According to the latest research, about 70% of shoppers do not complete their purchases. Why does this happen? We'll show you the reasons and give you tips on how to react to abandoned carts and save over 11% of all unfinished purchases.

Why do customers decide not to complete their shopping?

More often than not, customers decide not to buy. And there can be many reasons. Usually, they encounter an issue on your website or get stuck in the ordering process. 

So firstly, we recommend you take an unbiased look at the e-shop and assess whether the ordering process is simple and straightforward.

 If it is, we have a guide on how to nudge visitors to complete their purchase. 

Save abandoned carts with email automation.

Get a potential customer to complete an order by setting up a simple email flow. Automatically, these will remind the user about unpurchased items waiting in their cart. This reminder is sent out at the right time to increase the chance of finishing the purchase.

According to the latest statistics, the average open rate of a cart reminder email is 45%. Another 21% then click through and 50% complete the purchase. So with automation set up, you can save up to 11% of sales from all abandonment.

There are many email automation scenarios to choose from, but cart abandonment shows great results in all categories. Automation flows can be created in a few minutes thanks to preset scenarios in certain solutions. 

The most popular preset automation scenario in Ecomail.

The automation is triggered when a product is added to the cart. Then we wait (usually about 2-3 hours), and if the purchase is not made, a reminder is sent out. The automation can also send multiple emails in a series. In each subsequent one, you can increase the incentive and eventually, provide a discount.

Example of automation

Let's illustrate how automation works using the example of an e-commerce clothing store.

1. Once a product is added to the cart, the automation is triggered and the first “Wait” starts. Since we sell clothing, we just need to set 2-3 hours (the decision process for clothing is usually quick). 
2. Afterward, we check whether the contact completes the order process. If not, we will send the 1st abandoned cart reminder - no discount yet. In the email, we highlight the advantages of buying from us (fast shipping, gift with purchase, etc.). We may also provide additional product information or offer similar products.
3. Again, we set a waiting period - now at least 24 hours, because we want to give the contact time to read the newsletter.
4. If the order is still incomplete, we send a 2nd reminder of the abandoned cart. We will already offer a discount on the purchase. We have chosen a discount of 10%.
5. To prevent abuse of this discount, additional “Wait” time is set up at the end. It could be set to wait 1-2 months (or even longer depending on how frequent the orders and repeat purchases are). If a contact doesn't complete the purchase, it will still wait for a month in the automation. If they add more items to their cart during this time, no reminder email will arrive.

Getting everything ready is truly easy with Ecomail. Integration with Prestashop syncs activity on your website automatically, including abandoned cart events. Because of this, it’s fast to set up this process and start making more sales in one day.

#example: For our client Grizly.cz last year, emailing accounted for 15% of sales, 37% of which came from automation including abandoned cart.

Copy matters

The average open rate for newsletters globally is around 15%, but for abandoned cart, it's over 40%. So pay attention to the wording.

• Personalize. Addressing in the subject line increases the chance of an email being opened up to 6 times. 
• Make sure to include the sender's name, subject line, and preheader. The sender's name impacts the open rate by 72%. The subject line is the enticement to open the email, and the preheader complements or builds on it.

Sample abandoned cart reminder emails.

• Display item images in your cart and create stronger FOMO.

• Show alternatives

The Vans newsletter shows alternatives to footwear because it allows for the possibility that the customer may be deciding on a color or pattern.

• Add a direct link to the cart for easy return to your website (buttons are great!)
• Offer a discount at a convenient time. 
• Optimize the template for mobile.
• Try using ChatGPT within the editor for copy ideas.

Final summary

Now you know that you can at least partially influence the abandonment rate. Lastly, we've prepared a checklist to give you the essentials for saving conversions. 

• Go through the ordering process on your online store. Ensure the steps are clear and that you only ask customers for relevant information, and the buying process is simple.
• Set up abandoned cart automation to help you turn incomplete purchases into conversions.
• Tailor the steps (waiting time, number of emails) to what you sell and your target audience.
• Content is king - take care with the wording of the content, subject line, sender name, and preheader.
• Optimize your templates for mobile phones, as readers are increasingly reading emails on them.
• Have clear CTAs, direct links to the cart and specific product images in the template. Don't forget about product alternatives.
• Make sure the graphic design of the template is well thought out. 
• Evaluate the success of your automation regularly. If results visibly deteriorate or trend downward over a period of months, adjust the text or change the templates.

Ecomail will do it for you

In Ecomail, you have abandoned cart automation, as well as email templates pre-made for you. So it’s easy to get started and even easier to get help from our customer support if needed. Just reach out to [email protected].

As a bonus, all Prestashop users have 1 MONTH FREE TRIAL in Ecomail and a starting call with our specialist. Just download the plugin and see for yourself.