Abandoned cart emails are generally a brand’s highest converting email automation, which makes sense when you think about it; your customer was already pretty sold on the product they added to their cart — they just need a little push to get them over the finish line.
So if you don’t yet have an abandoned cart email, it’s worth setting one up as soon as possible. And if you do have one, it’s worth tinkering with it often to land on the perfect version. The abandoned cart email examples below serve up some great inspiration. We’ve grouped them by what we loved most about them, whether that's a clever headline, a great layout, or exceptional brand building.
‘You left some items in your cart!’ is soooo 2015. A clever headline or subject line is an opportunity to deliver the ‘abandoned cart’ message in a delightful way that lets your brand’s personality shine.
✍️ Subject line: We Wanna Be Your Main Squeeze
💛 Why we like it: It’s an abandoned cart email that doesn’t feel like an abandoned cart email. The headline pun is clever and light, before you’re plunged into a science-y reminder of why you came to this brand in the first place. A glowing testimonial is a reliable way to build trust, and add weight to your claims.
✍️ Subject line: {customer name} - You’re so close to the finish line!
💛 Why we like it: ‘So close to the finish line!’ is a clever pun without feeling forced. ‘Complete your order now’ is a little dry but to the point, and the image makes us want to grab our running shoes (or buy new ones…) and head out into the great outdoors. The simple footer puts customer doubts to bed, particularly the reassurance about returns being free and easy (running shoes need to be the perfect fit, which is sure to make online customers hesitant).
✍️ Subject line: Don’t kick out just yet
💛 Why we like it: This Quicksilver abandoned cart email is economical with words, but still delivers big. Let’s break it down.
‘Free shipping & returns’ in the top banner immediately removes those hesitations and pain points for the customer (shipping costs are the most popular reason for a cart being abandoned in the first place).
Then there’s the language: ‘kick out’ and ‘tide’s rising’ are both part of the surfer lexicon (or wannabe surfer lexicon). When surfers read this email, they’ll feel spoken to.
And like the On example above, this picture is working overtime, making us want a piece of this life, and the products that will help us get it.
Finally, there’s an offer code (never a bad thing), and the ‘if you buy now’ builds urgency to place the order sooner rather than later, encouraging more impulsive spending.
In the On and Quicksilver emails above, we loved the images used. They sold the great outdoors in a way that words or clever design couldn’t. But in the following four, we love the use of illustration instead as a way to solidify and enrich a brand’s personality.
✍️ Subject line: We saw you checking us out… 👀
💛 Why we like it: Hot sauce that packs a punch needs an equally punchy abandoned cart email. The bright yellow stands out in a sea of minimalism, and the yellow bird cartoon injects character throughout. Our only criticism? We think the ‘We saw you checking us out… 👀’ thing is a little overdone now, and a brand going for all-out quirky could find something more original here.
✍️ Subject line: CHANNEL SAYS: It’s in the bag
💛 Why we like it: How does a luxury label tackle an abandoned email without it feeling grabby and off-brand? We think CHANNEL has done a pretty good job, with the illustrated GIF at the top tying the whole thing together nicely (it changes to the CHANNEL logo over a period of a couple of seconds).
✍️ Subject line: You Left Something Behind! Exclusive Discount Inside…
💛 Why we like it: This sweet GIF of two plants crashing into each other is engaging in a low key way, and tees the brand up to talk about its sustainable practices and loyalty programme. We find the subject line a little beige and clickbait-y, though.
✍️ Subject line: Your cereal is escaping
💛 Why we like it: Other than having a beautiful design, the main thing we like about this Magic Spoon email is that it’s a bit silly. The anthropomorphising of the cereal, the little illustration... it’s all breathing life into this brand, making it memorable but without the need for a lot of text. And a ‘happiness guarantee’ doesn’t hurt, either.
Your customer loved your products enough to add them to their cart. A well-designed layout lets your products sing, giving them space to dazzle all over again.
✍️ Subject line: We saved your bag!
💛 Why we like it: Look at that chic layout! The ‘abandoned’ products are integrated into the email really seamlessly, and we love the look and feel of the ‘Discover More’ module which encourages you to jump back to the site and continue browsing.
✍️ Subject line: STILL ON YOUR MIND?
💛 Why we like it: It’s hard to explain exactly why we love the layout on this Mother email, but it’s just so sparse, striking, and… cool? It’s certainly different from the usual stuff that lands in our inbox, and subtle details, like the slightly lightening behind the models, add to the high quality feel. ‘Most Popular Styles’ is also great social proof, tapping into our desire to own ‘trending’ things. And we don't often endorse 'shouty capitals', but this subject line somehow feels so right for the overall vibe.
As we’ve already said, your customers loved your products enough to add them to their cart. But what stopped them from actually placing the order? Or did they plan to come back to it later, only to never return?
All the abandoned cart emails below do a great job of addressing various cart abandonment issues, and building urgency. But guessing these issues will only get you so far: you should ideally have your own customer research and data to find your brand’s unique ones.
✍️ Subject line: Don’t ghost us!
💛 Why we like it: When addressing pain points, it can be tempting to cover everything in the main body text of the email. But when you’re also trying to keep the email low on text, this can leave you with sentences like ‘Take 20% off before the end of the week with the code AGDJWYE24 and enjoy free shipping and free returns when you spend over £60’. And while that’s not the worst thing, you do risk people not reading it — or worse, being bored by it.
We’ve already looked at how shipping costs are the main reason people abandon their cart. Ardene’s abandoned cart email shows how you can address this right up top with a basic banner that still fits the rest of your design, and doesn’t labour the point. Simple, but effective.
✍️ Subject line: Still thinking it over?
