{"id":55226,"date":"2020-11-27T17:00:25","date_gmt":"2020-11-27T11:30:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vwo.com\/blog\/?p=55226"},"modified":"2026-04-14T18:49:22","modified_gmt":"2026-04-14T13:19:22","slug":"reduce-cart-abandonment-in-covid","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vwo.com\/blog\/reduce-cart-abandonment-in-covid\/","title":{"rendered":"7 Strategies to Reduce Cart Abandonment in a Crisis"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The COVID-19 pandemic brought radical changes in eCommerce sales that no one imagined at the start of the year. These changes are driven by the shift in consumer shopping behavior. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Without a cure and a vaccine, many are still choosing to live their lives at home<\/a> as much as possible to avoid contracting the virus \u2014 or any other illnesses for that matter. Indeed, we are living in a day and age where eCommerce\u2019s role in the lives of many is becoming increasingly significant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, this does not mean that all eCommerce categories are doing well at this time. Luxury brands, for example, are struggling and are forecasted to lose between $450 to $600 billion in worldwide sales. This holds, especially for non-essential brands. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Download Free: Cart Abandonment Guide<\/span><\/a><\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

On the upside, eCommerce stats such as cart abandonment rate<\/a> are said to have dropped significantly in the United States. Cart abandonment<\/a> refers to the phenomenon wherein a visitor adds items to their cart but does not proceed with the purchase. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Before the pandemic, the average cart abandonment rate was 75.71%. At the onset of the lockdowns last March 2020, cart abandonment dropped to a low of 59.76% before inching higher to 64.98%.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\"Graph<\/figure>\n
Image Source: Barilliance<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

With these in mind, there is pressure among eCommerce and online retailers to address the consumers\u2019 changing behavior and shifting needs. Dan Fries, one of the founders of Blue Tree AI<\/a>, a content marketing and PR agency that specializes in SEO, stresses the importance for businesses to know their purpose and place online. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSince the end of pandemic isn\u2019t in sight yet,\u201d he says, \u201cbrands should be able to grow and gear their online presence to avoid being lost in the clutter. We\u2019re all going to be competing in a limited online space, so imagine the effect that can have on consumers and more brands that need to sustain their sales.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this article, we show you one of the things to keep your business afloat in a time like today: focusing on reducing cart abandonment and encouraging your market to proceed with their purchase.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How to reduce cart abandonment in a crisis  <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Transparency is key<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

One way to gain the trust of your customers and reduce the chances of cart abandonment<\/a> especially in the time of COVID-19 is to be extremely transparent on your store fees right away. Make sure that additional costs such as shipping fees and taxes are visible during their purchase experience, so there aren\u2019t any surprises that might send people away from your store.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This also applies to any other details that are significant in their consumer journey, such as shipping details and return policies. How can users return items if they\u2019re unable to visit your physical store? Are there new policies you must follow for door-to-door deliveries? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

When your customers are completely informed about all the details of their orders, it becomes easy for them to proceed with their purchase. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"DSW
DSW shows shoppers what to expect now when they shop with them online, especially when COVID-19 healthcare concerns are highest.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Launch an abandoned cart campaign<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019ve been in the eCommerce industry for a while, then you\u2019ve probably created an abandoned cart recovery campaign. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are plenty of reasons why your customers abandon their carts. For you to be able to know what strategy you\u2019ll implement, you must be able to figure out the specific reasons why users leave items in their carts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

While it\u2019s a valid reason that some shoppers might be experiencing pay cuts in COVID-19, that might not be the most prominent reason someone abandons their cart\u2014after all, if someone knew they didn\u2019t have the budget to buy right now, they likely wouldn\u2019t have gone through the shopping process that far.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Having a high cart abandonment rate<\/a> can usually indicate a poor user experience, a distorted purchase funnel, or a complicated checkout flow. Therefore, optimizing user experience can lower your cart abandonment rate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once you\u2019ve pinned down the plausible reasons and fixed the leaks, you include an abandoned cart recovery strategy that would essentially bring people back to your site and proceed with your purchase. In other words, converting visitors to actual paying customers. To do this, conversion rate optimization (CRO) is key. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Two impactful CRO practices<\/a> that can give you an idea of how to help with cart abandonment avoidance during COVID-19 are:<\/p>\n\n\n\n