How to Calculate and Improve Cart Conversion Rate

Since the first secure online purchase over 30 years ago, ecommerce has grown exponentially worldwide. According to a Forrester study, 20% of global retail sales are now online.

This growth also means more competition, skeptical customers, and lower conversions across all industries. These challenges push ecommerce leaders to think outside the box and identify the best strategies to improve cart conversation rate. Let’s dive into detail.

What is cart conversion rate?

Cart conversion rate is the percentage of customers that complete a purchase after adding items to their ecommerce cart. The metric quantifies the effectiveness of your website in turning interested customers into buyers.

Optimizing the cart-to-purchase process from traffic already on your site can generate more revenue without a substantial marketing investment. Factors like clear pricing, a simplified checkout process, and website trust signals help improve conversions and drive better business outcomes.

Why ecommerce conversion rate matters for your business

An ecommerce purchase conversion rate reveals your effectiveness in turning website visitors into customers. Low rates signal friction points, while high rates point to a seamless buyer journey. Leverage this metric to:

• Optimize revenue: Improve ecommerce conversion rates to directly increase your bottom line profit without increasing traffic acquisition costs.
• Gather customer insights: Analyze your conversion rate to reveal pain points that may hinder a positive customer experience, such as unclear shipping policies or overly complex checkouts.

Ecommerce benchmarks indicate that the average shopping cart abandonment rate globally is 74.61%. That means that nearly three-quarters of potential customers leave online stores without completing their purchase — a significant missed opportunity for your ecommerce business.

Think this way: each abandoned cart is a potential sale lost. Plus, frustrated customers may not return to your site or might share negative experiences with others.

Top reasons for customer checkout abandonment 

Different factors can contribute to high cart and checkout abandonment rates. For starters, not every user browsing through your website is looking to buy. Some seek inspiration, to explore a new brand, find gifts, compare prices, or even window shop.

But customers who are indeed ready to purchase sometimes may face barriers that lead to cart abandonment, including:

• Complicated checkout: Long forms, confused navigation, and multiple steps can cause frustration and turn away potential buyers.

• Unexpected costs: Customers who might be browsing abandon their cart due to hidden fees, high shipping costs, or surprise taxes at checkout. 

• Shipping concerns: Unclear delivery estimates or lack of affordable shipping options can impact customer experience, as shoppers are less likely to complete a purchase if they are uncertain about delivery times or if shipping costs are too high.

• Lack of trust: The absence of trust signals like security badges or clear return policies can create hesitation. Customers need to feel confident that their personal information is secure and that they can trust the retailer.

How to calculate your cart conversion rate

Your cart conversions are one of the most actionable metrics for identifying and resolving customer drop-offs in the purchase process. To calculate it, first determine a specific timeframe, then use a simple formula:

Cart conversion = Number of completed purchases / Number of carts created × 100

Let’s say your online store had 100,000 customers add items to their cart in a month, but only 25,000 completed their purchases. This means that 25% of users who created a cart completed their purchase. Here's the calculation:

(25,000​ / 100,000) × 100 = 25%

But let’s clarify: there are different types of conversion rates. By analyzing different metrics, you can pinpoint where customers are dropping off or facing obstacles in their buyer journey. 

The best 7 strategies to increase ecommerce cart conversion rates 

Conversion rate optimization (CRO) strategies help increase your marketing results and overall sales revenues. To boost conversions, follow these best practices:

1. Optimize product pages

Your product page is often the first point of decision-making. Detailed, engaging landing pages build customer confidence and reduce uncertainty, especially for online shoppers who rely heavily on visuals and descriptions.

• Use high-quality images and videos: Multimedia assets allow you to answer customers’ questions in a more engaging way. For example, detailed photos showing multiple angles or product usage help mimic an in-store experience.
• Write compelling product descriptions and calls to action: The copy should do more than describe — it should sell. By highlighting benefits, features, and unique selling points in a resonating tone, you ensure that users feel confident in their purchase decisions.
• Leverage customer reviews and ratings: Social proof shows potential buyers that others have had positive experiences with the product. Including star ratings prominently on the page also reassures hesitant shoppers of the product's quality and popularity.

2. Create urgency and scarcity

Urgency nudges customers to act quickly, while scarcity plays into human psychology, making products appear more valuable when limited. Use persuasive copywriting or these sales tactics:

• Offer limited-time deals: By creating a sense of urgency, you encourage customers to act rather than delay their decision. Highlight these deals prominently on product pages or during checkout.
• Show low-stock alerts: Notifications such as “Only 3 left in stock” tap into the fear of missing out (FOMO), motivating buyers to secure their purchase before the item runs out.
• Use countdown timers: Add a visual element to urgency, reinforcing the time constraint and nudging shoppers to finalize their purchase before the deal expires.

