What Makes A Great Basket Abandonment Email?

In our latest SaleCycle Academy video, Lauren Stirling looks at the factors that make up a great cart abandonment email. 

Video Transcription

Ok guys…cold hard truth time….Around 75% of shoppers will leave your ecommerce site with items still in their basket…. I know…how rude!

Cart abandonment emails are the best way to reconnect with these shoppers, and get that sale…But what makes a great abandonment email? Let’s take a look at some of the key features and tactics to use…
Sending cart abandonment emails at the right time is crucial. Our research has found that sending emails an hour after customers abandon their baskets produces the best response.

Next is the subject line – it needs to catch the shopper’s eye in a crowded inbox and persuade them to open the email. We find that using customer’s names and the product in subject lines can improve open rates.
Customers should see a reminder of the products they left in their basket, but abandonment emails also offer an opportunity to cross-sell related items and increase order values.
Personalisation can be used to make emails more relevant. Using the customer’s name is one example, while recommending related products based on their previous browsing and buying history, can take it one step further.
It’s also good to think about features that can add that extra level of persuasion. Using reviews in emails can help to reassure customers about the product they’re thinking about buying, as they’ll feel more confident hitting that purchase button if they can see that other people are thrilled with their purchase.

Countdown Timers can also be used to show the time remaining for a free delivery offer, or the time remaining for a seasonal sale, and These help to nudge people back to the site to complete a purchase.
Finally, make it nice and easy for people to complete the purchase by creating an email with a clear call to action to take them back to the checkout, You want the process to be as smooth as possible.