The Importance of Optimizing for Mobile Checkout

One of the most difficult parts of having an online business is when customers place an item in their cart but do not complete the sale. This cart abandonment rate is sitting at around 69%, according to a recent Baymard Institute study. Although some customers change their minds or want to compare prices, many abandon the transaction process because of a less than optimal checkout process.

Some traditional checkout problems include websites taking too long to load, not having adequate payment options, or not having a shopping cart that is optimized for mobile devices.

Optimizing for Mobile Checkout

Time is of the Essence

As we covered in our article in May, The User is King: Humanizing Your Website, it is very important to keep your user in mind when designing your website. One thing that you have to consider when it comes to mobile users is that they are looking to connect and have access to content quickly and easily. Mobile usage is all about speed and efficiency, so if your site is taking too long to load, a mobile user will likely go somewhere else. Thus, it is absolutely imperative that your whole shopping process, including checkout, is rapid and straightforward.

A mobile checkout process should not require pinching and zooming or long registration processes. If a basic registration process is a desired part of your business plan, then it should be minimalistic, like registering with a social media account or incorporating auto-detect to fill question fields.

Having access to the cart at all times so that the user can quickly move to checkout is also a great idea for e-stores. Making use of a pop-up window that automatically appears when an item has been added to the cart and offers the user an option to ‘check out now’ or ‘keep shopping’ not only helps to make the process easy for the customer, but also helps to increase your conversion by directing the customer towards paying and away from other distractions.

Less is not More

Giving customers multiple payment options at checkout can increase conversion. Not only does this allow customers to check out with their preferred method, but also in a way that they trust. When you partner with reputable payment methods, you add a sense of security to your site and customers will be more likely to make a purchase. Harness this by physically including logos of these reputable payment methods, like PayPal or Amazon, at your checkout. Another payment method that more and more sites are including is paysafecard. Similar to PayPal, this is an e-wallet, prepaid option, but requires no banking information.

In summation, you want to firstly cater to your mobile audience by optimizing your site in a way that improves access so that time is not wasted. Next, increase site speed and lastly, offer a quick and easy check out process with a selection of payment methods that your users trust and already use. If you incorporate these elements then you will be poised to capitalize on sales from your mobile audience.

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