💛 Why we like it: Aside from shipping costs, what’s another reason people back out of an ecommerce purchase? Maybe they take a moment and figure out they don’t actually need it, or can’t justify buying it right now, and figure that going ahead with the purchase would risk ‘buyer’s remorse’.
Le Tote’s abandoned email points out that, when you’re renting, there’s surely no such thing, and no need to worry. We love how the subject line and headline link up, speaking to those who might be ‘overthinking’ while placing their order. ‘Your cart full of endless fashion is about to expire’ builds extra urgency, encouraging the customer to quit deliberating and act now.
✍️ Subject line: Window shopping?
💛 Why we like it: While we find the top of this Silpada abandoned cart email a bit busy, we love this simple benefits block for showing how easy it is to order through this brand, and showing off the products with some great lifestyle images. We’re also a fan of the simple subject line — the phrasing of it as a question makes us intrigued to open the email, and ‘window shopping’ brings a certain IRL romance to picking out jewellery online.
✍️ Subject line: Complete Your Purchase!
💛 Why we like it: Good abandoned cart emails build urgency, and a reliable way to do this is to tap into our fear of missing out. Sure, ‘Don’t miss out!’ might be a little on the nose — but combined with the beautiful shot of friends out in nature? It’s making us think we’re missing out on more than just a product if we don’t go back to our cart and check out quickly.
Then further down the email is some really good stuff (literally).
Remember how we touched on buyer’s remorse when we unpacked the Le Tote email? Well a big part of getting people to buy your product in 2024 is making them feel good about doing it, when there’s so much to make them feel bad: the cost of living crisis, the environmental impact of consumption, and sketchy factory ethics… to name a few. In just a few words, our potential guilt at buying from Cotopaxi is gone: sustainably-made? Guaranteed for life? Helping end poverty? We’re sold.
✍️ Subject line: The hard truth, and nothing but the truth
💛 Why we like it: For most ecommerce shopping, the things that hold us back from making the purchase are pretty innocuous: will I regret this later? Will it fit me? Will it arrive in time for the party? Is it well made? Can I return it? Should I be spending the money?
But when you’re buying medication online, it’s likely you’ll have even more reservations — and that they’ll be a lot more serious.
That’s why Hims dedicated its whole abandoned cart email to debunking some of the myths about ED medication that it believes (likely through dedicated customer research) are holding back its first-time customers.
For the abandoned cart emails that enrich our view of this brand as a whole; three different emails that just nail it.
📚 Bookmark for later: Suprise & Delight Marketing: The Art of Attracting Loyal Customers
✍️ Subject line: Ready to buy Vacation®? Complete your order now
💛 Why we like it: Miami brand Vacation isn’t just selling sun cream: it’s selling nostalgia, and pure 80s beach culture vibes (thankfully, minus the baby oil).
And abandoned cart emails sure weren’t a thing back in the 80s, so a rethink was needed to keep this automation brand-friendly. Cue a ‘letter’ from ‘Regional Sales Director & Part-Time Accountant’, Ray Smith, encouraging you to come back and reconsider their ‘Leisure-Enhancing’ products. We loved it.
✍️ Subject line: Thinking about Surreal?
💛 Why we like it: Surreal is often praised for its innovative and slightly unhinged marketing. It’s the kind of brand to blow up on LinkedIn, and in copywriter Slack channels.
Sometimes these brands are guilty of marketing for marketers, and missing the mark for actual customers. Of doing stuff that’s clever, sure — but that ultimately doesn’t convert.
But Surreal’s abandoned cart email is proof that good work can keep everyone happy. There are the fun puns, the wacky tone, the silly CTAs. But there’s also an incredibly strong visual, and a clear breakdown of where they have their competitors beat — not on price (each box is around £6), but on nutrition.
✍️ Subject line: Quick heads up
💛 Why we like it: Even though it’s not an ecommerce brand, we had to slip in this Headspace example.
Urgency, FOMO… that’s just not really Headspace’s ~vibe~. And it absolutely sticks to its trademark chill and relaxed tone in this email, with absolutely zero pressure applied. It was also the only abandoned cart email to make us laugh out loud, proof that there’s a whole world of humour beyond the puns (although we love the puns).
As you’ve seen, abandoned cart emails for ecommerce brands come in all shapes and sizes. And while they should be shaped by your customers’ cart abandonment reasons, your brand, and your USP, we do suggest you include the following:
But don’t lose yourself in the process! Stay true to your brand, always.
📚 Bookmark for later: 8 Email Marketing Tips for Small Businesses
It’s generally recommended to send an abandoned cart email, or at least the first email in the sequence, around 30 minutes to one hour after the customer abandons their cart.
If you run your store on Shopify, you’ll have plenty of email apps to choose from to build your abandoned cart email (or sequence). Apps like ‘Shopify Email’ have templated automations ready for you to customise and adjust.
It’s worthwhile working from a templated automation because they're set up with exclusions you might not have thought of, such as excluding people who’ve gone on to buy between abandoning their cart and the email being sent, or people who’ve already recently received the same abandoned cart email.
When designing an abandoned cart email for an ecommerce brand, it’s generally best to keep text pretty minimal. Put your customers’ mind to rest over things like returns policies and delivery charges, remind them of their active offer (if they have one), and encourage them to buy soon.
Your abandoned cart automation is likely to be the best converting automation you have, so it’s worth taking the time to perfect it. Experiment with different subject lines and email content and compare performance, so you’re always getting one step closer to that winning formula.
When you create an abandoned email, it's impossible to know definitively what's going to work. All those subject lines in this post that we've criticised for being a bit unoriginal? It could well be that they're actually the winning outcomes of several tests — it's impossible for us to say without the data. Sometimes 'unoriginal' things are unoriginal for a reason!