Why Every eCommerce Store Needs a Shopping Cart Progress Bar

First things first, what is a shopping cart progress bar? In simple terms, it's a visual indicator that shows your customers how far along they are in the checkout process. It usually appears at the top of the page during checkout and moves forward as the customer completes each step.

But there's a specific type of shopping cart progress bar we're talking about today. We'll talk about shopping cart progress bars that nudge customers to complete their purchases by offering rewards.

These rewards can be free shipping, discounts, or even a free gift when they spend a certain amount. This type of progress bar motivates shoppers by showing them how close they are to unlocking a reward.

It sounds simple, right? Yet, it's incredibly effective at reducing cart abandonment and improving sales.

Here's the thing: people love to feel in control. Shopping, especially online shopping, can sometimes feel a little out of control. It can be stressful when you can't touch or feel the items, and you're unsure of how long the process will take. That's where the shopping cart progress bar comes in.

Progress bars tap into a couple of important psychological concepts: goal gradient theory and loss aversion.

Let's start with the goal gradient effect. According to the goal gradient effect, as a task gets closer to completion, people work harder and are more driven to achieve it.

Imagine a marathon runner who speeds up when they see the finish line. The same thing happens in online shopping.

When customers see how close they are to a reward, they feel an extra boost of motivation to finish their purchase. A shopping cart progress bar visualizes that "finish line." It encourages shoppers to complete their transactions as they inch closer to their goals.

Then, there's loss aversion. It simply states that people are more motivated to avoid losing something than to gain something of equal value.

In the context of eCommerce, once customers see they're close to a reward, they feel like they've already earned part of it. Abandoning the cart and missing out on free shipping or a discount suddenly feels like a loss. This discomfort drives them to complete the purchase rather than give up the perceived gain.

Together, goal gradient theory and loss aversion make the shopping cart progress bar a powerful tool.

So, why add a shopping cart progress bar to your eCommerce site? Here are a few compelling reasons:

Now that we know why you should add a shopping cart progress bar, let's talk about how to design one that works.