E-commerce checkout process: simplify and accelerate conversion
Between 60 and 80% of carts are abandoned before confirmation, often at the precise moment of payment. Every removed friction turns into sales.
- The checkout funnel is divided into three phases: information, payment method selection, confirmation
- Going from 11 to 4 fields in a form can increase conversion by more than 50%
- Transparency on fees before the final confirmation avoids the leading cause of avoidable abandonment
- Follow-up emails recover 10 to 30% of carts abandoned at payment
Why the checkout process is crucial for your sales
The checkout funnel is the breaking point where abandonment is most frequent: 60 to 80% of carts are abandoned before confirmation. This is the moment when the customer faces information requests, unexpected fees or limited choices. Every added friction increases the risk of abandonment. Optimizing this process is therefore not a secondary task but a direct growth lever: a small improvement in clarity or speed quickly translates into sales volume.
The three key steps of the checkout process
Collecting customer information (address, contact) must remain minimal and never force account creation before payment. The payment method selection must cover your customers' preferences while remaining simple and fast. Confirmation, finally, is the moment when the customer is most alert: a clear summary of the order, fees and commitments is essential there. Treating these three steps as a coherent whole, rather than as isolated fields, builds a smooth funnel.
Reducing the number of steps and unnecessary requests
Going from 11 to 4 fields in a form can increase conversion by more than 50%. Offer guest checkout, without a mandatory account; offer account creation after confirmation, once trust is already established. Use automatic pre-filling for already-registered customers, and smart fields (card type detection, relevant regions based on geolocation) to streamline data entry.
A smooth checkout funnel is part of every e-commerce project at Klickbee, from cart to confirmation.
Offering a variety of payment methods and highlighting them
The bank card remains dominant in France, but Apple Pay and Google Pay are progressing rapidly, especially on mobile. Buy-now-pay-later solutions (Klarna, Alma, Oney) reduce the psychological barrier of a large expense. At a minimum, offer card, PayPal and a mobile wallet. Display the logos of accepted methods right from the product page, and order the options by relevance to your audience rather than alphabetically.
Displaying fees, timelines and terms transparently
Discovering shipping fees at the moment of final confirmation is one of the worst moments for a customer: vigilance is at its peak, and any negative surprise instantly translates into abandonment. Display the real delivery cost as soon as the address is entered, with a detailed subtotal (products, shipping, taxes, total). Make the return terms accessible in plain language: "14 days to return, fees refunded" reassures far more than legal jargon.
Frequently asked questions
Should you force account creation to pay?+
No, offer guest checkout; suggest account creation after confirmation, once trust is already in place.
How many payment methods should you offer at a minimum?+
At least three: bank card, PayPal and a mobile wallet (Apple Pay or Google Pay).
When should you send a follow-up email after payment abandonment?+
Between 4 and 24 hours after abandonment; a second reminder 48 hours later captures customers who have changed their minds.