10 Abandoned Cart Email Subject Lines and Why They Work

An abandoned cart is an unavoidable challenge that every eCommerce business has to face. A whopping 70% of shoppers will end up abandoning their cart. However, marketers have found the best ways to get them back to checking out.

Irrespective of the plethora of reasons that shoppers have for not checking out, sending an email with the right subject line can get your customers back in the game.

Why Are Email Subject Lines So Important?

source: Klaviyo

Reports show that the quality of email subject lines directly affects your email open rates. Ecommerce brands who get their abandoned cart emails opened, see up to 65% conversion from shoppers who had abandoned their cart. For maximum conversion, it is recommended that abandoned cart emails be sent at least 3 times.

Below are 10 abandoned cart email subject lines that have worked effectively for major brands.

Simple Reminders

This is a simple and yet effective way of writing email subject lines. Simply telling or reminding your customer about their abandoned cart.

• You forgot something
• Did you forget something?
• Did you leave something behind?

This takes the position that you assume that they had every intention to buy but for some reasons they forgot to complete their checkout. Simple reminder subject lines see up to 47.67% – 41.18% open rate.

Personalized subject lines

These subject lines include the first name of the customer to bring the conversation home. A personalized subject line can read like the following:

• Hello Emma, You left your cart open
• Hey Jane, thanks for visiting us
• Hey Bailey, get a 10% discount when you check out.

Report from CampaignMonitor proves that emails with personalized subject lines get up to 26% open rate.

Offers and Discounts

Customers never get tired of taking advantage of discounts and you can’t get tired of offering them. Subject lines that start off the email telling customers of a beneficial reason to complete their purchase can be effective.

• Get 20% off when you empty your cart
• 30% off is waiting for you on all that is in your cart
• Get free shipping on all that is in your cart.

Time-Bound Offers

Time-Bound offers create urgency about an offer and tell the customer to come back and checkout before they lose it.

• 30% off when you check out this week
• Your 20% off on your cart ends tomorrow
• Your Free Shipping is about to expire

Fun Industry Related Copy

Using subject lines like this can get your customers excited when they remember the particular product that they were about to purchase. It reminds them of why they needed the product that they were trying to buy in the first place.

• You forgot something comfortable in your cart
• Get your skin glowing, don’t wait to check out.

Building Curiosity Subject Lines

There are subject lines that get most people to just click open a mail. Sometimes you would have to ditch all the cart related lines and go for something completely different.

• Jane, we have something for you
• A gift for you
• We picked this out just for you

This gets the customer curious enough to open the email to see an offer tied to completing the action of checking out.

FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) Tactic

Creating scarcity of a product has been one of the oldest tricks in the book for getting customers to pay now. This rule also works very well with abandoned cart email marketing. You can use subject lines such as:

• Your cart is expiring
• Stock is running out.
• Limited Offer
• Your product is selling fast

Nudging Subject Lines

These subject lines intend to give the customer a simple push in the right direction. First assuring them that you understand why they might not have checked out, you are with them through making the decision and enjoying the product that they have looked at.

• Don’t worry, we’ve got you
• You are almost there
• You can use your Juliana choo handbag

Customer Care

The customer is asked if they need help with anything or if they had issues while shopping. This comes with the assumption that the customer needed help along the process of checking out.

• Do you have a problem with your wifi?
• Did you have quality service?
• We are here to help!

More Reasons to Buy

Giving customers more reason to buy is convincing them on why each and every product is in their cart in the first place. It outlines the benefits and perks of the products chosen. This is used amazingly well by the travel company above.

• 3 reasons to book now
• Why you will love London

Conclusion

With so many shoppers falling into the category of people who abandon their carts, not putting attention on your abandoned cart emails will be leaving a lot of cash on the table.

The subject lines above can also be put together to create something unique for your brand, while also using emojis when necessary.

It is important to choose subject lines that are consistent with the tone of your brand. Also, observe what works best for you by using A/B tests and paying close attention to your email marketing metrics. This way you can make the necessary iterations to see an increase in your email open rates and consequently, your revenue.