Explore the most common metrics for e-commerce sites: Abandonment Rate

"Introduction" To some extent, E-commerce can be said to be the meaning of web analytics. This article explores one of the most common metrics for e-commerce sites: Abandonment Rate.

Direct E-commerce analysis is less involved in this blog area, because I have been "immature" that E-commerce site analysis and our usual site analysis is not fundamentally different. After all, even if it is not an e-commerce site, it still has one (or more) can be quantified, and E-commerce site is just "make money" as the goal of ordinary process conversion site. However, today I believe that this understanding is immature, because directly involved in sales and trading, E-commerce sites must be special, there must be a unique set of measures and thinking methods. Therefore, starting today, I will be in the blog more to dabble in E-commerce site content, but also look forward to friends more participation and correction.

When it comes to the peculiarities of e-commerce sites, you can't mention shopping carts and cash registers, which are two of iconic site elements that are different from ordinary websites. And today to talk about the abandonment Rate, and the two brothers exactly all about.

What is abandonment rate?

Abandonment Rate (hereafter referred to as AR) is a composite metric that measures the proportion of shoppers who decide to buy and go back. This metric was originally used in call center to measure the proportion of customers who had been listening to music but were not waiting for a customer service person and were eventually angry. The high AR illustrates the poor quality of service in this call center. Similarly, in e-commerce sites, too high AR general description of the site comparison, selection, checkout, payment process of one or more items exist to make consumers very unpleasant experience.

Simply unrestricted AR cannot give an exact definition. But if you add a prerequisite, AR will instantly become an accurate amount.

• Cart Abandonment Rate

The first prerequisite for defining AR is the shopping cart, the cart. The cart abandonment Rate (Ctar) is defined as the percentage of customers who click on the " Enter/Add cart" button but do not continue to click the "Checkout (or Pay Now)" button to the customer who clicks on the "Enter/Add to Cart" button. Ctar explains the efficiency of the shopping cart, but the high ctar is not necessarily caused by the shopping cart, which will be mentioned later.

• Checkout Abandonment Rate

The second premise is the cashier, that is, checkout Desk. The definition of Checkout abandonment Rate (hereafter referred to as Coar) is the percentage of customers who click on the "checkout" button but do not complete the payment by clicking on the "Checkout" button. The meaning of Coar is relatively simple, if too high, it shows that the user pay experience is poor. It is precisely because of this simplicity of coar, this article is not to discuss this measure, save to later. :)

For these two measures, especially the first Ctar, the industry has a lot of debate about whether it has real value. I think there is no measure of value, there is no way to find, there is a good way, the meaning of the tool can be magnified.

an interpretation of Cart abandonment rate

Pure Ctar can not give us a real insight (insight), although there are a lot of foreign comments on Ctar data, such as 60%~70%, for example, more than 80% is the real problem and so on. I do not have the relevant data on the domestic large web site, dare not to raved. However, I agree with Dave (Zhenghaiping) that the Ctar average is of little value because the difference between the Ctar of different products must be great.

A very simple example, the higher the price of goods, the higher the Ctar. Because people are more cautious in buying high-priced goods, longer thinking cycles, and relatively cumbersome payments, they are more likely to go back. In addition, the more homogeneity of the commodity, can be easily purchased from a variety of channels of goods, as well as more volatile goods will have higher ctar.

This shows that the average Ctar actually does not work. But this does not mean that the Ctar itself is of little significance, and the above findings actually give us clues as to how Ctar should need to be considered, rather than as a matter of fact. So, back to what I've been emphasizing. The first effective method of web analytics--discovering anomalies--is useful for interpreting Ctar. Yes, the thing the website analyst is most happy to see is "abnormal", isn't it? Here I dare to share some of my methods, and ask my friends to correct me.

• Study the relationship between Ctar and price

This is well worth doing because it is simple to do and helps to eliminate the disruption of prices. If your site, Ctar and commodity prices are proportional to the level, which indicates a healthy distribution. On the contrary, the Ctar of low-priced products is higher, or some of the same products have a higher ctar, which means that the factors outside the price affect your shopping cart performance, you are worth seeing if there is a problem elsewhere-whether the competitor has reduced prices.

• Ctar and order Product mix

The greater the number of items in an order, the smaller the Ctar may be. As the quantity of the goods included in the order accumulates, so does the willingness of the purchaser to purchase them.

• Ctar must look at the trend

In addition to studying the impact of price, specific to the ctar of a product, we need to look at trends, not just to see the total.

1. The high and low trend of Ctar is related to the life cycle of the commodity, although the relationship is not entirely obvious, but from my experience, the goods in the late life cycle have higher ctar. You can start checking with this rule.

