By Tyllah0 comments

What Are Abandoned Cart Emails and Why You’re Losing Money Without Them

One fact that’ll change the way you look at marketing forever:

Nearly 70% of online carts get abandoned.

Let that sink in.

Now imagine if you could recover even a fraction of that… automatically.

Abandoned cart emails make that happen. They keep working behind the scenes, so you wake up to new orders, new deposits, and more money from carts you thought were long gone.

In this post, I’m breaking down exactly what abandoned cart emails are, why they work so damn well, how much you’re leaving on the table without them, and what to do about it.

Let’s get into it.

What Is an Abandoned Cart Email?

It’s exactly what it sounds like: an email (or a sequence of emails) that gets sent to someone who added something to their cart but didn’t check out.

They got distracted. Their phone rang. They needed to "think about it." Whatever the reason, they bounced. And abandoned cart emails are how you bring them back.

These aren’t just one-off messages either. They’re part of a post-cart recovery flow that lives inside your email marketing system and runs automatically once it's set up.

Where It Fits in the Customer Journey:

  1. Someone visits your site

  2. Adds a product to their cart

  3. Doesn’t check out

  4. Boom — they get a reminder (or four)

Timing:

  • Email 1: Sent about 4 hours after abandonment

  • Email 2: 12–24 hours later with a little incentive

  • Email 3: Social proof and FOMO

  • Email 4: Final reminder before their cart expires

You’re not spamming them; you’re strategically showing up to help them finish what they started.

Why Abandoned Cart Emails Work So Well

They’re Perfect Reminders

  • People get distracted. That doesn’t mean they weren’t interested.
     A simple “Hey, you left this behind” can nudge them right back to their cart.

They Use Timed Urgency

  • Time-sensitive deals, reminders that stock is limited, or messaging like “your cart expires tonight” create healthy pressure to act.

They Offer Incentives

  • A small discount. Free shipping. A bonus gift.
     When done right, this isn't begging; it's smart conversion strategy.

They Rebuild Trust With Social Proof

  • Sharing real customer reviews or success stories in your email makes it easier for hesitant buyers to follow through.

The Money You’re Leaving Behind Without Them

  • Use example math: “If 100 people abandon, and 10 convert after emails, that’s $1,000+ recovered”

  • Highlight time-saving automations

The Money You’re Leaving Behind Without Them

Let’s do the math real quick:

Let’s say 100 people add something to their cart, but only 30 check out.
 If 70 people bounce, and you recover just 10 of them with a cart sequence—
 and your average order is $100—that’s $1,000 back in your pocket.

Just from having these emails in place.

Even better? You’re not manually doing any of this. Once the sequence is set up, it runs on autopilot while you focus on literally anything else in your business.

What Makes a Good Abandoned Cart Sequence?

Not all cart emails are created equal. If you want clicks, you need more than a dusty “You left this behind” message.

Here’s what makes a solid abandoned cart sequence actually convert:

🔑 Copy That Connects

  • Your emails should sound like you—not like a corporate robot.
     Relatable. Clear. Confident. Slightly witty if that’s your style.

📩 A Clean Visual Layout

  • Make it easy to read. Highlight the product(s) they left behind. Include bold buttons and clear pricing. Bonus points for mobile-friendly design.

🛒 A Clear CTA

  • Make it obvious what you want them to do next:

    • Finish checkout. Use this code. Click here. No confusion. No fluff.

Skip the Stress. Use These Templates.

Don’t want to write them yourself? Or design anything from scratch?

I got you.

I created the Money on the Table™ abandoned cart email templates to help small business owners recover revenue without wasting time.

You’ll get:

No more chasing carts. No more ghosted checkouts. Just emails that convert on autopilot.

Tags: abandoned cart emails, email Marketing

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