Bad UX is Driving Up Cart Abandonment — Here’s How to Fix It

If you think consumers are coming to your website just to buy something, you’re in trouble.

Consumers today desire a broader shopping experience that includes researching products, comparing prices, and learning about a brand.

For online retailers, a positive customer experience depends on the user experience on the brand’s website.

Online retailers that fail to meet consumers’ demands for accessible information and easy-to-navigate websites will face rising rates of cart abandonment and lower customer retention.

In other words, user experience has a direct influence on the likelihood consumers will complete an online purchase.

Instantly boost UX and reduce cart abandonment. Discover how.

Bad UX drives cart abandonment

Cart abandonment occurs when a visitor to your website selects items for purchase but leaves before making the payment. It’s an important metric for businesses to determine how many potential customers they failed to convert.

But the more interesting question is why.

In many cases, a poor user experience on the company’s website is to blame.

Imagine Fred arrives at your website with the intention to buy a specific product. He begins searching for it according to the product category, but can’t find it. He then decides to filter by the product’s manufacturer. He finally locates it, reads the description, and adds it to his cart.

It then occurs to him that he should read some product reviews to be sure other shoppers were satisfied with the item. But now Fred, who is extremely frustrated, can’t find where the reviews are posted.

Before he realizes he has to click on another button to see reviews, Fred has already left your site. Your competitor, whose website has much better UX, has just gained a customer.

We’ve got the numbers

40% of consumers shop online at least once a month, and 21% shop online at least once a week, according to findings from Episerver’s 2018 global ecommerce survey.

As eCommerce continues to gain dominance, revenue and customer retention depend on a company’s ability to provide the optimal online shopping experience.

However, poor website navigation and trouble accessing information about a desired product remain major challenges for brands. They not only harm the customer experience, but also lead to cart abandonment.

• 54% of Episerver survey respondents said they have left a brand’s website or app before completing a purchase because they couldn’t find what they were looking for.
• 37% said they’ve abandoned a site because there wasn’t enough information to make a purchase.
• 64% of shoppers said incorrect or incomplete content on a brand’s website or mobile app always or often dissuades them from completing a purchase.

The inability for customers to locate information is a UX problem, and it has a material effect on a brand’s bottom line.

Let CX guide your UX

When shopping online, consumers expect online retailers to deliver product information with speed and consistency. They expect the interface to be simple and intuitive. But providing these features is about more than just convenience.

The best UX designers know that a positive customer experience leads to greater customer spending.

73% of consumers say the customer experience is an important factor in their purchasing decisions, according to findings from PwC, and 43% would pay more for greater convenience.

Don’t let your customers get lost — take them by the hand

Online retailers can raise UX and drastically reduce rates of cart abandonment with website navigation tools, such as a Digital Adoption Platform (DAP).

A DAP virtually eliminates the risk of users getting lost, becoming frustrated, and leaving your site before making a purchase. It works by sending contextual, step-by-step guidance to visitors at the time of need.

Think of it as virtual hand holding through the entire customer journey, from the moment they enter your site to checkout.

The solution provides further opportunities to improve UX by showing site administrators where customers encounter friction along the user journey.

Keep the customer experience at the forefront

The most successful eCommerce businesses have one thing in common: they continually strive to improve the customer experience.

This encompasses a variety of factors, including friendly customer service, easy returns, and fast shipping. But before a customer even reaches those touchpoints, he or she must be able to easily navigate your site. On the other hand, a frustrating user experience will drive up cart abandonment, reduce customer retention, and hurt your bottom line.

Take advantage of tools that can do the hard work for you. A DAP is a simple solution to ensure your website consistently meets consumers’ demands for convenience, ease, and speed.

Improve your website’s UX and guarantee a positive customer experience with one simple solution.