Understanding Cart Abandonment in B2B E-commerce

Packaging E-Commerce Platform | Sr. UX Researcher

Tools Used: FullStory | Typeform | Microsoft Teams

Overview

The goal of this study was to better understand the reasons our customers are abandoning their carts in order to improve revenue lost from these abandoned carts, as well as to identify areas for improvement on the purchasing platform that may lead customers to contact customer service before or after placing an order.

Impact at a Glance

The project surfaced key gaps in the user experience and sparked ongoing conversations around customer retention and cart abandonment. While the recommendations weren’t implemented immediately, the research deepened team understanding and helped align future priorities.

Initial Assumptions

• Price Checking: Some customers may add items to their cart purely to check pricing, with no immediate intent to purchase.

• Offline Orders: Customers might use the platform for research but ultimately place their orders through offline channels.

• Address Errors: Selecting the wrong delivery address may lead customers to abandon their cart and start over.

• ERP Cross-Referencing: Customers may be comparing product details and pricing with their ERP systems before finalizing an order.

• Product Availability: If a key item is unavailable, customers may decide not to proceed with their purchase.

• Quicker Delivery: Customers requiring faster delivery than what is offered may abandon their cart.

• Partially Filled Cart: Some users may treat their cart as a workspace, adding items over time before completing the order.

Data Analytics

Abandoned Cart Trends by Number of Materials (30-Day Period)

• 73% of abandoned carts contained only one material.

• 27% contained two or more materials.

This trend highlights a key UX issue: sales encouraged users to add multiple materials to the cart to check prices due to custom pricing tied to Sold To/Ship To address combinations. While this was necessary for accurate pricing, it resulted in an inefficient and potentially frustrating user experience, likely contributing to cart abandonment.

Cart & Checkout Page Load Times (30-Day Period)

Analysis of FullStory data revealed that the majority of users experienced page load times exceeding 3 seconds after clicking "Proceed to Checkout." According to secondary research, maintaining page load times under 3 seconds during the cart and checkout process is critical to ensure an optimal user experience and reduce abandonment.

Secondary Research

Baymard Institute: Key Drivers of Cart Abandonment

The Baymard Institute's study on cart abandonment identified key factors contributing to cart abandonment, highlighting the need to streamline the online shopping experience. Addressing these issues can improve conversion rates and boost customer satisfaction.

🛒 Best UX Practices to Reduce Abandoned Carts in E-commerce

Cart abandonment is a prevalent challenge in e-commerce. By applying user-centered UX practices grounded in research, businesses can effectively reduce abandonment rates and improve conversion performance.

Email Campaign Tips to Reduce Abandoned Carts in E-commerce

• Timely Reminders: Send follow-up emails at 1 hour, 24 hours, and 72 hours after abandonment to keep products top of mind and encourage purchase completion.

• Create Urgency: Use persuasive language such as “limited time offer” or “only a few left in stock” to motivate customers to act quickly.

• Cart Summary & CTA: Include a clear summary of cart items and a prominent call-to-action button to make it easy for customers to return and finalize their order.

• Cross-Selling Suggestions: Offer related product recommendations to increase average order value and provide customers with helpful alternatives.

• Cautious Discounting: Use discounts strategically to protect product value—limit frequency and focus on exclusive or seasonal promotions.

User Survey

Responses: 8 | Persona(s): Food & Protective Packaging Customers

Insights on Abandoned Cart Assumptions

Through surveying eight customers, I was able to identify the assumptions that most accurately reflect customer purchasing behavior. Many customers add items to their cart primarily to check prices rather than to complete a purchase. Additionally, several customers abandoned their carts due to delivery times not meeting their urgent needs. Lastly, difficulty in finding the specific products they needed was another common reason for cart abandonment.

Through surveying eight packaging customers, several key assumptions about cart abandonment were validated:

• Many customers add items to their carts primarily to check prices, not necessarily to complete a purchase.

• Delivery times that do not meet customers’ urgency are a significant factor leading to cart abandonment.

• Difficulty in finding specific products also contributes to users leaving carts unfinished.

These insights highlighted important areas for improving the e-commerce experience, including clearer pricing transparency, realistic delivery expectations, and enhanced product searchability.

Preferred Abandoned Cart Email Subject Lines

Participants reviewed five potential email subject lines and selected their top two favorites for engagement:

• 75% preferred: “Don’t forget your [company name] cart items.”

• 50% also favored: “You’re almost there. Prepaid freight awaits!”

Preferred Abandoned Cart Pop-up Messages

When presented with five pop-up message options, customers selected their top two favorites for engagement:

• 50% chose the “Not so fast!” modal

• 50% also chose the “Leaving so soon?” modal

User Interviews

Number of Interviews: 2 (initial goal was 5) | Persona(s): Food & Protective Packaging Customers

Due to scheduling constraints, only two interviews were completed. While this limited sample size may affect the breadth of insights, these conversations still provided valuable perspectives.

🛒 Customer Ordering & Cart Behavior

• Immediate Ordering: 100% of customers place orders directly from POs, prioritizing efficiency over cart-building.

• Cart for Price Checking: 50% use the cart mainly to check prices, not to shop — aligning with survey data.

• No Interest in “Save for Later”: Participants showed no need for this feature, suggesting it's low priority.

📦 Expectations Around Product Info

• Accurate Availability & Lead Times: Inaccuracies frustrate users and increase support calls — real-time data is critical.

• Order Status Transparency: Timely updates, especially about delays or changes, build trust and reduce confusion.

Prioritized Recommendations

🔥 High Impact

• Provide Real-Time Delivery Updates
  Reduces customer frustration and service volume by proactively communicating order status and delays.

• Ensure Accurate Availability & Lead Times
  Improves trust and decision-making by aligning availability across product pages and checkout.

• Improve Pricing Transparency
  Saves time and reduces unnecessary cart use by showing accurate pricing based on location upfront.

📈 Medium Impact

• Surface Contact Info Clearly
  Empowers customers to get help quickly by clearly displaying contact info on key pages.

• Fix Checkout Load Times
  Enhances the ordering experience and reduces drop-off risk by speeding up a critical point in the flow.

💡 Opportunistic Enhancements

• Enable Product Request Feature
  Supports long-tail and repeat purchases by allowing customers to request unavailable/inactive products.

• Add Checkout Review Prompt
  Helps prevent user errors and builds confidence in order accuracy with a simple confirmation step.

Outcome

While the recommendations weren’t implemented immediately, the study deepened team understanding of key pain points and highlighted areas for future exploration. The insights helped frame broader discussions around customer retention and cart abandonment strategies. This project also reinforced the value of early discovery research across cross-functional teams.