Cart abandonment is a common situation in the eCommerce world, where customers add products to their shopping cart but leave the website without paying the bill.
This can happen for various reasons, from unexpected costs to a complicated checkout process. A common issue in e-commerce sites often reflecting challenges in the purchasing process or external factors influencing the buyer’s decision.
Understanding the reasons behind cart abandonment can help businesses implement strategies to recover these lost sales and improve the overall customer experience. Shopify provides tools to help customers understand abandonment patterns and implement strategies to recover lost sales.
For example, let’s say a customer named “John Mackay” adds his favorite dress to his cart, but before finalizing the purchase, she decides to do it because she wasn’t expecting the additional shipping fees. This leads to a lost sale for the retailer.
5 Reasons for cart Abandoned
→ Waiting for Exclusive Offers or Discounts
Shoppers may often leave items in their cart if they expect an exclusive discount or offer in the future. They may be hoping for a coupon or special offer that will make the purchase more attractive. If a business can send time-sensitive offers or discount reminders, they may have better sales converting these shoppers into customers. whereas ,Shopify merchants can provide discount pop-ups, offers, or automated email reminders to encourage customers to complete their purchases.
→ Unexpected Charges (Shipping, Taxes, or Fees)
One of the most common reasons for cart abandonment is the additional costs during checkout. Extra charges like shipping fees, taxes, or service fees are often added just before the final purchase step. If customers are not informed about these charges they may decide to abandon their cart rather than proceed with the order. To solve this, Shopify allows merchants to display estimated shipping costs upfront and offer free shipping thresholds to improve conversion rates.
→ Lack of Trust in the Website’s Security
Security is a top concern for online buyers, especially when it comes to entering payment information. If a customer feels that a website is not secure, they may abandon their cart due to lack of issues towards the website. Having visible trust signals can help to recognize this concern and encourage customers to complete their purchases. Shopify provides SSL certification, PCI compliance, and trust badges to reassure customers that their transactions are secure.
→ High Delivery Time
Customers today expect fast delivery. If the estimated delivery time is too long or unclear, shoppers may choose to abandon their carts and look for faster alternatives elsewhere. Shopify merchants can integrate real-time shipping estimations, provide express delivery options, and clearly state expected delivery dates on product pages.
→ Limited Payment Options
Payment options plays a vital role in cart abandonment. If a customer cannot find their required payment mode, they may leave the website in search of a more convenient option. Offering a variety of payment options can help to reduce the issue. Shopify supports various payment gateways, including PayPal, Apple Pay, and Shopify Payments, ensuring seamless transactions.
How to check Abandoned Carts of store?
To successfully track and recover abandoned carts, it’s essential to monitor and analyze cart abandonment data. Adflipr provides built-in features to track and analyze abandoned carts It provides an easy-to-use way for this task. Here’s how you can check abandoned carts on adflipr:
- Install the adflipr application on your shopify store then,
- Connect Your Store First, ensure that your store is connected to a supported platform. This allows to access your store data and track abandoned carts.
- Now got to www.adflipr.com/app/login. Access the Abandoned Cart Section
Once connected. - Click on “Recoverable”
Under the Recoverable tab, you’ll find a list of abandoned carts that still have the potential to be recovered. These carts contain products that the customer left behind but have not yet made a final decision to abandon completely. In this section links are provided to recover your items/products by clicking that link customers can directly view their items which are added in cart and can purchase it. - View Customer Activity: This section provides insights into:
- The items left in the cart
- The customer’s last interaction with your store
- The total cart value
How to recover abandoned cart?
Recovering abandoned carts is a key strategy to boost sales for any eCommerce business. It allows customers to return to their saved cart and complete their purchase without starting from scratch—especially helpful if they got interrupted or lost connection.
Set Up Abandoned Cart Automation
Use an automation tool to trigger follow-up emails when a customer adds products to their cart but doesn’t check out. This ensures timely engagement without manual effort.
Craft a Recovery Email
- A personalized greeting using the customer’s name
- Clear display of cart items (with images, descriptions, and prices)
- A direct link to return to the cart
- Optional incentives (e.g., limited-time discount, free shipping)
Immediate Follow-Up (15–30 Minutes After Abandonment)
Send the first email 15–30 minutes after the cart is abandoned to strike while the customer’s interest is still fresh.
If the purchase is completed, the automation ends here.
Second Reminder (24 Hours Later)
If the first email doesn’t lead to a purchase, send a second reminder 24 hours later.
If the customer still doesn’t complete the purchase, stop the automation to avoid spamming and maintain trust.
