High-Income Shoppers Likeliest to Abandon Carts Online

As shoppers engage with eCommerce channels, high-income consumers prove, perhaps counterintuitively, to be the most likely to ditch their would-be purchases without completing the transaction.

By the Numbers

The PYMNTS Intelligence report “How Preferred Payment Availability Can Reduce Cart Abandonment” drew from a survey of more than 3,500 U.S. consumers to better understand their behaviors when shopping online.

Supplemental findings from the study revealed that while one might expect lower-income shoppers to be more likely to abandon carts, having to make more difficult budgeting decisions, it turns out the opposite is true. The report showed that the higher the consumer’s income, the likelier they were to abandon their carts, with those who earn more than $100,000 annually most frequently doing so.

A Deeper Dive

High-income consumers may have higher expectations for their shopping experiences, including website functionality, customer service, product quality and payment options. If these expectations are not met, they may be more likely to abandon their carts. Additionally, higher disposable income might mean that high-income shoppers feel less urgency to complete a purchase. They may be more willing to wait for a better deal, more information, or simply reconsider their need for the item.

For retailers aiming to make a sale, this situation can be frustrating due to the numerous potential conversions left unfulfilled. Yet Bobby Ghoshal, co-founder and CEO of Carrot, noted in an interview with PYMNTS that current solutions are ineffective for everyone involved. Merchants inundate shoppers with emails and display ads to encourage them to complete their purchases, but consumers have learned to ignore these messages. Meanwhile, customers must manage numerous tabs to keep track of their shopping history.

“What we’ve learned is that when it comes to meeting the consumer, … part of the equation is giving them a frictionless experience to buy,” Matthew Berk, CEO and co-founder of direct-to-consumer coffee brand Bean Box, told PYMNTS.

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