19 min read

15 Cool Cart Abandonment Popup Examples for Sales Recovery

Faezeh Shafiee
-Published on:
Jan 26, 2024
-Updated on:
Nov 6, 2024

Using cart abandonment popups is critical to recovering lost sales. 

With effective cart abandonment popups, you can minimize revenue loss and boost your bottom line. 

Here are the best examples and practices with high-converting popups.

the cover of cart abandonment popup examples cover with a sample cart icon on a light purple background

What is a Cart Abandonment Popup?

A cart abandonment popup is a targeted message that appears when a customer is about to leave an online store without completing their purchase. 

This popup usually offers incentives like discounts, free shipping, or reminders of items left in the cart to encourage the customer to finalize their order, ultimately reducing cart abandonment rates and increasing conversions.

We pay attention to this point since, on average, 69.80% of online shoppers leave items in their carts without completing the purchase, a significant revenue loss. But it doesn’t have to be that way.

15 Cart Abandonment Popup Examples & Tips to Get Inspired

an image of a macbook that shows a white screen that says "Online Shopping" with some little shopping carts and bags in front of it on a desk

Yes, despite what most people might think, popups convert, and a well-optimized popup message can reduce your cart abandonment rate and help you grab your users’ attention right when they're about to leave.

However, certain skills are required to design an eye-catching and conversion-ready popup, which are explained in the following tips and examples.

Take the time to read them and try to practice them in your future customer retention campaigns.

I promise you won’t regret it.

1. Consider Popups Timing and Create Urgency

Popups are not annoying; In fact, it's the lack of knowledge of when to display them that makes visitors feel annoyed by them.

The key to a successful cart abandonment popup is to display them at the right time and place.

In the same way you don't like being chased by store clerks when browsing the products, your online customers shouldn't have to deal with it either.

The timing is the first thing you must consider before applying cart abandonment popups to your website. Yet, how?

Exit-intent popups are an excellent opportunity to present an exclusive offer for a product that can lead you to the right audience at the right time.

the timing-triggered popup for reducing cart abandonment

Above is an example of a popup trying to prevent users from abandoning their cart and reminding them about the ”50% Off” campaign that is about to end.

Once you trigger your popup based on exit intent and spice it up with a tempting offer, you know you're on to something. 😉

2. Offer an Instant Discount to Vistors Who are About to Leave

Yes, the same old trick of offering a discount is still a tried-and-true strategy that works very well with cart abandonment popups.

Don’t want users to leave their cart? Then give them an extra reason to purchase.

Having already made up their minds and picked the product, sometimes all they need is a little push from your side.

In fact, a UPS survey revealed that most shoppers abandon their carts due to unexpected costs, which is why an offer like a 10 or 20 percent discount might keep them going.

the discount popup for cart abandonment

Try to be creative and funny with your copy and entice them to buy.

Here are some interesting ideas for you to consider once writing your popup message: 💡

  • Ok, You Win! Here is Your 20% Discount.
  • Hey, Don’t Leave Your 15% Discount Behind.
  • Don’t Go Yet! We Have an Especial Offer Waiting for You.
  • We Know You Really Want It. So Why Not Buy It With a 10% Discount?

Try to consider your brand's overall style and identity, creating your popups and offering a reasonable discount.

One last thing, make sure the discount code you’re giving actually works.

It may seem obvious, but 46 percent of users abandon their shopping carts in the face of broken discount codes!

3. Promote Free Shipping to Persuade Users to Purchase

In the same UPS survey, 57% of customers stated that "delivery costs pushed the purchase price over what they expected", making the shipping costs one of the biggest reasons for cart abandonment.

Furthermore, for many shoppers, unconditional free shipping is a key consideration when making an online purchase.

So, here's your chance to stand out and retain customers with free shipping on orders over a certain amount.

free shipping popup for cart abandonment

It would be even better if you tweak it a little more like the popup example above and add a 20% discount with your free shipping offer, making it almost impossible to refuse.

Provide free shipping in the cart abandonment popup using the right font and color.

To be more precise, you can create two different popup designs and run an A/B test to determine the one visitors prefer.

Keep in mind, though, that you need to find the exact offer that works for your margins and average order value. 🎯

4. Ask for Users' Email Address and Offer Them Discount

So they’re about to abandon their cart without purchasing, huh?! 🤔

What about one last try offering a 10% discount in return for their email address?

Here is a pop-up example from Unwrapped Life, a successful Shopify online store offering their visitors 15% off in return for their email address.

a screenshot of a cart abandonment popup example from unwrappedlife offerig 15% off in return for users' emails

Following this practice, you’ll hit two birds with one stone.

