How to Fine-Tune Checkout

Sometimes I write things for other companies. Here's a recent piece for my company coolblueweb's UX Series.

The Business Goal: Increase Average Order Value

For many years, online merchants have been told to show customers relevant products at checkout to help support the ultimate goal of increasing Average Order Value. A quick way to determine a store’s Average Order Value (AOV) is to divide total revenue by the number of orders. The belief behind this advice is that if a customer sees relevant products after adding an item to their cart they have a higher probability of buying more.

However, not all methods of showing relevant products produce the same results.

What customers want at checkout

Customer experience focuses on the next steps a customer needs/wants to take or the questions a customer has after completing specific actions. After adding an item to their cart, a customer’s next steps should be clear and easily accessible. The customer should also be able to complete those steps in as few clicks as possible.

Customers want to know:

• Did I add the correct item to my cart? Are the size, color, quantity, and price accurate?

• Am I able to keep shopping or go on to checkout without difficulty?

• Can I see other similar products that I might want to buy with as little searching as possible?

What you can do

When a customer adds an item to their cart they should immediately see the answers to the questions listed above.

There are two ways to do this: