What is Abandoned Cart Recovery?

Abandoned cart recovery is a sales strategy for re-engaging shoppers who leave items in their online shopping cart without completing a purchase. Implementing this strategy helps merchants encourage customers to finalize their orders. When successful, abandoned cart recovery can lead to substantial revenue increases.

Cart abandonment is a widespread issue in e-commerce. Studies show that the average shopping cart abandonment rate is around 72%. That’s a lot of money left on the table. With so many carts left unfulfilled, reducing cart abandonment to recover lost sales is one of the easiest ways to improve overall profitability.

Why Do People Abandon Carts?

There are several reasons why shoppers fail to complete purchases after adding something to their cart. Some visitors are simply browsing and adding goods to their cart as a way to save them for later viewing. Others may have some purchase intent but could be comparing prices or exploring other options. However, there are well-defined factors that often lead to abandoned carts:

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• Unexpected Costs: Hidden fees such as shipping, taxes, or additional charges account for 55% of cart abandonment.

• Complicated Checkout Process: Lengthy or confusing checkout experiences deter 21% of shoppers.

• Security Concerns: About 17% of users abandon their carts due to a lack of trust in the website’s payment security.

How Does Abandoned Cart Recovery Work?

Businesses employ a variety of techniques to recover abandoned carts. Here are some common methods of encouraging customers to complete their orders:

Chat Reminders

AI-powered chat assistants can send real-time reminders about items still in the cart. For example, Rep AI’s conversational chat can detect when a shopper has disengaged to intuitively nudge the individual to continue shopping and complete their purchase. These reminders are highly effective as the AI can also quickly assist the customer with any pre-purchase questions directly in the chat.

Email Campaigns

Sending follow-up emails to remind customers about their abandoned items is the traditional method of abandoned cart recovery. While it requires the person to be subscribed to your email list, the strategy can be effective. Abandoned cart email messages can include discounts or promotions to further entice them to complete their purchase.

SMS Follow-Ups

Sending a personalized reminder text message that includes a direct link to their cart is another effective way to recover lost carts. Like email, this strategy is only available for users who have opted in for SMS notifications.

Benefits of Abandoned Cart Recovery

Implementing an abandoned cart recovery strategy offers numerous advantages for e-commerce businesses:

• Increased Revenue: Recovering abandoned carts can significantly boost sales without the need for additional customer acquisition.
• Improved Customer Experience: Personalized follow-ups and user-specific offers can result in more engaging shopping experiences.
• Improved website analytics: Tracking cart abandonment metrics provides valuable data to optimize the checkout process and improve overall conversion rates.
• Cost Efficiency: Retargeting previous visitors is often more cost-effective than targeting top-of-funnel (TOFU) traffic.

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