Abandoned-cart reminders: when to send them and what to say

Three reminders, three jobs. When to add a discount, and when not to.

Why shoppers leave their carts

Leaving a cart is normal. Shoppers compare, get interrupted, wait for payday or use the cart as a wish list. The Baymard Institute, which collects studies on checkout behaviour, puts the average documented cart abandonment rate at about 70%. That means a well-timed reminder can win back real orders from people who already wanted to buy.

But some shoppers leave because of something in your checkout, and no email will fix that. The most common reason in Baymard’s research is extra costs, such as delivery, tax and fees, that appear late. Others include slow delivery, a long checkout and not trusting the site with card details. Before you write a single reminder, check that your shop:

• shows delivery costs, or free delivery thresholds, on product pages;
• shows prices with tax included where shoppers expect it;
• offers the ways to pay people use in your country, including cash on delivery where it’s common;
• says how returns work, in plain words.

Three reminders, three jobs

A good sequence has up to three messages. Each one has a different job, so each one says something new. Sending the same message three times only teaches people to ignore you.

These timings are a starting point. A shop selling low-priced everyday items can send the first reminder sooner; a shop selling furniture or jewellery can leave more time between messages, because shoppers take longer to decide.

When to add a discount, and when not to

A discount in the first reminder is the most common mistake. It costs you margin on orders that would have happened anyway, and it teaches regular shoppers to leave carts on purpose to get a code.

Add a discount when

• the first two reminders didn’t bring the shopper back;
• your margin can carry it, for example on full-price items;
• the code is single-use, so it can’t be shared or reused.

Don’t add a discount when

• the product is already on sale or has a thin margin;
• the shopper is a regular who usually buys at full price;
• the cart is small and a code would wipe out the profit.

In DripFunnel, a discount can only go in the last reminder, as a single-use code, and only if the first two didn’t work. That is the safest default, and it’s available from Growth Pro.

What to say

Short, specific and helpful works best. Here is a simple template for each reminder.

Reminder 1: the reminder

• Subject: “Your basket is saved” or “Still thinking about the indigo scarf?”
• Body: a photo of each product with its size, colour and price, one clear button back to the cart, and a line saying how to contact you.

Reminder 2: the reassurance

• Subject: “Questions about sizing or delivery?”
• Body: answer the likely doubt: delivery time to their area, how returns work, a short review from another customer, a link to the size chart.

Reminder 3: the last nudge

• Subject: “Last call on your basket”
• Body: say what changes if they wait, honestly: low stock, or the cart expiring. If you add a code, say it’s just for them and when it ends.

Respect the rules and the inbox

In many countries, reminder emails count as marketing. Only send them to shoppers who gave you their email address and, where the law requires it, agreed to hear from you. Always include a clear way to unsubscribe, and stop the reminders as soon as the shopper places the order.

Measure what the reminders bring back

Watch three numbers: how many carts each reminder brings back, the money those orders bring in, and the discount you gave away. If the third reminder recovers little beyond what the code costs, drop the code and try a better reason to decide. In DripFunnel, offer results show orders, revenue and discount given per offer, from Growth Pro.

Setting it up in DripFunnel

• Starter (Free) and Growth: you send one reminder per cart yourself.
• From Growth Pro: up to three reminders go out automatically, and the last one can include a single-use code.
• Every plan includes discount codes, automatic offers and buy-X-get-Y. See Offers on the Features page and compare plans on Pricing.

Questions