3. Simplify your checkout process

Customers expect an easy, seamless experience, especially on mobile devices. To improve your checkout conversion rate, try:

• Enabling guest checkout: Forcing account creation can be a major deterrent, especially for first-time buyers. Guest checkout removes this barrier, ensuring a smoother and faster experience.
• Turning checkout into a single-page process: A streamlined checkout process minimizes friction and prevents drop-offs by keeping all necessary fields (e.g., shipping, billing, and payment) on one page, making it easier for customers to complete their purchases.
• Offering multiple payment options: Shoppers expect flexibility in payment methods, whether it’s credit cards, PayPal, Apple Pay, or buy-now-pay-later options. 

4. Offer transparent shipping rates

Customers want to know what they’re paying upfront, with no surprises. Address shipping uncertainty with these tactics:

• Display shipping costs before checkout: Shoppers are less likely to abandon their carts when shipping costs are visible upfront, on a product page. 
• Provide multiple shipping options: Offering express, free, and economy shipping methods allows shoppers to choose what works best for their timeline and budget, improving overall satisfaction.
• Use technology to optimize transparency: Specialized shipping platforms, like Shipium, use real-time data points to calculate precise shipping costs. Our platform, for example, helps you select the most cost-effective carriers and the fulfillment centers nearest to your customers — enabling you to provide accurate prices to shoppers and build trust during the purchase journey. 

Learn how to choose the best ecommerce shipping solution for your business.

5. Provide clear delivery estimates

Uncertainty around when an item will arrive pushes customers away, especially during a holiday season when timely delivery is crucial. Assure customers by:

• Giving specific delivery dates: “Arrives by Dec 8” reassures shoppers better than vague timelines like “Ships in 3 - 5 business days.”
• Sending proactive post-purchase updates: Delivery notifications via email or SMS reassure customers that their order is on track, reducing anxiety and improving the overall shopping experience.
• Leveraging regional carriers to offer faster delivery times: Using local carriers for specific zones often leads to a quicker last-mile delivery, since they normally have more expertise than big companies in remote areas.

6. Build trust with your customers

Customers are less likely to complete a purchase if they feel uncertain about your ecommerce site’s security, returns, or support policies. Here’s how to make buyers feel confident on your website:

• Show trust badges and secure payment icons: Trust indicators like SSL certifications or “Secure Checkout” logos reassure customers that their payment details are safe, reducing cart abandonment.
• Clearly communicate return and refund policies: A transparent, customer-friendly return policy removes risk from the buying process, making shoppers more comfortable completing their purchase.
• Provide easily accessible customer support: Quick access to help ensures customers can resolve last-minute concerns, such as delivery timelines or payment issues, preventing unnecessary drop-offs.

7. Implement cart recovery strategies

Even with an optimized process, some customers still abandon their carts. Recovery strategies can bring them back and convert lost opportunities into revenue. A proactive approach includes:

• Abandoned cart emails: Follow up with shoppers who leave items in their cart by reminding them of the products they selected. Including a discount or free shipping offer can provide the extra nudge needed to convert them.
• Retargeting ads: Use platforms like Facebook or Google to remind customers of their unfinished purchases, keeping your products top of mind and encouraging them to return to your site.
• Time-sensitive discounts: A price decrease valid for only 24 – 48 hours creates an additional reason for shoppers to complete their purchase quickly, reducing the time they spend considering alternatives.

Improve ecommerce conversion rates with Shipium

Shipium is a modern shipping platform that provides the tools and automation needed to optimize your ecommerce operations, directly impacting cart conversion rates:

• Accurate delivery promises: Assure customers that their orders will arrive as expected, reducing hesitation at checkout. Our machine learning-powered time-in-transit modeling provides dynamic updates to ensure your promises align with your operational capabilities.

• Optimized shipping costs: Leverage fully loaded rate shopping to identify the most cost-effective shipping methods for every order. Transparent cost breakdowns at checkout eliminate surprises that could lead to abandonment.
• Efficient carrier management: Streamline your fulfillment operations by integrating multiple carriers into one platform. This allows you to compare rates, manage surcharges, and select the best carrier for each shipment, ensuring cost-efficiency and reliable delivery times.

• Streamlined checkout integration: Connect our platform seamlessly with your OMS, WMS, and other logistics systems, ensuring your backend operations align with the customer experience.

Book a demo today to see Shipium in action.