Following you wherever you go: Mobile shopping ‘cart-checkout’ abandonment

Cart abandonment is a phenomenon which has perplexed online retailers since the inception of online shopping. Over time, the current phenomenon has become even more complicated, giving rise to a newer form of abandonment, check-out abandonment. While cart abandonment is a known term in online retailing, check-out abandonment is still not much known. Analyzing the responses of 267 users shopping on one of the largest online retailers in India, the study used structural equation modeling to reveal the two types of abandonment phenomenon's and their underlining factors. The study further investigates the two type of abandonment phenomenon's and identify related drivers leading to cart and check-out abandonment. Empirical results reveal that cart abandonment is a result of multiple variables starting from cross channel price disparity, free shipping, ratings and review to platform aesthetic design. Whereas check-out abandonment, is a result of shipping policy and account fatigue. In addition, ‘single females’ were identified to abandon their shopping process before the check-out page whereas ‘married males’ were identified to abandon their carts post the check-out page. The study discusses contribution to theory and provides future research directions for marketers, especially online retailers.