65% shopping cart abandonment rate w/ an average cart value of $109. Here is your challenge. This pratical presentation is the one-stop-shop guide with data, best practices and latest trends in Checkout Flow Optimization. Areas covered includes: - Checkout process KPIs for retailers - Top 20 reasons for cart abandonment - Retailer checkout investment priorities for 2009 - 12 tips to minimize the drop-off spots - 2 methods to re-engage customers - Supposedly good ideas, think twice!

1. Shopping Cart Improvement Study Enhanced checkout flow & increasing the throughput of transactions

3. Checkout process: retail numbers The online retail sector in general registered dramatic drops in ecommerce activities in February 2009 compared to February 2008, YoY (Year over Year). The retail sector as a whole reported a decrease in average order value and in shopping cart conversion rate of 5.5% (for both). Among those consumers who shopped online, the number of items they purchased per order fell by a staggering 7.5% from the year before. These numbers show that the number of people willing to spend online shrank considerably and the online shopper spent less money than during the past year. Benchmark Industry Report for U.S. Retail by Coremetrics - February, 2009

4. Checkout process: retail numbers Consumers’ engagement with websites, measured by page views per session, product views per session and the average time they spent on sites, fell by 10%, 17% and 22% respectively. Website sessions in which shoppers added items to their carts and sessions in which they went on to complete orders decreased by 5 % and 10% respectively. Benchmark Industry Report for U.S. Retail by Coremetrics - February, 2009

5. Reasons for cart abandonment The PayPal Checkout Abandonment Study by ComScore (553 pers.) - May 12-15, 2009 The PayPal Checkout Abandonment Study by ComScore - March 25 to April 18, 2008 Shopping Cart Abandonment Study by WebSurveyor Services (orange) & Marketing Sherpa (blue) – respectively January 2006 & April 2007

6. Retailer checkout investment priorities More detailed shipping information (i.e. packaging deadline, shipping time & delivery date) is currently the main investment priority for 88% of retailers in the coming year. Then, 67% of retailers said that they would focus on calculating the loaded cost (i.e. shipping, taxes & surcharges) of an order before the checkout. Improvement to the Shopping Cart page redesign was also noted as a significant prerogative for 58% of retailers. A small percentage of retailers reported taking on a more time-consuming, and thus more costly, set of initiatives such as single-screen checkout. The State Of Retailing Online 2009 : Merchandising And Web Optimization by Forrester Research

14. Prominent local phone number Telephone numbers can help in three ways: 1/ If visitors have a technical/payment difficulty during the checkout process 2/ Some consumers simply prefer to call in. Perhaps they have questions they need answered, or they want to make sure there's a "real human being" behind the virtual presence. Why: could not find Customer Support (22%), no phone provided (10%), shopping cart problems (8%) & payment issues (2%) Solution: toll-free number w/ working hours 3/ Many consumers simply trust a website more if there's a phone number. You show you are willing, ready and able to be contacted. They feel secure even if they never contact you.

15. Promotional code hunting Why: Wanted to look for a coupon (27%) Solutions: loyalty program, instant discount w/ registration, url parameter & less visibility There are 4 ways to prevent from promotional coupon hunting: 1/ Engage them in a loyalty program generating a win-win perception (i.e. accumulation of virtual dollars to spend). 2/ Ask them to sign up for your newsletter & send them the discount code right away (e.g. OfficeMax). You can also place a 5% discount code next to the “promo code” box. 3/ When a customer arrives via an affiliate or email link w/ a promo code, includes a parameter in the URL stored in the shopper’s session for promo box to appear. 4/ Make the box less visible (left side below the fold) & mix it with other usefull boxes