How consumers shop has drastically changed over the last few years, particularly post-COVID. With advancements in technology and increased usage of smartphones, the payment landscape has shifted from cash payments to digital wallets. In 2020, cash transactions decreased to 28%, and with the ease of use the digital dollar brings, digital wallets are expected to increase in use by almost 50% in North America by 2025 – making consumer preference for digital payments a new reality.
Given these shifts, merchants must be able to provide digital-first consumers with access to these modern payment methods. But advancements in payments can create headaches for e-store owners in the form of shopping cart abandonment.
According to the Baymard Institute, online shopping carts are abandoned at a whopping 70%. That means if there are 100 potential customers, about 70 will leave without making a purchase, which can drastically decrease revenue.
What is shopping cart abandonment?
Shopping cart abandonment refers to consumers adding items to their cart but leaving without making the purchase. Top reasons why shopping carts are abandoned include:
- The consumer changed their mind about the purchase.
- The checkout process required the user to create an account.
- The consumer had to enter all the billing and payment information.
- The merchant did not offer digital payment methods like Apple Pay or Google Pay.
- The checkout process was clunky and did not feel safe and secure.
Forrester estimates that Ecommerce businesses are losing a staggering $18B in yearly sales revenue because of shopping cart abandonment. Offering new ways to check out is the future and will help merchants stay ahead of the curve.
Driving more revenue through the checkout
There are four strategies that can help merchants drive more revenue through the checkout.
- Offer additional payment methods like Apple Pay and Google Pay. Apple Pay and Google Pay are similar offerings. While Apple Pay debuted in 2014 and Google Pay in 2018, both allow for contactless payments using NFC (near field communication) technology. Their implementations are slightly different, but with Apple, the main benefit is how seamless and effortless it is for Mac and iPhone users to pay online just by using their phones. Google, on the other hand, opts for a more traditional PIN-based authentication system. What makes both of them stand out, though, is how safe and secure they are when it comes to payments and sensitive data.
- Make sure the checkout process is device agnostic. There are more than 6.5B smartphone users and it’s on an upward trajectory, estimated to reach 7.5B by 2026. The checkout process should be compatible using any tablet, smartphone, or PC. With so many people on their phones today, digital wallets make it very convenient because there is little manual input required.
- Make your checkout safe and secure. Credit card fraud remains a significant problem worldwide. Every dollar of fraud results in $3.27 of fraud costs, and it’s impacting a percentage of total revenue. Additionally, cybercriminals are becoming even more sophisticated; hence merchants must keep their checkout safe and secure by implementing security tools like reCAPTCHA and 3D Secure, while scoring transactions for potential fraud and risk.
- Pick a platform that is PCI compliant. Payment security is at the heart of who Bluefin is. We are PCI, NACHA and HIPPA compliant, helping merchants to meet security requirements. Additionally, if PCI-validated P2PE and tokenization are used, the merchant does not handle sensitive data.
As consumer behaviors and preferences shift in a rapidly changing world, the convenience, safety, and ease of use of these digital methods will continue to win over customers and businesses. Digital wallets like Apple Pay and Google Pay provide the convenience of saving consumers’ billing, shipping, and contact information, which helps them prevent reentering their information, making it an easy and smooth navigation.
Bluefin offers a full range of payment options that increase authorizations while giving consumers the flexibility and the experience that they want. Learn more about Bluefin’s products today.
