Introduction
According to a study, almost 70% of customers abandon their cart before checking out. This could be for numerous reasons: they’re uncertain about what they’re purchasing or the checkout process may be a bit complicated.
In fact, the same study found that people left their cart because of an unexpected shipping cost and a confusing checkout process.
Streamlining this process could help you avoid checkout abandonment and instead, help you gain a loyal customer.
The Solution
WooCommerce provides you with the checkout plugin that can be customized the way you see fit. Via the admin panel, you’ll be able to add, edit, and remove fields on the checkout page. Now you’ll have more control over what your customers see when they checkout.
Let’s take a look at some of the stumbling blocks experienced by customers, and how the checkout field editor can help solve it:
Lengthy process
What’s the most annoying thing when you enter a store with all your goods in hand? The checkout queue. You need these items, so you’ll brave it and wait in line. It’s been 10 minutes and your patience is wearing thin. You’re looking at your basket and thinking: “is it worth it?”. You drop the basket and walk out.
The same logic applies to online shopping. If a customer – especially a new one – needs to endure a lengthy process of filling out billing details, then they’ll head somewhere else. Keep your checkout fields simple; only the necessary billing details.
Confusing process
If customers are uncertain about what information they need to provide during the checkout process, they will likely bail. With the WooCommerce checkout field extension, you have the option to add placeholder text.
Placeholder text informs the customer on what information you need and how to input this.
Unexpected shipping details
You need to build trust and credibility during the checkout process. This may seem like a lot of pressure to put on something as simple as checkout fields, but the final transaction is the difference between whether the customer will come back or not.
One of the many pain points of the checkout process is shipping – more the unpredictability of it. With WooCommerce extension, you have the option to provide extra options like delivery dates, delivery costs, etc.
The types of checkout fields you can configure with the extension include:
- Text – standard text input
- Password – password text input
- Textarea – A text area field
- Select – A dropdown/select box. Requires options set
- Multi-select – A multi-select box. Requires options set
- Radio – A set of radio inputs. Requires options set
- Checkbox – A checkbox field
- Date picker – A text field with a JavaScript data picker attached
- Heading – Adds a heading to allow separating fields into groups
For delivery, you can use the date picker to allow a customer to select a delivery date that suitable for them. Radio options allow them to select the type of delivery: express or standard delivery option with the relevant pricing.
Installation
The Checkout Plugin provides an interface to add, edit and remove fields shown on your WooCommerce checkout page.
Installation
- Download the .zip file from your WooCommerce account.
- Go to: WordPress Admin > Plugins > Add New and Upload Plugin with the file you downloaded with Choose File.
- Install Now and Activate the extension.
Once the extension has been activated, you can set up and configure however you want.
