How E-commerce Brands Can Reduce Cart Abandonment with Effective Phone Support

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Cart abandonment is a situation where a customer adds an item to their online shopping cart, but then leaves the retail website without completing the purchase during that particular shopping session.  

It’s an all-too-common issue in the world of e-commerce, with research by Dynamic Yield showing that more than 7 out 10 consumers (74.09%) abandon their online shopping carts.¹ 

While there are several well-known and proven strategies to combat and reduce cart abandonment — like automated abandoned cart emails — one often-overlooked solution is timely phone support. 

Actually speaking to customers on the phone offers a more human and personal way to directly address any concerns or doubts that might be holding them back, answer any lingering questions quickly and accurately, and provide the reassurance needed to close a sale. 

Here’s a comprehensive breakdown of how to harness the power of phone support to reduce cart abandonment, improve customer satisfaction, and ultimately drive business growth. 

Understanding Cart Abandonment in E-commerce

To effectively address cart abandonment, it’s important to first understand why it happens in the first place. 

Much research has been done on this area and has uncovered the following as some of the most common reasons why shoppers leave items in their carts.

• Unexpected costs and fees: Unexpected costs and expenses are responsible for up to 55% of all abandoned shopping carts according to the Dynamic Yield study cited earlier.¹ This is not entirely surprising — naturally, customers are frustrated when extra fees like taxes and shipping costs are added at the last moment to what they thought was the total price. When that happens, it can turn a seemingly good deal into an unpleasant surprise that leads to one abandoning their shopping cart.

• Complex checkout processes: A lengthy and complicated checkout process is another leading cause of cart abandonment, accounting for about 21% of all cases. Issues such as excessive form fields, mandatory account creation, or unclear steps can frustrate customers and cause them to abandon their purchases in search of a quicker, simpler experience.¹ 

• Security concerns: If the checkout process doesn’t appear secure or lacks trust signals (such as SSL certificates), customers may hesitate to enter their payment information. Indeed, around 17% of shoppers cite concerns about security, such as fear of credit card theft, as their primary reason for abandoning a cart.¹ 

• Technical difficulties: Website glitches, slow loading times and payment processing errors can also frustrate customers and prompt them to abandon their carts.

• Delivery time or options: Customers often have specific delivery needs, such as fast shipping or flexible delivery times. If your delivery options don’t meet their expectations, even a perfectly smooth shopping experience might not be enough to seal the deal.

• Comparison shopping: Some customers add items to their online cart as part of their research, comparing prices and products across different retail websites. Without a compelling reason to complete the purchase right away, they may leave never to return.

• Unanswered questions: During their shopping journey, customers may want clarification on product details, return policies or delivery times.  If they can’t find answers or access support quickly, they may decide not to proceed with the checkout process.

The Role of Phone Support in Enhancing the Customer Experience

Providing prompt and effective phone support during the customer shopping journey can be a game changer for e-commerce businesses looking to lower the rates of cart abandonment. 

While automated solutions like chatbots and emails are still valuable, phone support provides a unique level of immediacy and personalisation that other channels simply can’t match.

Here’s how phone support can elevate the customer experience and encourage sales completion. 

Human Connection and Emotional Reassurance

Digital shopping can often feel impersonal and transactional. Phone support bridges this gap by providing direct, human interaction. It allows agents to convey empathy and offer reassurance in ways that other tools like automated chatbots cannot replicate. For example, when customers are on the fence about a purchase, hearing a friendly, knowledgeable human voice can instil confidence, ease doubts, and create a sense of security. This human connection can be crucial in turning hesitant shoppers into eager buyers.

Real-time, Personalised Interaction

Phone support allows you to deliver a fully personalised customer experience. Agents can listen to customers, and then tailor their approach or response in real time to each customer’s specific needs. This creates an overall more satisfying experience that can encourage customers to complete their purchase. 

Efficient Resolution of Complex Issues

Some problems or questions are too complex or nuanced for automated support tools to solve efficiently. With human phone support, representatives can dive deeper into the issue, ask follow-up questions, and provide solutions that precisely address the customer’s concern. 

Immediate Recovery for High Intent Customers

Customers who reach out by phone are usually already very highly engaged. They are very close to completing a purchase and just need that final reassurance or assistance to move forward. Phone support allows reps to build on this buying intent and provide the targeted assistance needed to close the sale. This is harder to achieve with automated or passive tools like FAQ pages or chatbots, which can lack the same personal touch and engagement.

Identifying the Root Cause of Cart Abandonment

As we saw earlier, customers abandon carts for a wide range of reasons. Understanding the specific cause is key to mitigating it. While strategies such as automated cart abandonment emails can remind customers of abandoned carts, they don’t always address the root cause of the initial customer hesitation. 

A phone call, on the other hand, allows agents to engage in a conversation with customers, uncover the true reason behind the abandonment, and address it directly.

Best Practices for E-commerce Phone Support Teams

To deliver superior customer support experiences that lead to more completed sales, e-commerce, consider these best practices. 

Train Agents on Product Knowledge

Customers expect quick, accurate answers when they reach out for support. Ensure your agents have a deep understanding of your products, including key features, pricing, and availability, as well as other issues like return policies, refund procedures, and shipping guidelines. This ensures they can answer questions confidently and resolve issues on the spot. 

