Over 2/3rds of people shopping on your website will abandon their carts. That’s why a Cart Abandonment Email Sequence is the biggest missed opportunity for eCommerce store owners to immediately increase revenue.
68.89% of people abandon their carts on ecommerce sites.
It’s a staggering statistic and one that is a massive cause for concern to all business owners.
Just think of how much additional revenue could be generated by saving only a fraction of those sales.
What if we told you that there was an effective way to bring customers back to your site to complete their purchase?
There is, and it’s called a Cart Abandonment Email Sequence. Executed correctly, it can dramatically improve your conversion rates and salvage massive amounts of revenue for your company.
Why Customers Abandon Their Carts
Customers abandon their carts for numerous reasons.
While the reasons for abandonment vary dramatically, one issue remains prevalent: a lack of trust in the merchant they’re purchasing from.
It’s your job to regain that trust and encourage the potential customer to complete their purchase.
The easiest - and most effective - way to achieve this is with an automated Cart Abandonment Email series that fires out automatically upon abandonment.
Here’s an evergreen script that we implement with clients at Magnet Monster that is proven to bring customers back to your website, gain their trust and drive conversions.
Email 1: Cart Abandonment Reminder
The purpose of this email is simply to remind customers to complete their purchase no more than four hours after they abandon their cart. It needs to be concise in its message and drive customers back towards your website.
A compelling headline is required here as well.
“Did life get in the way?” is an effective and versatile headline we’ve found personally to work well across multiple industries.
However, there is also a secondary purpose to this email: to create urgency.
How do you achieve this? By leveraging the scarcity principle.
Tell your customers that you’re running low on stock or that you’ll hold it for a short amount of time. This will incentivise them to come back and complete the purchase.
Here’s an example of an initial cart abandonment reminder from Boom! By Cindy Joseph:
Very simple and direct, focused on one goal: getting the customer to click-through and complete their purchase.
No social media, no blog content - just a straightforward call-to-action that reminds them to complete their sale.
We don’t recommend including a discount in this email, which we’ll explain why once you scroll down this sequence…
Email 2: Second Reminder - Provide Assistance
If the customer still hasn’t completed their purchase, you should proceed to remind them about their outstanding order 24 hours after the original abandonment.
Research shows that a second reminder makes the customer 2.4 times more likely to complete their purchase.
Let’s take a look at the second email example from Boom! By Cindy Joseph again for reference:
Very similar to the first, with another nudge to finalise the purchase.
At this stage, you can also invite your customers to ask questions if they need assistance completing the purchase.
Telling them you’re there to answer any queries they may have instils confidence in your proposition and tells them that you’re standing behind your product/services.
We recommend avoiding discount incentives at this stage as well, although it is a common tactic for new customers to receive a 10%, one-time welcome coupon here to nudge them over the finish line occasionally.
Email 3: Introduce Social Proof
Recovering a sale becomes more difficult at this stage. That’s why it requires a change in strategy.
While we know your lead is interested in your product(s), what they may lack is confidence to complete the purchase.
That’s where social proof steps in.
Considering that 93% of consumers say that online reviews have influenced their buying decisions, it’s a no-brainer to include it in your cart abandonment sequence.
However, it needs to be relevant to the original product you were trying to sell and provide genuine value to negate buying fears.
A genuine customer testimonial or a video of an individual using the product is a great choice at this stage of the sequence.
Alongside this content should be another call-to-action to revisit your website and complete the purchase.
While this email will sell less than the first two in the sequence, it’s still an essential part of maximising the effectiveness of what comes next.
Email 4: Discount Incentive
It’s safe to assume that if they haven’t completed the purchase at this point, they probably need a further incentive to complete the sale.
10-20% as a one-time offer is often effective. We don’t recommend going lower than this due to the possibility of devaluing your original value proposition to the point that the customer loses trust in you.
It’s critical to add time-sensitivity to this email so that the customer doesn’t mistake your generosity for desperation.
Giving them a deadline to complete the sale (24-48 hours) shows that it’s a one-time only offer and that they need to act immediately if they want to take advantage of it.
Email 5: Offer Expiring
This is generally your last chance to salvage the original sale. It should remind the customer of the discount, as well as it nearing the deadline to utilise it if they want to take advantage of the saving.
Again, this email should be focused solely on directing traffic back towards your website to complete the sale. There is no need to introduce content at this point, as your social proof in Email 3 should have reaffirmed your value proposition and overcame any sticking points.
Conclusion
After the Cart Abandonment Email Sequence finishes, there’s no need to give up remarketing to your customer. While they may not be as interested in your original proposition as when they originally added it to their carts, they still may be interested in your brand and what you’re offering.
If they haven’t yet unsubscribed, you should continue to retarget them with occasional offers, news, testimonials and content marketing. See our Email Marketing Mastery service for further details on how best to achieve this.
Need helping setting up your own Cart Abandonment Email series? Contact Us here for a free consultation.
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