Back Email vs. SMS for Cart Abandonment Recovery: Which Converts Better?
Cart abandonment is a major challenge for online retailers; roughly 70% of shopping carts are abandoned before purchase. That represents enormous potential revenue being left on the table. In fact, studies show that U.S. e-commerce sites lose approximately $18 billion per year due to cart abandonment. Recovering even a fraction of these lost sales is therefore crucial. Two of the most popular re-engagement channels are email and SMS, leading marketers to ask: Which one converts better, and how should each be used?
What is Cart Abandonment Recovery?
Cart abandonment recovery is simply the process of re-engaging shoppers who added items to their online cart but didn’t complete checkout. It typically involves automated follow-ups (via email, SMS, or other channels) that remind the customer about their left-behind items and encourage them to finish the purchase. Why do shoppers abandon carts in the first place? Common reasons include:
- High extra costs: Unexpected shipping fees or taxes can significantly increase the total price at checkout.
- Buyer hesitancy: Many people browse without being ready to make a purchase.
- Price concerns: If the item’s price feels too high, shoppers may leave.
- Checkout friction: Factors such as forcing account creation, lengthy forms, or slow site speed can frustrate buyers.
- Other distractions: Shoppers might get interrupted, want to compare products, or simply decide to purchase later.
Because abandonment is so common, recovery campaigns are extremely valuable. Sending reminders and offers can help recoup revenue that would otherwise be lost. For example, one analysis found abandoned-cart emails recover roughly 10% of lost sales. Recovered shoppers often have higher loyalty, too: customers who return after abandoning carts tend to have larger lifetime value and better ROI than entirely new customers. In short, recovery flows not only reclaim immediate revenue, but they also boost long-term customer engagement and make marketing spend more efficient.
Email for Cart Abandonment Recovery
Advantages
Email has long been the standard channel for cart recovery because of its flexibility and scalability. Some key advantages of email include:
- Rich Content & Branding: Emails can include product images, detailed descriptions, and your brand visuals. You have room for multiple links and calls-to-action, discount codes, and persuasive copy to explain the benefits of the product.
- Cost-Effective & Scalable: Email marketing is highly cost-efficient. Industry data show email is “highly scalable and cost-effective” for businesses with large lists. In fact, email delivers an average ROI in the tens of dollars for every dollar spent.
- Automation-Friendly: Email platforms easily support automated email sequences. You can set up multi-step workflows (welcome back, reminder, follow-up) that run without manual effort. Email tools also provide detailed tracking of opens, clicks, and conversions.
- Multiple CTAs: Because emails can be longer, you can include several calls-to-action (e.g. “Return to cart”, “Shop now”) and even cross-sell related products.
Limitations
Email does have drawbacks compared to SMS:
- Lower Engagement: Email open and click-through rates tend to be much lower than SMS. For instance, cart-recovery emails typically have an open rate of around 40–45%, whereas SMS campaigns can achieve an open rate of over 98%. That means a larger share of emails may go unread.
- Inbox Competition: Shoppers receive many promotional emails, so your cart message might land in a Promotions or Spam folder and never be seen. Even when it arrives, customers often delay reading marketing emails.
- Delayed Action: Compared to SMS, emails aren’t read as immediately. A customer might see the email hours or days later – possibly after they’ve lost interest.
Best Practices
To maximize cart recovery via email:
- Write Compelling Subject Lines: Use curiosity and urgency. Email subject lines that hint at a deal or use FOMO (“Still want [Product]? Exclusive offer inside!”) perform well. Personalized subjects (e.g. “[Name], you left something behind…”) can boost opens significantly.
- Emphasize Urgency: Include limited-time language or countdowns. For example: “Only 24 hours left to get 10% off your cart!” or “Your cart expires soon.” This motivates quick action.
- Personalize Content: Mention the customer’s name and the specific item(s) left in their cart. Visuals of the exact products they viewed can make the email more relevant and increase clicks. Personalization (like using name and item) can improve open rates by a wide margin.
- Send a Follow-Up Series: Don’t rely on just one email. A common strategy is a sequence: send the first reminder about 1–2 hours after abandonment, then follow up 24 hours later with an incentive (e.g., a discount), and possibly a final reminder 48–72 hours later. Spacing them out helps catch shoppers who may open emails at different times.
SMS for Cart Abandonment Recovery
Advantages
SMS (text messaging) offers some powerful advantages for cart recovery:
- Extremely High Open Rates: Text messages are read almost instantly. Benchmarks show about 98% of SMS are opened, compared to roughly 20–45% for emails. This means your reminder is likely seen quickly.
- Immediate Delivery: Texts land directly on the shopper’s phone, making them ideal for timely nudges. If the sale is running out or the stock is limited, an SMS can immediately catch their attention.
- Concise & Attention-Grabbing: The brevity of SMS forces you to be direct. A quick, clear reminder with a strong call-to-action (“Tap here to complete your purchase: [Link]”) can drive fast clicks.
- Higher Click-Through Rates: With fewer distractions than email, SMS often generates higher click rates. Industry data report SMS click-throughs around 36%, far above typical email CTRs.
- Personal Touch: A text feels more personal – it comes directly from a phone number or brand name to the customer’s hand. Addressing the customer by name and referencing their item makes it relevant.
Limitations
SMS also has some downsides to consider:
- Character Limit: You’re limited to a short message (about 160 characters). This means you must be extremely concise and refrain from explaining details.
- Higher Cost: Sending SMS messages can be more expensive than sending emails. Over thousands of contacts, this can add up, whereas emails cost virtually nothing per send.
- Opt-In Requirements: Regulations require explicit consent before you can send text messages to customers. You must ensure that shoppers have opted in to receive messages and include easy-to-use opt-out instructions.
- Limited Creativity: With so little space, you can’t include images or many buttons. And because text feels more immediate, abusing SMS (too many or irrelevant texts) can annoy recipients.
Best Practices
To make SMS cart recovery effective:
- Keep It Short & Urgent: Write a clear, brief message. For example: “Hey [Name], you left [Product] in your cart at OurStore. Complete your order now: [Link]”. Focus on urgency and simplicity.
- Include a Direct Cart Link: Always include a one-click link that redirects the customer directly back to their cart. This immediate convenience drives conversions.
- Personalize When Possible: Use the customer’s first name and mention the product if space allows. A message like “Hi [Name]! Your [Item] is waiting… Ready to check out? [Link]” feels personal and relevant.
- Send Quickly: Timing is critical. Aim to send the first SMS within the first hour after abandonment (even within minutes, if practical). Research and experience suggest that the sooner you remind them, the better – one SMS template guide even recommends a 5-minute and 1–3 hour follow-up schedule.
- Respect Regulations: Ensure the recipient has opted in. Keep messages friendly and include opt-out instructions (“Reply STOP to opt out”) as required. Over-texting can backfire, so usually limit to one text per abandoned cart event unless a customer requests more.
Email vs. SMS: Key Differences
When choosing a channel (or combining them), it helps to compare their key attributes:
- Reach: Email can reach anyone on your mailing list – a large audience. SMS only reaches those who have given phone consent, so your list may be smaller.
- Engagement: SMS wins this round. Typical SMS open rates (~98%) far exceed email open rates (~20–45%), and SMS messages are usually acted on faster.
- Content Flexibility: Email allows for rich content – images, detailed descriptions, and multiple links or CTAs. SMS is extremely concise (text only) and one-link.
- Cost: Email is very cheap and scalable, while SMS costs more per message. However, SMS may justify its cost with higher response rates.
- Customer Preference: Preferences vary. Some customers appreciate the subtlety of email and dislike being “bothered” by texts, whereas others respond well to quick, direct reminders on their phone. Knowing your audience (e.g. younger customers may expect text updates) can guide which channel to emphasize.
Which Converts Better?
There’s no one-size-fits-all answer – each channel excels in different ways. In general:
- Email drives volume: Because email lists are larger and it’s free to send many messages, email can recover more abandoned carts in aggregate (especially when you use multi-email flows). Abandoned-cart emails typically recover around 5–10% of carts.
- SMS drives urgency: SMS prompts faster action from a smaller audience. When shoppers receive a text soon after abandoning, conversion rates can be higher – some reports cite 15–20% conversion from recovery SMS campaigns (and even up to ~39% in optimal cases).
- Best of both: Studies and expert advice agree that combining both channels maximizes recovery. As one guide puts it, “Use email when you need room to explain. Use SMS when timing is critical. Use both when you want to recover more revenue”. In practice, you might send an SMS to nudge urgency and then a detailed email for reinforcement.
For most businesses, email recovers more sales simply due to its wide reach, but SMS often converts at higher rates per contact. The ideal strategy is to leverage each: use email for nurturing and discounts, and SMS for immediate reminders and short-term offers.
Combining Email + SMS for Maximum Impact
The real power move is to use both channels in a coordinated flow. A common multi-step strategy looks like this:
- ~1 hour after abandonment: Send a short, friendly SMS reminder with a link back to the cart.
- 12–24 hours later: Send an email that visually reminds them of the items and perhaps includes a small incentive or discount code.
- 48 hours later: If still not converted, send one final email emphasizing urgency (e.g. “Last chance: your cart expires soon!”).
This layered approach leverages the immediacy of SMS and the content-rich nature of email. You can refine the sequence using conditional logic (such as skipping steps for those who convert early) and by testing timings.
Pro Tip: Start with a fast SMS nudge, then follow up by email. For example, text “Hey [Name], don’t forget your [Product]! Complete it now:” shortly after abandonment, and 12 hours later, send a personalized email with images or a coupon. Tools like Poptin can automate these SMS and email workflows seamlessly.
By blending SMS and email, you cover both bases: SMS grabs attention immediately, while email provides detail and a reminder in the next wave. Well-coordinated, multi-channel flows consistently recover more carts than either channel alone.
Conclusion
Both email and SMS are valuable for cart abandonment recovery, but they work in different ways. Email is great for broad outreach, branding, and rich content, while SMS excels at quick, high-impact reminders. The best results come from using them together. Send an immediate text to capture urgent intent, and follow with branded email messages to close the deal. To put this into practice, consider using a platform that handles both channels. By combining email and SMS intelligently, you’ll maximize your recovery rate and grow your revenue. Explore Poptin’s tools to minimize cart abandonment and convert your leads.
