Research from the Baymard Institute shows that nearly 70 percent of online customers leave items in their carts without making a purchase.
Customers abandon carts for a variety of reasons, and there is no guarantee that they’ll remember to come back once they’ve left. Luckily, businesses aren’t helpless when it comes to reconnecting with these customers. Cart abandonment campaigns let businesses give a second pitch for their products and have another point of engagement.
Here are five reasons why it’s worth trying a cart abandonment campaign today.
Reason #1: eCommerce is growing
During the 2010s, eCommerce sales grew by an average of 15 percent every year. Today, they account for 16 percent of total U.S. retail sales. This rate of growth far exceeds traditional retail growth in the past decade.
The COVID-19 pandemic has also caused a spike in ecommerce. Online orders have increased 56 percent since its start. This means more people are shopping online now than ever before.
With a bigger pie of potential ecommerce transactions, there’s greater opportunity to bring in – and lose out on – revenue. An effective cart abandonment solution will allow you to convert more people in the ever-growing population of people shopping online.
Reason #2: Improve your chances of conversion
In our experience, a cart abandonment campaign can increase conversions by about 20 percent. It allows you to address the many reasons why a customer might leave their cart and ensure you’re not missing out on easy opportunities.
For instance, maybe a customer simply forgot about your product or got distracted before checking out, even though they’re still interested. Sending a reminder could result in an easy conversion.
Another common reason customers leave is additional fees like shipping. With a cart abandonment campaign, you can test messages offering free or discounted shipping, which may win back some customers.
Reason #3: Emails still work
Even though they’ve been around since 1971, emails remain a popular form of communication. Nearly 76 percent of all US adults use email at least once a month.
This makes email a powerful marketing tool. According to MailChimp, customers open one out of every five marketing emails sent.
Cart abandonment emails can be particularly effective because they target a group of customers who have already shown an interest in your products. An email that re-offers a product with an added incentive could give customers that small nudge they need to make a purchase.
The best emails also contain a personal touch that focuses on a customer’s specific interests and shopping habits. Which brings me to…
Reason #4: Event-based emails lead to more sales
Emails that are sent based on a “triggering” event (like an item being left in a cart) perform three times better than nurture or batch emails.
Cart abandonment emails are by nature linked to a specific thing your customers just did, which means they’re highly personalized and relevant to your customers’ lives.
Because these emails are so likely to get customers’ attention, they’re also a great opportunity to cross-sell or upsell. You can do this by leveraging the power of AI in your cart abandonment strategy to send emails that feature “people also bought” or “people also looked at” content.
This helps recapture customers’ attention through relevant, value-driven messages.
Reason #5: There are few risks and many rewards
As with any marketing strategy, you can run trials with your cart abandonment campaigns. Experiment with various discounts and promotions based on specific products and customer groups to develop unique approaches for each.
There’s not much downside to sending an email, either. As long as your emails are compliant with global best practices, can be navigated easily, and provide value to your customers, the worst that could happen is that your email gets ignored. On the other hand, converting even 10 percent more people with a campaign would be a huge boost for your business.
Conclusion
An effective cart abandonment campaign can help you recover lost opportunities and maintain important customer relationships. It’s a must-have for any eCommerce business looking to grow revenue and develop a network of loyal customers.
Photo by Bruno Kelzer on Unsplash
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