Many shoppers look around your store, search for products, but donât add to the cart.
And this is where browse abandonment emails come in: theyâre sent to bring those shoppers back, sometimes with an offer, a discount, or something else of value.
The good news is - browse abandonment emails do really well for stores with a 50.5% higher click-through rate compared to traditional emails.Â
But thereâs a catch - your browse abandonment emails will have to stand out from the crowd.
Letâs dive in.
1. Don't send the same content to everyone
2. Create attention-grabbing subject linesÂ
3. Write thought-provoking copy
4. Personalize emails based on shopping journey
5. Mix up your product recommendations
6. Keep your content scannable
8. Limit the number of emails you send
10. Make âContact usâ prominent
11. The more social proof, the better
12. Track metrics beyond open rate
12 Ways To Drive More Sales Through Browse Abandonment Emails
1. Don't send the same content to everyone
Browse abandonment happens at 4 different touch points of the funnel, namely:Â
a) Homepage abandonmentÂ
Your shoppers leave after landing on your homepage. Bring them back by educating them with a quiz. Feature your best sellers. Encourage customers to take another look with incentives such as free shipping and easy returns.Â
b) Category AbandonmentÂ
As the name says, category abandonment occurs when your shoppers browse your category pages but leave without moving to the product page.Â
To convert themâsend product recommendations from the relevant category. Offer deals on categories like the one below.
c) Product page abandonmentÂ
In this occurrence, the shopper interacts with the product page but never adds to the cart. These recovery emails must contain product information and options similar to the one below.
d) Search abandonmentÂ
Search abandonment occurs when shoppers exit your site after using your site search to find a product, model, feature, SKU, etc.Â
To woo these shoppers, include product recommendations closely matching the search term. Offer first-time customer deals. A welcome additionâproduct comparison info demonstrating how you are different from others.
A simple search abandonment email would look like this.Â
2. Create attention-grabbing subject linesÂ
Creating subject lines that convert like crazy isnât as hard as you think.Â
One simple trick is to use the Curiosity Gap. Reveal a part of the information in the subject line and withhold the rest. Take help from your preview text.Â
This gear is worth another look â Make it yours before it sells out.
Check out these subject lines for inspiration:
- Is this your next pair?
- See anything you liked?
- Did we catch your attention?Â
- Just What You Were Looking For
- Your recently viewed items are still available
- Save 20% And Take a Second Look
- Handpicked, just for you.
- Complimentary 2-3 day shipping on the Gucci items you viewed.
- Don't ghost, David
- â Hurry, take one more look and get 20% off! â
- You're not the only one looking at these... đ
- Wayne, A Category You Viewed Has Dropped In Price
- You'd DEFINITELY Look Cute In That đ„°Â
3. Write thought-provoking copy
Write copy that makes shoppers take the next step. You can either say Youâve earned it! We thought you might take a second look or use:Â
QuestionsâQuestions stimulate a mental reflex called Instinctive Elaboration. Your brain canât think of anything else but the question.Â
Power of regretâ Customers like happy experiences. Tell them how missing out on buying your product could make them regret it.
You also have to be mindful of the tone and phrasing. Use contractions and exclamations to make it conversational. It helps convey messages in the right tone. Make active voice your ally. Â
The trick is to write as youâre talking to a friendâuse second person pronouns like you, your, and yours well. Â
4. Personalize emails based on shopping journey
Personalize your emails better by segmenting subscribers according to:
a) High-intent shoppersÂ
Shoppers who actively use the search bar, browse product categories, check out reviews, and return policy are high-intent shoppers.Â
Send emails containing:Â
- Customer testimonials with well-rounded insightsâfor example, value, quality, length, comfort, and sizing for clothing apparel
- Testimonials including age, skin type, and concern for skin care products
- Early access deals, best sellers, and first-time discountsÂ
- Trust badges from recognized authorities such as FDA to drive trustÂ
Browse abandonment emails sent to high-intent buyers can help you reclaim 10 to 15% of lost sales.Â
Also check out: 40 Abandoned Cart Email Examples That Actually Win Back Lost Customers
b) First-time customersÂ
First-time customers may still not know what they want. You would want to send:Â
- Interactive emails with product recommendation quizzesâthey have a click-to-open rate of 73%Â
- Emails containing product videos of starter products(increases your CTR by 300%)Â
- First-time discounts to new customers to encourage them to purchaseâ80% of customers feel encouraged to buy from a brand for the first timeÂ
- Emails offering BNPL payment options encourage customers to buy products they couldnât afford(45%)Â
c) Repeat shoppersÂ
Repeat customers have a greater LTV and are your brand advocates. Woo them with emails having:Â
- Loyalty programs offering benefits such as member-only prices, exclusive access to upcoming products, experiences, etcÂ
- Access to limited edition drops and product launch invitesÂ
Access your customer data from CRM, Google Analytics, etc to drive personalization.
