As the competition heats up in the ecommerce industry, every well-run business is always looking for ways to maximize their existing customer base and eek out every potential percentage of efficiency.

One such method is for ecommerce businesses to address the ever-present issue of cart abandonment. Tackling abandon cart issues provides a way for subscription and ecommerce businesses to increase their revenue and acquisitions, all from within their existing customer base and without the need for additional traffic generation.

In this article, we’ll explore the importance of targeting abandon cart users, the differences between ecommerce and subscription cart abandonment, and the role digital customer engagement platforms have in driving additional revenue.

‍

Why Cart Abandonment Matters

A study by Adobe in 2017 showed that cart abandonment rates for all online transactions reached a staggering 75.5%.

This statistic highlights the potential impact of a campaign to target abandon cart users, who are shown to make up a significant majority of all user interactions for subscription and ecommerce businesses.

If a business website is shown to have a high abandon cart rate, this would typically signify potential technical or user experience issues that are affecting the sales funnel or customer journey. 

Addressing these issues ultimately has a direct and potentially significant impact on sales revenue, and therefore should form a core part of any sales strategy.

‍

What is Cart Abandonment in Ecommerce?

Ecommerce cart abandonment is the term for any user or customer who has begun the sales process for an online order but for any reason does not complete the purchase.

Ecommerce shopping cart abandonment rate is typically measured by dividing the total recorded number of completed transactions by the total number of initiated transactions. This typically involves stages such as “basket” and “checkout”.

‍

What is Cart Abandonment in Subscriptions?

Whilst the general principle in cart abandonment is similar between ecommerce and subscription-based websites, there are some notable differences between the transaction processes.

Subscription-based abandon carts typically have more stages at which a user or potential customer may drop out of the process.

As a subscription sign-up can be a multi-step journey, such as an initial email address stage followed by package or feature selection, the number of exit points is far higher and complex than a simple basket/checkout system.

Because of this fact, reaching out and engaging with a potential customer who has dropped out of a subscription sign-up requires a more personalized and data-led approach, such as:

• Personalized email reminders
• Pop-ups to engage with returning users
• Restarting customer journey at exit point

‍

What Are the Key Differences?

• There is no straightforward basket/checkout system for subscription-based services
• Subscription sign-ups are more complex and create higher numbers of exit points compared to ecommerce transactions
• Targeting abandon cart users for subscription-based services requires a more personalized and data-led engagement strategy.

‍

How Redfast Targets Cart Abandonment to Drive Sales

By using our platform, our existing clients have seen an average 11% increase in customer acquisition through targeting users who have yet to complete their subscription sign up journey.

Our digital customer engagement platform also finds and targets users in the checkout process that may be exiting the site. By using personalized prompts and engagement to complete checkout or signup with an offer, Redfast can:

• Increase return visits after first visit
• Add user to outbound messaging campaigns
• Increase registered user count

‍

To learn more about how Redfast can help your business drive increased sales and target cart abandonment, visit our How It Works page or contact our team to request a personalized demonstration.

‍