"An astounding $4 trillion worth of merchandise will be abandoned in online shopping carts this year, and about 63% of that is potentially recoverable by savvy online retailers."

"Shopping cart abandonment is growing. The data shows that around three-fourths of all shopping carts will be abandoned by online shoppers this year."

"Here are some key points that can help retailers develop strategies to recover lost sales: 

• Retailers can reduce the rate of abandonment and increase conversions by streamlining the checkout process and also by retargeting shoppers with emails after they've left a website. Initial emails, sent three hours after a consumer abandons a cart, average a 40% open rate and a 20% click-through rate, according to Listrak. 
• More broadly, an abandoned shopping cart should be seen as part of the increasingly complex series of steps a consumer might take before finally making a purchase, and a strong indicator of consumer interest in a product or a brand. Technology that helps retailers collect and leverage online shopping cart data is likely to be a worthwhile investment. 
• Shopping cart abandonment is increasing, and will continue to do so as more consumers shift to online and mobile shopping. In 2013, as many as 74% of online shopping carts were abandoned by shoppers, according to data shared with BI Intelligence by e-commerce data company, Barilliance. That abandonment rate is up from 72% in 2012, and 69% in 2011.
• An abandoned shopping cart does not automatically translate to a "lost sale," since three-fourths of shoppers who have abandoned shopping carts say they plan to return to the retailer's website or store to make a purchase, according to data from SeeWhy. Online-only retailers are at a disadvantage to "omnichannel" retailers in this respect because they have fewer channels through which to recover lost sales."

Source Appeagle.com

Source Getelastic.com

Source Dazeinfo.com

By taking the percentage factor into account, UK online retail sales have passed unmatched by those in the US and Europe of all retail sales.

"The Forrester report estimates that the European online retail sales will reach EUR 233.9 billion by 2018, up from EUR 134.9 billion in 2013. This equates to a 12% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) up to 2018."

"The report notes that clothing will continue to be the largest online sales category in Europe, whereas online groceries will be the fastest growing, surpassing consumer electronics to become the second largest category by 2018, Forrester said."

"The UK, France and Germany will keep their highest proportion of total retail sales coming from online sales, out of the 17 countries included in the forecast. The predicted online sales growth across Europe is driven by a combination of the increasing number of consumers that buy online and retailers enabling improved ecommerce experiences."

"Additionally, the percentage of European internet users who buy online will grow from 65% in 2013 to 75% in 2018. Southern European markets, such as Italy and Spain, will witness notable increase in online retail sales through to 2018, spurred by the growth in the number of online buyers and the emergence of "super-shoppers" in these markets - consumers who research and buy across multiple devices and digital touch points on a regular basis."

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