5. Mix up your product recommendations
Add your bestsellers or trending products with your product recommendations.
Hereâs a cool example from Zee & Co:
6. Keep your content scannable
People read from their minds â not eyes. Make content easy to scan.
Use bullet points. Stick to 3 sentences in a paragraph. Break your content into small chunks so readers find it easier to read.Â
Donât use words exceeding four syllablesâ for instance, satisfyingly and knowability. They confuse your readers. Add subheadings for a natural flow, for a better reading experience on mobile devices.
Hereâs a quick template for you to borrow from:
Hey [name], we caught you snooping đ
And we are SO GLAD we did!
Our customers are the backbone of our company, and nothing makes us happier than seeing them enjoy our products!
We know you liked our [product name] and weâre sure youâd want to see these too
<Product display>
â
Catch your fancy? Shop now
So, pop on over, tell us what you loved!
<Contact details & social media credentials>
7. Experiment with your CTAsÂ
Tie your CTAs with a specific action other than Shop Now or Buy Now. Start with:Â
a) Soft-sellingÂ
Ask them to take a second lookâa soft-selling approach.Â
b) Drive scarcityÂ
Drive FOMO for popular products:Â
c) Bring forth the power of savingsÂ
And use âsaveâ even in the CTA:Â
8. Limit the number of emails you send
Just so you donât end up in a spam box, follow a sequence you can stick to. It helps in improving your email delivery rate.
Hereâs an ideal sequence for you:Â
- Send the first email 30 minutes after the abandonment
- Second email 24 hours after the abandonment
- Third email 3 days after abandonmentÂ
Remember, to offer different incentives for best results.Â
Read more: eCommerce email marketing: The complete guide
9. Upsell like a champ
Include higher priced products to increase perceived value. Youâd want to drive an emotional trigger using copyâThis might go well withâŠ. to get shoppers to act.Â
Include recommendations that are better than the previous. This invokes the Salience Biasâthe tendency to focus on emotionally striking while ignoring the rest.Â
Use Decoy pricing to increase your AOV. List three productsâplace the lowest priced product, highest priced in the middle, and the second highest at the end.Â
10. Make âContact usâ prominent
Add your contact details just above the footer. You want your customers to spot it instantly. Use negative space and link to your help section, support email, and store locator.Â
11. The more social proof, the better
Reassuring customers is tough but with the right social proof, it gets easier.
a) Be solution focused
Feature testimonials showing the before/after results. Include the pain point and how your product helped customers. For this, send a brief to your customers on what youâd like them to cover.Â
Take note of this example from Vanity Planet.Â
b) Use social signalsÂ
Social signals are your overall shares, likes, and social media visibility. It shows your social proof in real-time encouraging shoppers to click. See 6, 751 people love thisâthatâs a social signal. Â
12. Track metrics beyond open rate
Your browse abandonment emails might look good on the surface, but whatâs your data telling?Â
You might want to look at these metrics:
- Unsubscribe rate: The percentage of shoppers who have unsubscribed to your emails. How to calculate: Total number of unsubscribers/ Number of emails deliveredÂ
- Compliant rate: This is the number of shoppers who have marked your email as spam. How to calculate: Total number of complaints/Total number of emails delivered
- Conversion rate: This is the ideal stage you want to reach with your shoppers. Conversion rate is the percentage of shoppers who finally bought your product. How to calculate: Total number of conversions/ Number of emails deliveredÂ
- Bounce Rate: The percentage of emails sent which werenât delivered to your recipientâs inbox. How to calculate: Total number of bounces/ Number of emails sent
- Forward rate: The percentage of shoppers who forwarded your email to friends or shared the email by clicking the link inside the email. How to calculate: Total number of forwards/ Number of emails delivered
- Campaign ROI: The return on the investment for your email campaigns. How to calculate: ($ Sales - $ Invested) / $ Invested
- List growth rate: The percentage at which your email list has grown over time. How to calculate: New Subscribers - New Unsubscribers + Email/Spam Complaints / Number of Subscribers x 100
Transform Email Marketing Into A Revenue Machine
Most eCommerce store owners donât see email as a serious revenue stream.
Ask them about the importance of email marketing, and you'll hear: âwe donât really have a major strategy,â âwe mostly use generic templates,â or âwe just send emails to people on our list.â
BUT AT THE SAME TIME:
There are stores out there that drive 30%+ of their revenue from email marketing.
Engage can help you do the same - Book a free demo.
Weâll show you:
- workflows we can create for your store,
- proven ways to drive 30% or more $$ from email alone, and
- successful templates and strategies from your industry (and others).