UK online shoppers are less likely to abandon their shopping baskets than ever before, with the checkout abandonment rate reaching a record low in Q1 2015 (February-April), the latest survey by the British e-commerce association IMRG revealed.
While abandonment rates on online retail checkout pages used to be very high, a consistent improvement in this area could be observed. According to the results of the IMRG Capgemini Quarterly Benchmarking that counts the first quarter of the year from February to April, the checkout abandonment rate for UK online rail sites fell to a record low of 26%. In the first quarter of 2013, it was considerably higher at 35% and fell to 30% in 2014.
The survey results also revealed that sales through mobile devices (smartphones and tablets) gradually increased accounting for 42% of total UK online retail sales in Q1 2015, up from 40% in the previous quarter. The corresponding figure in Q1 2014 was considerably lower at 34%.
At present, 58% of traffic to online retail sites comes via a smartphone or tablet device, up from 53% in the previous quarter and 48% in Q1 last year.
Tina Spooner, chief information officer at IMRG, said: “Reducing abandonment at the checkout is a clear focus for online retailers and, despite the fact it has come down significantly, just over a quarter of online shoppers still do not complete their purchase after reaching the checkout page. There are any number of reasons why shoppers might abandon at that point – particularly in relation to trust, convenience or delivery options – and the investment made in improving these areas appears to be paying off.
On mobile trends, she added: “The pace of change for the online retail industry is extremely rapid. Three years ago mobile devices accounted for 1 in 5 visits to retail sites and today almost 60% of consumers browse the web on smartphone and tablet devices. It is clear that investing in optimising sites for mobile users needs to be a key focus for many retailers.”
Alex Smith-Bingham, Head of Digital, Consumer Products and Retail, Capgemini, highlighted the increase in mobile sales as a key factor in the decreased checkout abandonment rate. He acknowledged considerable investments by retailers in optimising their sites for mobile and developing applications to make it easier for customers to make purchases on the go.
“However, there is still room for improvement in terms of the technology on offer. For example, mobile payments could be a lot smoother and the identification of potential purchase items through mobiles easier. As the mobile shopping experience becomes ever more intuitive and immediate, I expect abandonment rates to continue to fall,” he concluded.
