Ever wondered why your online shoppers are ditching their carts at checkout? If you answered yes, you might be in the middle of a checkout conversion problem.

In other words, visitors come to your website to make a purchase, but leave before completing their purchase. This phenomenon is all too common in e-commerce, with abandoned cart rates having skyrocketed to 70% in 2023.

Fortunately, there are several effective tactics businesses can employ to tackle this problem head-on and reclaim your potential customers. In this blog, we'll delve into the top ways you can boost checkout conversion rates and up your revenue.

But first, why are people dropping out?  

There are many reasons why people visit your online store, make their way through a purchase process and then at the last minute totally change their minds. Here's a list of the typical reasons why you’re not getting those wins. 

• Complicated checkout process: A lengthy or convoluted checkout process with too many steps or form fields can discourage customers from completing their purchase.

• Account creation walls: Requiring users to register or create an account before checkout can be a barrier, especially for first-time visitors.

• Lack of preferred payment option: If your store doesn't offer the payment method preferred by a customer, they may abandon their cart rather than compromise on payment security or convenience.

• Lack of trust in website security: Concerns about the security of personal and financial information can cause customers to abandon their carts if they don't trust the website's security measures.

• Unable to save the items for later: Some customers might wish to save items for future purchase or comparison, leading them to abandon their carts temporarily.

• Website errors: Technical glitches or slow loading times can frustrate visitors and lead them to abandon their carts.

Top ways to improve your checkout conversions rate 

1. Simplify the checkout process

People appreciate a clear and intuitive buying process. However, many businesses fail to deliver on this. To increase conversion rates, aim to make the journey to checkout as simple as possible without unnecessary steps, forms, or pop-ups. To create a simplest checkout process: be mindful of general design and layout, and  keep the journey as quick (and painless) as possible. 

2. Offer guest checkout

As mentioned above, there should be minimal steps before checkout. A great technique to achieve this is by offering Guest Checkout options. This allows potential shoppers to bypass account creation and purchase items directly, thereby potentially preventing a 35% drop in transactions. Shoppers provide their information for their order, such as their name, shipping address, and payment details, without wasting their precious time creating an account on your website.

3. Optimize for mobile

Most folks these days shop on their mobile phones - 76% of adults (US), to be exact. If you're running an ecommerce store, you'd best make sure that you adjust mobile navigation so that your online store is fully optimized for the mobile experience. Key actions you can take include ensuring a highly responsive design, providing an optimal mobile view, and integrating payment options like Apple Pay, Google Pay, and PayPal, allowing users to complete their purchases with a single touch or click.

4. Display clear shipping fees

If you have global customers shopping from your online store, they probably want to see shipping costs before they click the pay button. Shipping costs can significantly affect prices, and purchasing an item without shipping costs can appear quite different at checkout. To avoid misleading customers, it's best to display clear shipping costs and available payment methods clearly on the checkout page. Doing this helps shoppers make better-informed decisions, ensures transparent pricing, and even boosts trust.

5. Communicate trust

Customers want to feel safe and secure when making purchases online. This includes having a reputable-looking website and displaying various badges for payment security, data protection, and purchase policies. Creating a trustworthy relationship with your customers boosts conversion rates. In fact, statistics show that 35% of potential buyers abandon a site without a security badge. These trust signals reassure customers that their information is safe and their purchase is protected.

6. Offer multiple payment options

Different customers have various preferences when it comes to payment methods. The Baymard Institute found that 6% of cart abandonments occur due to a lack of preferred payment methods. With more options, paying becomes more convenient, increasing the likelihood of completing a purchase. By offering multiple payment options, you make it easier for customers to pay in a way that suits their preferences and needs.

7. Use abandoned cart emails

Implementing an abandoned cart marketing strategy is crucial. A great way to do this is by  re-engaging customers through "abandoned cart emails." Setting up emails gently reminds customers about their abandoned carts, highlights the items left behind, and utilizes personalized tactics tailored to reflect their buyer interests. Additionally, offering exclusive discounts or special offers can entice customers to return and seal the deal.

8. Reduce card decline rates

Having your customer click on the "pay" button can still turn out to be a lost conversion. Countless good deals are lost due to card declines - in fact, an average of 10% of checkout purchases get thrown out right at this very last conversion stage. This problem often goes unnoticed by merchants, but it can lead to millions of dollars lost for your business, not to mention the wasted marketing costs. With Bounce, your ecommerce business can identify false card declines and recover over 30% of them in real time, ensuring you capture valuable revenue opportunities and minimize losses effectively.

Optimize checkout for success

Whether it’s confusing web design, or false card declines, improving your checkout process is vital for ecommerce success. With many factors leading to cart abandonment, streamlining the online checkout is crucial for retaining customers, building loyalty, and boosting revenue. By prioritizing checkout optimization, businesses can seamlessly guide customers through the buying journey and resolve common pain points that maximize value from your shoppers.