Persuading visitors to continue with their abandoned cart, offering a discount while growing your email list for future follow-ups and campaigns.

a screenshot of a cart abandonment follow up email from Ten Tree with a title that says "Forgetting Something?"

See how Ten Tree followed up the abandoned cart with an email cleverly highlighting the brand's mission to plant ten trees for every product sold with a tree illustration in the beginning and offering 10% off in the body.

5. Make a Great Offer That’s Too Good to Let Go

Another way to keep your customers from churning is to hook them with a bigger offer that’s too good to let go.

People may ignore a 10% discount code or free shipping, but a great deal like a 50% off one-time offer or a promotional item is harder to turn down.

Moreover, it is also an excellent idea to tell them how much they will save by buying the item right now.

Try to give them numbers instead of percentages and see how that goes.

Since people are prone to saving money, conveying that sense when they are about to purchase something is very tricky and triggering.

a screenshot of a cart abandonment popup example from uppercasemagazine offering 2 years subscription with 30% off

Look how Uppercase Magazine offers a great deal on the checkout page, stating “Save $30” while promoting the two-year plan and persuading the visitor to take action.

6. Give Away Freebies with Each Order

Oh, this one is almost impossible to resist.

I mean, who doesn’t like an unexpected gift, freebie, or giveaway?

a screenshot of a cart abandonment popup example from Raww Cosmetics offering a hat as a free gift to the customer who purchase now

Earlier, we mentioned that people tend to minimize personal spending; however, they appear to assign a significantly large value to items with zero financial cost (AKA freebies).

Take advantage of this emotional bias in customers and offer them an item for free if they complete their purchase.

Take this Raww Cosmetics cart abandonment popup as an example.

a screenshot of a cart abandonment popup example from Raww Cosmetics in the check out page offering a hat as a free gift

Providing a free hat with the purchase is their way of persuading the potential customer to purchase.

This sensation of joy from receiving a free product will impact your prospect's choice and prevent them from abandoning their carts.

7. Don’t Rush; Give Visitors More Time to Decide

Don’t rush the sale; respect your customers by giving them enough time and space to weigh their options.

Typically, people tend to review, analyze and evaluate their options before taking any action, which could take up to a day or more.

a screenshot of a cart abandonment popup example from Boohoo with pink theme and a title that says "Need More Time?" asking for user's email

See how Boohoo, a British clothing brand, designed a cart abandonment popup that asks visitors whether they “Need More Time?” giving them more space and asking for their email address instead as a way to keep in touch.

This way, by showing visitors you understand that their decision-making process might take time and offering to wait until they are ready, you are more likely to avoid cart abandonment or, even better, acquire loyal customers.

8. Customize the Popups and Give Users Discount

Want to hook your visitors with your popups? You better start personalizing them.

Creating customized onsite marketing messages with dynamic content on your popup can be a helpful technique to keep users from abandoning their carts.

Using the smart tag feature, you can add dynamic text to your popup campaigns.

For example, you can automatically address visitors by their names or show their email addresses using a specifically formatted placeholder text.

Take this Farfetch, a British-Portuguese online luxury fashion retail platform’s popup, as an example: 👇🏻

a screenshot of a cart abandonment popup example from Farfetch asking visitors to sign up to get 15% off

The smart tag feature in the pop-up already chose the gender preference and even entered the email address in the related box, making it personalized and easy for customers to sign up.

9. Ask Users How was Their Experience on Your Website

Customers appreciate companies who care about their user experience and want to know how to improve it.

Simply asking your customers what caused them not to continue might change the game.

customer experience popup for cart abandonment on a pink background

Ask them if they would recommend you to their friends, and then offer them a coupon for their email address.

In this way, you'll always be able to contact them later and keep them in your circle.

Using an exit-intent popup asking customers to participate in a survey and share their feedback might prevent them from navigating away.

Take this exit intent popup from The Outnet, for instance:

a screenshot of a cart abandonment popup example from Theoutnet asking the visitors if they "Got a Minute" to evaluate their exprience on the website in return for 15% discount code

Asking visitors to participate in the survey so they can provide their best service is something customers appreciate.

In addition, by putting it informally, asking “Got a Minute?” they convey a sense of friendship and the fact that it will not take long.

Lastly, you can encourage respondents to participate by offering them a coupon or free item at the end of the survey.

In this way, not only are you collecting social proof, but you are also encouraging them to continue their purchase with the current discount.

10. Cross-Sell Your Products and Get Users to Shop More

So visitors are leaving their carts behind without taking any further action?

Possibly they did not like the product they picked or were looking for something else.

a screenshot of a cart abandonment popup example from Shopbop Upselling their similar products

Offering a cross-sell popup can interrupt abandonment by offering a selection of products that may interest the shopper.

