A survey by online payroll service PayPal suggests high shipping
costs, security concerns and a lack of convenience are hampering online
transactions. The survey revealed that nearly half (45 percent) of
online shoppers have abandoned their carts multiple times in the past
three weeks, with the average cost of abandoned goods in U.S. shopping
carts at $109.
A high shipping cost was cited as the largest single reason for cart
abandonment. While nothing could have prevented one-third of shoppers
from abandoning purchases, the survey found that providing shipping
costs upfront might have caused 40 percent to complete the purchase.
Eddie Davis, senior director of SMB merchant services for PayPal, said
in order to get shoppers to buy, it’s critical that merchants make the
checkout experience easy and costs transparent.
“Merchants who don’t welcome back abandoners with open arms are leaving
hundreds of dollars per shopper on the table,” Davis said. “Merchants
need to remember the items that customers abandon and make it easy for
them to buy when they return. Sweetening the deal with free shipping,
coupons and special discounts is also a great way to encourage online
shoppers to complete their purchases.”
The survey also uncovered signs that the economy still has shoppers
wary about clicking the “purchase” button. More than one-third of
respondents abandoned checkout because they didn’t plan for all of the
expenses; while more than 25 percent left the site to search for a
coupon. However, one-third of shoppers later returned to the same site
to buy. An additional 20 percent purchased the items at a brick and
mortar store or competitor’s Web site.
A security concern over credit card data was the reason that 21 percent
of potential customers never concluded online transactions, while 22
percent left after they couldn’t find customer support. Twenty-four
percent couldn’t find preferred pay option and gave up, while 23
percent gave up after their item was unavailable at checkout.
A recent survey of small to midsize businesses conducted by security
firm Symantec found that while SMBs are familiar with cyber-risks and
have clearly defined goals for security, a surprisingly high number
have yet to take even the most basic steps toward protecting their
businesses. While proper security is critical for online transactions,
ably displaying your security credentials is even more important,
according to a study from network infrastructure company VeriSign and
Synovate Business Consulting.
The company found customers consider security more important than a low
price when purchasing items online. The survey found 85 percent of
consumers say trusting the site is most important when interacting on a
Web site and sharing confidential information. In contrast, only 9
percent said competitive pricing was most important and 5 percent said
ease of use was most important. Additionally, 93 percent of respondents
said they would stop doing transactions on a site that is not secure.
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Midmarket News & Reviews 
