11 Do's and 3 Don'ts for Shopping Cart Abandonment
Published on MarketingVox
From MarketingVox 2/22/2011
Online retailers lose approximately $18 billion every year in shopping cart abandonment, according to a new survey by Listrak. Despite this significant sum, few companies deploy tools - and fewer deploy them properly - to entice the consumer back to the sale. Just 13% of the Internet Retailer 500 has active shopping cart abandonment remarketing campaigns in place to address this - a number that is up only slightly from 11% in 2009. Listrak estimates that a well-timed email could convert approximately 20% to 35% of those lost sales.
Recovery Emails
One of the most basic tools - and most misused - is the recovery email, that is, an email sent to the consumer after the sale was abandoned to see if it can be closed.
Low Hanging Fruit
Of the e-tailers that do have a strategy, many limit themselves to the low-hanging fruit. Most know to send an email within 24 hours of the sale abandonment, while the prospective purchase is still fresh in the consumer’s mind. Also, most firms know to snag an email address before any other business is conducted. Many firms, however, are ignoring other tactics, such as personalizing the email - only 34% of e-tailers did so in 2010, according to the survey, down from 36% in 2009.
Also only one-third - 34% - offered incentives to complete the survey, down from 45% in 2009. Only 5% offered free shipping, despite the fact that almost half of shopping carts are abandoned because of these costs.
Other tips Listrak suggests include:
• Include a picture of the items left in the cart and links to product reviews
• Liberally display security icons that show the online transaction is safe, such as those from Verisign, Cybertrust, McAfee SECURE trustmark, etc.
• Provide a toll free-number for the customer service department. While you are at it, offer to complete the transaction in those channels, such as through live chat or a call center.
• Include links to the return policy and privacy policy
• Give an easy way to complete the purchase
• Include an unsubscribe link so recipients can opt-out of the re-marketing campaigns without unsubscribing from the original marketing list
• Inform the shopper the cart and any incentives will expire if action isn’t taken.
Don't however:
• Give the consumer the feeling he or she is being watched - too much data provided in the email about the shopper’s browsing or buying habits is creepy.
• Hound. Two emails gently nudging a sale should be the limit. Get impatient and let loose with all kinds of offers. A study by security firm McAfee found that 65% of online shoppers wait a day or more to fully convert on a purchase anyway. Its conclusion that what many call shopping cart abandonment may simply be characteristic of a cautious shopper.