cart abandonment, and with good reason: Abandonment rates range from 70%-80%. The good news is that much can be done to reduce abandonment, recapture sales from abandoned shopping carts, and provide a better shopping experience for consumers, according to a new report by Bronto Software and Magento



The study, “Why We Don’t Buy: Consumer Attitudes on Shopping Cart Abandonment,” is based on an Ipsos-conducted survey of the shopping cart behavior of over 1,000 U.S. consumers who made an online purchase within the past twelve months. It shows that consumers often use the shopping cart as a tool for saving items to buy later: Fifty-six percent of consumers who purchase online at least once a month use the shopping cart to store items to buy later.



“Providing options for shoppers to modify carted items, like changing sizes, colors, or quantities, can aid the decision making process for many consumers and increase the likelihood that they’ll buy rather than abandon,” said Jim Davidson, Bronto’s manager of marketing research and the report’s main author. “Many consumers are also using shopping carts as ‘wish lists’ so they can store items to buy later. Marketers who add a wish list option to the shopping experience gain another opportunity to convert shoppers to buyers.”



“The findings in this report point to the need for retailers to improve shopping cart options and flexibility in order to give shoppers more confidence to cart and purchase their items,” said Ryan Thompson, Magento’s director of partnerships. “Another important takeaway is for retailers to provide innovative and fun ways for consumers to browse, consider purchases and update their shopping carts and wish lists.”



In other findings:

• Nearly half of all consumers surveyed find the shopping cart abandonment reminder emails they receive to be helpful versus annoying or intrusive, and 61% report they’re likely to return to a site after receiving such messages.


• Forty percent of consumers will use the online shopping cart to store items to view on a different device. Providing shoppers with a mobile optimized cart experience can help retailers convert potential abandoners into buyers.


• Thirty-five percent of consumers will view online shopping carts on a mobile device while in a store. Is your store staff prepared to help the online customer transition their purchase intent to in-store buying?