Develop Strong Communication Skills

Effective communication is key to building rapport with customers and resolving issues effectively. Regularly train your team on how to communicate clearly and empathetically. You can do this though group workshops, role-playing exercises, or feedback sessions where you review recorded calls with agents and then provide constructive feedback. 

Empower Agents to Offer Solutions and Incentives

Empower your support agents to take initiative and offer real-time solutions or incentives. Give them authority to offer discounts, free shipping, or other incentives without needing to escalate the issue — within reasonable limits of course. This can help you close more sales.

Prioritise Quick Response Times

Speed is absolutely essential in reducing cart abandonment. Equip agents to respond quickly to incoming calls, as well as to follow up promptly abandoned carts. The faster they can address customer questions or concerns; the less likely shoppers are to abandon their carts. 

For example, implementing efficient inbound call centre solutions that trigger follow-up calls soon after a customer has abandoned a cart can increase conversion rates. 

At this stage, the appeal of the product is still fresh in the customer’s brain and they are still in a buying mindset. This makes it easier for agents to nudge customers towards completing their purchase. Additionally, the customer is still likely near their device, which makes it easier for them to go back and finish the transaction — especially after receiving reassurance or even an incentive like a discount.

What’s more, immediate outreach allows you to gather the best possible feedback on the customer’s experience, including what they liked and what could be improved, while it's still fresh in their memory.

However, it’s important to strike the right balance with phone call follow-ups. Excessive or overly persistent contact can be perceived as intrusive, potentially deterring customers rather than motivating them to complete their purchase.

Integrating Customer Support With Other Channels

To deliver a seamless experience, it’s essential for phone support to work in harmony with your other customer support channels like email, live chat, and social media. 

When these channels are integrated effectively, customers can move fluidly between them, receiving consistent support without having to repeat themselves or wait unnecessarily. For instance, when a customer makes contact by text or email, and then reaches out by phone, an integrated system helps ensure that they receive a consistent experience..

Aircall provides a unified communication platform that integrates not just multiple channels (including phone, email and text) but different business tools and systems like CRM. This integration streamlines support processes, increases team productivity, and helps deliver an overall more consistent and effective customer support experience.

Leveraging Call Data to Improve E-commerce Strategies

Phone support isn’t just a reactive tool for addressing issues that cause or lead to cart abandonment. You can also use it proactively to enhance your e-commerce strategy. 

More specifically, analysing call data can help you uncover important patterns in customer behaviour, preferences, and pain points — allowing you to make informed adjustments that help reduce cart abandonment and enhance your overall operations.

Here’s how analysing call data from your e-commerce call centre can improve your brand’s performance. 

• Identify common customer concerns: Reviewing phone calls can help you identify patterns in customer inquiries. For example, are shoppers frequently asking about shipping costs, return policies, or product details? Addressing these issues proactively — such as by updating product pages, offering clearer shipping information, or creating FAQs — can reduce the need for phone support and possibly lead to lower cart abandonment rates.

• Identify peak periods and moments where support is most needed: Analysing call volume can also help you identify peak shopping periods or specific moments in the customer journey when phone support is most needed. This allows you to allocate resources effectively, ensuring that your team is available when customers need assistance the most.

• Track conversions after support calls: Monitoring conversion rates for customers who have received phone support compared to those who didn’t can help assess the impact of your phone support efforts. A high conversion rate following a support call can help you justify to the high-ups in your organisation increased investment in phone support as an essential strategy for reducing cart abandonment. 

• Highlight areas where support training is needed: Call data can highlight areas where support teams may need additional training. If certain issues or questions come up repeatedly in customer interactions, it may signal gaps in knowledge or areas where your team can improve their approach.

Aircall’s call centre software includes a Call Recording Tool that activates as soon as an agent picks up the phone. You can use these recordings to extract meaningful insights that positively inform future e-commerce strategies. 

How Aircall Helps E-commerce Brand Deliver Exceptional Customer Support

Cart abandonment is an issue that affects every e-commerce business. While it might be impossible to eliminate completely, there are ways to reduce it.

As we’ve seen, phone support is a powerful but often underutilised tool for minimising cart abandonment. It offers unique advantages, such as fostering more human and personalised interactions, and enabling effective resolution of nuanced issues.  

Aircall is a versatile customer communication and intelligence platform designed to help modern e-commerce businesses like yours deliver exceptional phone support. Whether it's answering questions about products from shoppers or following up on abandoned carts, Aircall’s intuitive features ensure that every interaction is personalised, efficient, and geared toward closing a sale.

For example, Aircall seamlessly integrates with your customer relationship management (CRM) system, enabling agents to quickly access customer data, including past interactions during calls. This allows them to offer more personalised, context-driven support. 

Another feature — Automated Call Routing — helps automatically route customers’ inquiries to the most qualified department and agent. This minimises wait times and ensures that customers receive the best possible solution in the shortest amount of time, which can improve the chances of them completing the purchase.

Want to learn more about how Aircall can transform your e-commerce phone support and reduce cart abandonment? Schedule a free demo today.

Source

Dynamic Yield. The average shopping cart abandonment rate globally is 74.09%.  https://marketing.dynamicyield.com/benchmarks/cart-abandonment-rate/

Published on November 29, 2024.