13 Must-Have Features on Shopping Cart Pages
Reduce abandoned-cart rate and increase sales by following this guide for the must-have features you need to display on the shopping cart page of your online store . These features are tested and proven on successful eCommerce websites in the Middle East and worldwide, because they are based on psychological and mental studies on online shoppers in different countries.
Your shopping cart page is the final destination before a customer heads to checkout page, and adding these features to the cart page will definitely influence customers’ purchase decision in a positive way.
1. Product Title
Every online shopper needs to re-assure himself/herself that they have added the correct items to their shopping cart that they picked at the first place.
I, personally, cannot count how many times I’ve discovered on the cart page that I’ve added something I don’t need, especially when shopping for grocery , home décor items , or baby clothes.
2. Product Image
Next to the product title, show the thumbnail image for the product in the shopping cart.
Why?
Because people are visuals by nature, and an image speaks louder than text, and because your job is to make my checkout process easy, fast, smooth, and enjoyable.
Shoppers love to see this feature on the cart page so that they can quickly scan to check that they’ve added the right products to their shopping basket.
3. Product Details
Include this feature on your shopping cart page to minimize return rate .
How?
So many shoppers find out that they’ve purchased the wrong size or a different color than the one they wanted after they receive the product and they contact the online store to return the item or replace it, and believe me, it’s always your mistake not theirs ?.
Make sure to show product details on the cart page , whether its size , color , quantity , or others , depending on the nature of your product.
You’ll need also to make it easy for the customer to change product details from the cart page without having to go back (they’ll most likely abandon the cart if they have to). Add a + or – button for increasing or decreasing quantity, clickable swatches for color variables, or multiple size options.
Allow customers to easily and quickly adjust product options or details from the cart page to reduce abandon cart rate and increase checkout completion rate.
4. Price
I know you’re probably saying “you’ve already known the price on the product page and decided to add the desired item to your shopping cart, why add it again on the checkout page ?”
No, as an online shopper, I get doubts, fear, and uncertainty feelings when I’m about to check out. I need to see the price again, make sure that I can afford it, and maybe remove one or two items after re-considering their cost.
Most importantly, on the checkout page, shoppers compare prices and are extremely satisfied when they know they’ve made the right decision and got the best deal.
5. Stock Availability
This feature is useful for shoppers who “save” items in cart and return later for purchase. If the customer finds that the item is available in large stock, they are assured they can come later to complete purchase. If the stock is limited or it’s the last piece, this might encourage the customer to complete purchase now. It’s a win-win situation.
6. Delivery Time and Fees
Show the average time it takes your store to deliver the product to your end user, and add a note that there might be delays in extreme weather conditions or likewise. Some eCommerce websites ask the user to provide a location first for an estimated delivery time.
Be extra honest about delivery fees because this is a sensitive feature to be added on the cart page. Again, delivery cost is calculated based on location and item weight/size, so be specific and clearly show this information next to the price.
Tip ? ExpandCart allows store owners to choose from different options for delivery fees . The store owner can set the delivery fees based on weight, size, or location; they can also choose the fixed rate option or free delivery when the total of purchased items exceeds a certain limit.
This feature is very useful to be displayed on the cart page.
7. Return Policy
Flexible and clear return policy is a key feature to be shown on the shopping cart page because it influences the customer’s purchase decision.
According to the nature of the product or service you’re offering on your online store, and the consumer rights’ law in your country, put the suitable return policy and adhere to it no matter what.
8. Contact Info
Give customers various ways to contact you from the cart page (email, phone call, live chat, etc.). This feature acts as a reassurance for online shoppers that they will find help whenever needed.
9. Payment Options
Highlight the different payment methods your store accepts, using icons for the cards your store supports.
The more options you accept payment with, the more sales you close, and the happier your customers are.
Tip ? Online stores built on ExpandCart support more than 30 payment gateways – the most famous and trusted payment methods in the Middle East and worldwide.
10. Call to Action
Direct the user to the checkout page with a clear, distinguished call-to-action button in a contrasting color.
This feature is useful for shoppers who want to head straight to the checkout page to buy as quickly as possible.
Adding a “continue shopping” CTA is a double-edged weapon: it can deviate users from completing a purchase and it could encourage them to add more items to their cart before checking out. You can A/B test the two options and see which one wins over the other.
11. Promo Code Box
Now this is a tricky feature and many store owners are confused between adding a promo code box on the cart page or removing it.
The school supporting adding this feature argues that a clear “add your promo code here” box will certainly encourage users to claim their well-deserved discount and head to checkout.
The other team debates that the promo code box might affect negatively shoppers without a promotion to use, who will most likely feel that they’re missing out on a better deal and leave checkout to search for codes.
The safest solution here, which is a little bit tricky in my opinion, is to make the code box less obvious so that people who are actively looking for it find what they want, while other shoppers may not notice.
12. Trust Badges/Seals
This feature adds an extra layer of security for online shoppers to find on their cart page. Trust badges and trust seals are also on top of the checklist for gaining customers’ trust for your online store.
13. Hot Offers
Highlight any seasonal deals, limited offers, or hot vouchers presented by your store on the cart page, not only on the homepage. Shoppers might get second thoughts and a hot-offer banner could make them come around and head to check out page.
To Sum Up,,,
Online store owners better pay close attention to the shopping cart page , because it’s the final step that can lead the customer to or away from the checkout page.
The target from adding these features is to help, reassure, gain trust of your online shopper and give them a good shopping experience.
Summing up all the important information about the added product again on the cart page will do the job: title, image, price, details (size, color, quantity, etc.), shipping fees and delivery time, and return policy.
Encourage customers to proceed to the checkout page by adding trust badges or seals, offering various payment methods, and highlighting hot deals and limited offers, with a clear CTA button in a contrasting color.
And remember, you’re the owner of the store, you’re the one interacting with customers and getting all kinds of feedback, you’re the one testing and trying here and there; make the most out of your website pages based on your vision and your needs.
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