In addition to disrupting an exit, the cross-sell popup introduces shoppers to different products they may not have been exposed to before.

a screenshot of a cart abandonment popup example from scarlettos cross selling their shoes products

This is your last chance to display your best-selling products so use it wisely.

11. Offer a First Purchase Discount to New Vistors

Offering a first purchase discount to your visitors is a great way to prevent cart abandonment proactively.

the welcome popup on a fair background

Think of it as a welcome shot to your online visitors. In this way, you create a sense of loyalty and make them feel welcome.

Want to avoid showing the first-time discount at the beginning of your customer's journey?

Okay, use it as your final pitch and show it right before visitors abandon their carts.

12. Keep Them Coming Back | Offer Discounts for Next Time

Displaying a cart abandonment popup that offers a discount is a great way to encourage users to take action.

next purchase popup for the cart abandonment

But you know what is even better? Providing a discount code for their next purchase.

In this way, not only do you keep them coming back with discounts for their next purchase, but you also make your way to having more sales in the future.

13. Use a Full-Screen Popup and Grab Users’ Attention

Using a full-screen popup is another attention-grabbing way to prevent your visitors from abandoning their carts.

the form collection full screen popup

Consider using a friendly call-to-action, such as that shown above from the Tsuno brand, asking for your customer's email address to stay in touch and, in return, offer a discount to complete their purchase.

A full-screen popup can be your last chance to prevent your users from leaving, so make sure the CTA you're designing is engaging and visually appealing.

14. Take Advantage of Trigger Words in Your Popups

When it comes to popups, the content is as important as the design, so you need to know how to play with words in an interesting way to get your customers' attention.

the cart abandonment popup with trigger word on a blue background

Trigger words (also known as power words) are the secret weapon you can use in your cart abandonment popups to hook readers at first glance.

Knowing how to provoke the user with the right word trigger helps you stand out in an increasingly competitive market.

Trigger words like “Last Offer”, “Better Hurry”, and “Wait, Don’t Leave” have the power to make your user curious, entice them to buy, or get them to click on a specific link.

15. Give Them Alternative Options for Shopping Payments

Lastly, remember that if the customer lacks the funds to buy the product, there will be no purchase.

You can promote alternative payment and financing nudges via cart abandonment popups, addressing most customers' concerns about payment security.

a screenshot of a cart abandonment popup example in blue theme showing different Payment method with a text that says "YOU CAN PAY LATERWITH PAYPAL CREDIT!"

This way, showing alternative payment popups allows shoppers to see which payment methods are available instead of abandoning the purchase.

Your users will trust you more if they see you offer a range of payment options to enhance their user experience.

Well, that’s all there is to the popup examples and tips you can implement to prevent your visitors from churning.

Now it's your turn to put these tips into practice and use a good popup builder to create your cart abandonment popups.

In a Nutshell…

While each cart abandonment popup is unique, these 15 examples all share a common goal: delivering value to the visitor. 

These examples showcase how you can provide value to your customers and inspire your own cart abandonment popups. 

Use urgency tactics to encourage visitors to reconsider their purchases and embrace FOMO to drive sales.

Create Your Cart Abandonment Popup

Popupsmart dashboard with cart abandonment popup

Now it’s your turn to act. Go ahead and try these tactics to see how many cart abandonment cases you’ll be able to prevent in your store.

Additionally, with Popupsmart’s conversion-ready popup templates that are fully customizable, you'll get better results in less time.

Give it a try and see how smoothly you can design and customize your cart abandonment popup with no coding knowledge in no time.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I Add Cart Abandonment Popups to My Shopify Store?

Yes, by adding a Shopify popup app to your store, you can easily create and customize your cart abandonment popup and display it when a visitor is about to leave.

Do Cart Abandonment Popups Work?

Yes, cart abandonment popups can significantly help your store prevent customers from navigating away, but it’s essential to know when and where to use them for the best result.

Why Do Users Abandon Their Carts?

People abandon their carts for various reasons, from not trusting the website with their credit card information to being forced to create an account. About 23% of shoppers abandon their carts because of high shipping costs. In addition, 18% of shoppers abandon carts due to price comparisons.

Which Tools Can I Use to Retain Abandoned Carts?

Here is the top Shopify abandoned cart apps that you can increase your conversion rate and maintain your recovery for your business:

  • Carti Abandoned Cart Recovery by ReConvert
  • Abandoned Cart Recovery Email by Care Cart
  • Abandoned Cart Recovery by Retainful
  • Abandoned Cart Recovery by Marsello
  • Smart Cart Recovery by Gravitate

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