Abandoned purchase emails

Sending emails to checkout dropouts seems like an obvious thing to do, yet previous surveys have shown that the majority of retailers are not using this tactic.

In our Email Marketing Census this year, we found that 67% of companies are not sending emails to customers that have abandoned shopping baskets, and this represents a missed opportunity.

The e-Dialog survey certainly suggests this, with 46% of consumers saying that they would be more likely to complete an online transaction if they received an email reminder.

If a customer has added products to the basket and gone to the trouble of entering personal details then this demonstrates a clear intent to purchase. By not even attempting to remind the customer, companies are missing a trick.

Effect on offline sales

As well as driving online sales, email can be an effective driver of
offline sales, so providing details of stores where recipients can buy
goods and take up offers can be a useful tactic. 60% of UK consumers in
the survey said they would be more likely to buy something from the
high street after receiving an email about it.

Having looked at a few emails from multichannel retailers, it does seem that they are not doing enough to enough to drive offline as well as online sales.

In emails from Comet. Next, and Office, all of which have a
significant offline presence, the emails are promoting only the option
of buying online, as in this email from Comet:

Comet email

Some do it a little better though; Boots promotes its order and
collect service on its emails, while Marks and Spencer invited
customers to browse and order from its ‘Easter Feast’ menu online and
collect offline:

M&S email

Email as a sales conversion tool

The study also suggested that email marketing is the most effective way to drive direct sales
conversions, with 67% of UK consumers saying that an email could prompt
them to make an impulse purchase online, more than offers seen on other
websites (47%) or through social networks (11%)