Cart abandonment

Cart abandonment happens when a visitor signals purchase intent (adding items to a cart) but leaves before completing the order. Industry research (Baymard, SaleCycle) consistently puts the average abandonment rate near 70-73% across sectors.

Common causes: unexpected shipping cost, required account creation, slow checkout, security concerns, and complex return policies. Each surfaces as a question or hesitation a shopper would prefer to resolve before paying.

Recovery strategies fall into two camps: in-session (proactive chat, exit-intent offers, timely social proof) and post-session (abandoned cart emails, retargeting ads). Conversational recovery via AI chat catches the in-session window — typically 5 seconds, while wallets are still open — and complements email flows that fire hours later.