Understanding Shrink Abandonment: The Basics
Everyone loves a good deal, especially when it comes to kidsâ clothing. Sometimes shopping carts pile high with items only to be abandoned mid-checkout. Picture this, excited parents and caretakers find the perfect T-shirt, add it to their cart, and then poof - ghosted.
Iâve been guilty of adding something to a cart and then forgetting about it too, so I canât really blame them. This is shrink abandonment or cart abandonment in eCommerce terms. Itâs sort of an age-old mystery - why do people add things to their carts only to leave them behind.
Iâm not sure who started calling it shrink abandonment but thatâs just how the world works, doesnât it. We get used to funny new words for things that already exist. Shrink abandonment is arguably one of those phrases. It speaks about the phenomenon of customers adding products to their carts and leaving them be.
It may sound harmless at first but these abandoned carts are far from that. As more and more customers leave their carts untouched, shopping platforms lose potential sales resulting in significant losses for a business. There are quite a few reasons why people abandon their carts and understanding some common behaviours can help you communicate better with your customers through email reminders or even newsletters.
You could try using abandoned cart emails as well as shrinking abandonment in your email strategy for some really interesting results. But at the end of the day, all of us want our inboxes filled with interesting stuff we actually want to read and not sales pitches disguised as newsletters, donât we.
The Importance of Reminder Emails
You know, people are more or less inundated with messages these days - from emails to social media notifications to ads popping up on every website they visit. And itâs not because theyâre forgetful or inattentive, but sometimes, amidst all that noise, a little nudge is needed to remind them of something genuinely valuable. Reminder emails serve as that gentle prod, steering customers back towards something they might've left behind. It's pretty easy for carts to get abandoned, especially when customers are bombarded with distractions left and right.
And while some may return on their own, many will simply move on unless prompted otherwise. Reminder emails bridge that gap by nudging them in the right direction and effectively reducing abandonment rates and even encouraging brand loyalty. A well-crafted reminder email demonstrates attentiveness without being intrusive.
It's not about guilt-tripping someone into a purchase but about highlighting that you value their interest enough to check in. But here's where it gets tricky - a friendly reminder can quickly turn into an annoyance if not timed correctly or if the tone comes off as pushy. It's crucial to strike that delicate balance between reminding customers of what they've left behind while respecting their autonomy in making purchasing decisions.
If done right, these reminders can provide an opportunity for brands to build trust and rapport with their audience rather than simply chasing after conversions. In today's world where consumers have more choices than ever before at their fingertips, building strong relationships is key for long-term success rather than focusing solely on immediate gains from abandoned carts. The power of reminder emails lies not just in recovering potentially lost sales but also in establishing meaningful connections with your audience over time through thoughtful communication strategies such as these templates which prioritize empathy above all else ensuring long-lasting results both now and into future interactions too.
Template 1: The Friendly Nudge
Sometimes it feels like relationship management is all about negotiation. It seems like iâm talking about finding an approach that doesnât seem overly eager, yet is rarely not cold enough to be dismissed as indifference. If there was a tightrope named âbalanceâ, the process of reining back cart-abandoning customers would be quite similar to walking on it. Youâre not going for the hard sell here.
And you know being all crabby and firm will only end up driving people away. This type of conversation is all about diplomacy â and that's putting it quite technically. Really, itâs not as calculating as we make it out to be â but it doesnât hurt to be strategic either.
Thereâs a fine difference between a nudge and a poke in the ribs (or a full-fledged smack), and this approach to writing this template can boil down to one thing; your tone. Sound inviting, friendly, helpful, humorous and even, welcoming â your objective is to say âI see youâre busy, but would you want to finish placing your order. â without having the recipient drop their phone faster than you can say âbye byeâ.
This template is all about getting someoneâs attention and making sure that they reach checkout soon after. Use graphics, sign-offs and playful words to create urgency while still remaining approachable. The friendly nudge is apparently an approach that can only work if you have enough goodwill with your customers. So go ahead and familiarise yourself with their wants, what makes them tick, what keeps them awake at night, how familiar they are slightly with your brand â all things that can help you make the most of this template, while always keeping kindness at the centre of everything you do.
Template 2: The Urgent Reminder
Modern shoppers have the attention span of a goldfish. And the abundance of choices available online doesn't really help in keeping that attention from going astray, does it. In such instances, businesses are likely forced to adopt a more urgent approach when reminding users to complete their purchases online. The way I see it, this method is often considered aggressive and rightly so.
But it is rather an effective way to get shoppers to follow through on their purchases. The way I see it, the trick is to write these urgent reminders with a tone that conveys urgency without coming across as pushy.
Personally, I've found the âgive it a dayâ method to be quite effective. You wait for a day after your last reminder email has been sent out before sending this reminder. So, you come across as someone whoâs simply performing your due diligence in helping customers rather than annoying them. The wording of this email must also be decisive and action-oriented while preserving a sense of empathy for the customer.
To ensure that this urgent approach doesnât backfire, offering incentives or presenting social proof can come handy. This could include saying you are offering special discounts or adding testimonials from real customers who have availed of your offers and loved your services or products. This not only adds credibility to your store but also helps you build meaningful connections with potential customers.
At the end of the day, it's important to remember that customers are human beings too and generally donât appreciate being rushed into making a purchase. Not everyone likes reading reminders asking them to complete their purchases but a few people do need them. And thatâs why they should be considered anyway - albeit with some caution.
Template 3: The Incentive Offer
Suggests That sometimes we all need a nudge to do something, even when we know itâs good for us. Maybe itâs because weâre distracted, or perhaps our schedules just get in the way. So when customers have abandoned carts and gone radio silent, offering incentives can give them the push they need to convert.
The most common forms of incentives are discounts, coupons, and free shipping on orders above a certain value. Theyâre pretty straightforward and donât need too much explanation.
But theyâre not limited to those. You can also offer a buy-one-get-one promotion or a loyalty program. More or less. This last one is especially effective when paired with abandoned cart emails that inform customers of the points or benefits theyâve missed out on by leaving products behind.
While offering incentives is a great way to convince people to complete their purchases, itâs best not to depend on them too much. If youâre sending discount offers every time someone leaves a cart unchecked, you may be training them to expect an incentive with every purchase â and end up losing money in the long run. I think incentive reminder emails can be incredibly useful if theyâre used as part of a larger strategy and in tandem with other methods of communication like social media engagement and retargeting ads.
If you already have some kind of discount campaign going on, donât be shy about mentioning that in your emails too.
Best Practices for Effective Reminder Emails
Saying what you mean and meaning what you say goes a long way. And as a bit of an over-sharer, I can sometimes wax poetic about things that could probably be said in five or six words. But when it comes to emails, especially the kind of emails people do not want to receive, less is pretty much more. Your cart abandonment email will need a little finesse to work.
The subject line needs to be compelling and attention-grabbing. They will also have to be authentic, so donât lie, especially about offers and discounts that donât exist. The entire email should be easy to read with ample white space and no more than three very short paragraphs.
Anything longer than 90 words is not getting read anyway. Now if you are adding images or GIFs make sure the colours and fonts match your brand tone. And speaking of brand tone, keep the messaging fun and friendly, but remain professional. No swearing, unless you are apparently that kind of brand in which case all bets are off.
Add some reviews if you can, preferably testimonials for items similar to the ones theyâve abandoned. I suppose itâs all about setting a positive tone for these emails, even though they can probably easily come off as annoying or even off-putting. More or less.
Thereâs no such thing as too polite when it comes to cart abandonment reminder emails. Of course thereâs a fine line between polite and stalker-y so you want to be careful not to cross it by sending too many emails too often.