2. The high and low trend of Ctar is directly related to the promotion of goods-it is obvious that the promotion will reduce ctar. However, if your promotion does not reduce ctar, it is worth studying.

3. The impact of Ctar with other external environments in which commodities are in place. Typical examples such as the advertising of commodity manufacturers, will increase the visibility of the product and reduce its ctar.

If your ctar does not conform to the rules above, and the ctar of all goods is kept in a relatively high position (for example, generally above 70% or above 80%), then you cannot complain about the cause of the commodity itself. You should start to check your site for the following.

how to reduce cart abandonment Rate

If you think Ctar is high, then how should you lower it? Obviously, under other conditions, the simple promotion of Ctar can promote the final conversion rate, which has very important significance for e-commerce sites.

Although there are many Ctar determinants, following the general approach below can still be useful for lowering it. Of course, if you already know some of the low-level errors associated with the shopping cart and have already started using it in practice, then congratulations, you don't have to waste your time looking backwards.

1. Please be sure to provide the billing function of the unregistered users

Not every user who comes to your site is already registered, when he/she took 10 minutes to choose a satisfactory product, click the cart button to remind him/her need to register to continue, is definitely a bad experience. For example, a large number of ads on the search engine of the Web site, even click on the "put in the cart" at the same time to pop up a layer to display the need to register and login, it is a bit disappointing.

It's important for users to sign up and log in, but don't use pop-up boxes or interrupt normal processes, you can integrate them into normal processes. Oh, yes, or simply provide features that unregistered users can buy. At this point, I like the new eggs, do a good job in the ease of use of the purchase process of user research.

2. Please note the status of the goods, out of stock please immediately show

Goods out of stock but did not immediately show, to the shopping cart to see can not buy or shopping cart are not shown, the result has been a long time no shipping status. This is definitely a taboo for the website of the Business-to-consumer. You can't deliver, I'm sure I'm mad-why didn't you tell me earlier? Do not avoid, or you lost is not an order, but a customer.

3. Do not display the necessary additional cost to the user in the shopping cart

Due to promotions and the specificity of certain commodities, in the sale of the same time, may have to tie up additional goods and services. In this case, must be in the customer selection of goods in the link is shown.

I have encountered this situation, in the selection of goods when I saw a cheap, but a checkout but found that the price is high, the original is a promotion, you must buy another commodity. I thought it wasn't cheating. Back to the original goods, the second screen of the product introduction has a line of red characters, told must buy another item at the same time. This is not bullying my display small? In the heart of the site's professionalism and reliability very skeptical, the brain circled two words--js. In fact, even if the tying, this commodity is still cheap, but you raised the expectations of customers and put it to the ground, the customer has been disgusted, it is difficult to think rationally.

Suddenly remembered a once roommate's experience-want to break up, the first time to tell someone! Don't grind it! The sooner, the less hurt! Now in retrospect, brother is worthy of the holy number.

4. Modify the number of goods, in the shopping cart can be completed

If you can't change the number of items in your shopping cart, instead of running back to the introduction page for the product, you can do it. This is like the ball has entered, the celebration has been completed, the audience is happy, just tell you offside first goal is ineffective, please climb up again, don't say full gas.

5. Simplify the process of filling and confirming order

Simplifying the purchase process is to reduce Ctar begotten. Although the experiment found that the shorter the process, the better, but the long process will certainly make buyers irritable. I am a regular online shopping typical user, I think two steps to complete an order is very comfortable, neither let themselves feel too hasty, and feel logical clear and simply.

6. Delivery time must be expressed

No one likes to wait, but it would be better if you told them beforehand what time to wait. So it is necessary to remind the user of the longest time to wait. 3 days of goods delivered 2 days, Ctar will be small. Conversely, Ctar can be large and indicate a poor user experience.

7. Provide 400/800 telephone support and other tools that can increase trust, such as security identification

Needless to say, the more secure users feel, the more they will increase trust, and the more they can increase the final transformation. Our friend Tenly has done this research, 400 or 800 of the phone can really play a positive role in sales.

Summary

For web analytics, the most common analysis I've brought up is: trends, subdivisions, and relationships. Isolated web analytics data are meaningless. You told me 22-inch LG display of the cart abandonment rate is 75%, and then asked me good, I actually can not tell you anything. But if you tell me the 22-inch LG monitor this month's cart abandonment rate 75% This value is 10% higher than last month, or you tell me the same type of 22-inch Sumsung display cart abandonment rate is 80%, Maybe we can work out something.

The website analysis needs to look outward, because the influence website metric (measure) the factor often is not the website itself, for the E-commerce website is still so. Therefore, I always put the words on the mouth-do web analytics experts, first to do a network marketing experts.

Today this article is purely universal knowledge, if there is improper, we put heavy bricks gently clap, I this car is under.