Abandoned Cart Emails

Online businesses are peaking right now—about 25% of all business conducted in the United States is online. That said, a large number of people shopping online will fill a cart full of products and then abandon it. Approximately 69% of online shopping carts are abandoned and never revisited. These carts will sit untouched because shoppers will lose interest in the products or company. The amount of revenue lost due to cart abandonment can be astronomical. Even if half of abandoned carts were re-evaluated and purchased, monthly revenue would sky rocket. A way to entice shoppers to revisit their carts is by emailing and reminding them of products they almost bought.

There are many reasons for abandoning online carts. Most are abandoned because the purchase did not seem cost or time effective to the customer. A customer might have felt that shipping and handling costs were too high or that shipment would take too long. Another reason that a customer might leave the business without purchasing anything is a general distrust of the website. If a customer feels that their bank information is in jeopardy, they are less likely to purchase an item. Customers might have also been deterred from a purchase if the checkout portal seemed too lengthy or complicated. 

A more technical reason behind losing an online purchase might be website difficulty or the device used by the customer. Data shows that the rate of abandoned carts by customers using their mobile devices is 85%. On the other hand, people at their desktops only leave a site without purchasing items 69.75% of the time. Shoppers are likely to make purchases when they are comfortably sitting at their computers rather than on their phones. All of the issues above can be addressed in abandoned cart emails.

Email has grown to be one of the largest forms of online messaging. A whopping 92% of digitally active individuals use email as their primary source for online communication.The easiest way to communicate with shoppers online is by emailing and notifying them of the products they missed out on. Data has shown that about 45% of abandoned cart emails have been opened. Of those opened, about 11% of them have resulted in a purchase. Within these abandoned cart emails, you can address some of the customer’s initial concerns that deterred them from a purchase.

Additionally, you can reinforce your shipping and handling fees or the approximate time of delivery. Furthermore, you could offer discounts or advertise sales that could also push the customer back onto your site. By being clear and restating these details, you could secure a purchase.

The first email should be sent about 30 minutes to an hour after the final item was added to the customers cart. When sending this email, you don’t want to seem too eager to point a finger at the customer. However, you don’t want to wait long because the customer might not remain in the mood to make a purchase. There is a sweet spot after a customer has left your site when your business is still on their mind. As a company, you should aim to send the first email while they are still in the deliberation phase.

The second email reminding the customer of their cart should be sent about a day after the first email. You want to put about a day between the two emails because you don’t want to seem abrasive. Customers might be bothered if you email them multiple times in one day about products they don’t want to buy. There is a fine line between reminding the customer and bothering them about their unmade purchases. As a company, you want to tiptoe that line by emailing them often but not too much. 

Any additional emails should be spaced about two days apart. As mentioned above, if you email the customer too much, you are likely to irritate them. Sending around five abandoned cart emails is recommended, but after that, you are less likely to get a sale.

The first email sent to the customer should consist of troubleshooting for technical difficulties. In this email, you should operate under the assumption that something went wrong during the transaction. Offer suggestions, and simply ask if there was something wrong with their experience.

The second email is an opportunity to offer promotional deals or information on shipping and handling. This email is where you could provide photos or a list of the items left in the cart. These pictures might entice the customer to revisit your site, and it could convince them to make a purchase. Offering clear details on your return policy might also make the customer more comfortable with spending their money. 

Any messages that are sent after the second email should consist of general promotions and sales as well as some information on the items left behind. At this point, a sale is unlikely, so it is best to start promoting new items. Now that this customer has filled a cart once, they are more likely to make a purchase in the future. So, it is good practice to remind the customer of your online presence. 

Overall, emails about abandoned carts will likely result in more revenue and a larger customer base. Within these emails, remember to prioritize customer service and company policy. You cannot go wrong in connecting with customers and promoting your business. If you don’t know where to start in creating an abandoned cart email flow, reach out to Root & Roam Integrated Marketing Agency. We’d be happy to help!