Top 7 E-Commerce Email Marketing Strategies to Sell More

E-commerce typically relies on customers visiting your website to make a purchase. It should go without saying that most e-commerce brands can’t afford to sit and wait for customers to remember they exist and head over to their URLs. That’s where e-commerce email marketing strategies come into play. 

Used right, e-commerce email marketing campaigns help businesses overcome some of the biggest challenges in the sector. A good campaign can increase sales by recovering abandoned baskets and promoting both cross-selling and upselling. It can also drive repeat purchases and form the basis for stronger customer loyalty. 

In this bumper-size blog post, we’ll take you through everything you need to know about e-commerce email strategies, how to use them, and what results you can expect for your efforts. 

And, of course, we’ll show you how a helping hand from ScoreApp will make the whole process even smoother.

Why are email marketing campaigns vital for e-commerce businesses?

For any e-commerce brand looking to survive and thrive, email marketing is absolutely essential. Every e-commerce business wants to increase their number of customers, boost their sales, and keep buyers coming back for more. With so many obstacles, though, it can be daunting.

Thankfully, e-commerce businesses can use email and ScoreApp integration to strengthen their position. It starts with a good lead magnet to attract high-quality leads. By deploying exclusive discounts, special offers, incentives like free shipping, and value-led content, you can segment your leads and create personalised content that gets the job done.

Common email marketing challenges for e-commerce businesses

E-commerce businesses face a unique set of challenges that other online industries simply don’t have to grapple with.

For a start, there’s the fickle, seasonal nature of sales cycles causing a feast or famine scenario. That’s never good when consistent sales are the key to success. 

There’s also a huge amount of competition, whether for similar products or the same stock. E-commerce businesses have to make sure they stand out over their rivals, by offering customers a better shopping experience or more value for money.

And just when you think a sale is a sure thing, shoppers decide to abandon their carts or baskets and head over to a different website altogether. Even if they aren’t making the same purchase with the competition, the money lost to these unfinished sales adds up. 

It sounds like a lot of doom and gloom, but all is not lost. With a good email marketing strategy, e-commerce brands can increase their revenue, find and keep loyal customers, and rise above the issues baked into the industry. 

Here are seven strategies to make e-commerce email marketing (and ScoreApp) work for your business. 

1. Recover abandoned baskets with automated drip campaigns

You know what it’s like. You add something to your basket, but you decide to sleep on it before committing. Before you know it, a week has passed and you still haven’t pulled the trigger. That’s if you haven’t found it elsewhere. 

We’ve all done it, but abandoned carts, and the cumulative lost revenue they represent, are a huge headache for e-commerce businesses. 

By integrating ScoreApp with your email marketing tool, you can automate an email campaign to turn those idle carts into conversions. Sometimes all it takes is a gentle reminder. A nudge to jog the memory.

How to implement basket recovery campaigns

There are a few tried and tested ways to successfully turn an abandoned cart into a conversion: 

• Send a reminder email – The first 24 hours after a cart has been abandoned are crucial. If the customer doesn’t hit the buy button within a day, it’s not likely to happen. Use ScoreApp to automate an email within that golden 24-hour period reminding the potential customer of what they’ve left waiting.
• Follow up with something irresistible – Don’t just leave things after the nudge. Capitalise on the opportunity to speak directly to the lead. Send an email highlighting the product they’ve abandoned, or a related item that would complement it.
• Create a sense of urgency – A bit of a sneaky tactic this one, but injecting a sense of urgency into your emails is a great way to grab attention and improve the chances of conversion. Don’t oversell it, but a dash of haste in your strapline can go a long way.

Examples of drip campaign emails

Need a bit more to go on? Here are a few short examples of what your basket recovery drip campaigns could look like. 

Reminder email

Subject line: You left something behind!

Body: Hi [First Name]. It looks like you left something in your basket. 

We wanted to check there weren’t any problems with placing your order, and to let you know that we can answer any questions if there’s something you’re unsure of. All you have to do is ask.

Otherwise, you can find your cart exactly where you left it.

CTA: Click here to check out now.

Showcase email

Subject line: Still thinking it over? Maybe we can convince you… 

Body: Hey [First Name]. We see that you’ve got [product] in your basket. Great choice. We think you’ll love it.

Did you know that [details and product benefits]?

And, if we may be so bold, could we recommend the [second product]? Lots of our customers agree that they go together perfectly. In fact, if you buy them together, we’ll even give you a [X%] discount.

CTA: Click here to finish checking out, or head back to our store to add a little something to your cart.

Urgent email

Subject line: Last chance: your basket will expire soon!

Body: Hi [First Name]. Do you know you’ve got items in your basket that are going to expire? We wouldn’t want you to miss out, but we can’t keep them in your cart forever. 

Don’t worry, though, you’ve still got time. Just click here to pick up where you left off, and [item] will soon be yours.

CTA: Check out now, before it’s too late! 

2. Support post-purchase engagement with a welcome email sequence

When it comes to e-commerce, the relationship doesn’t end after a purchase. In fact, this is where you should just be getting started.

If someone has bought from you, then you’ve done something right up until that point. Now’s the time to capitalise with some post-purchase engagement and a welcome email sequence. 

How to create an e-commerce welcome email sequence

Welcome email sequences are not to be rushed, otherwise it’ll look like you’re harrying the customer. Parcel out your engagement over at least a week, maybe even 10 days, for a better chance of success.

Your welcome sequence schedule should look a little like this:

Day 1: An immediate order confirmation and thank you email. Add a bit of personalised content relating to what they’ve bought to add extra value.

Days 3–5: A related follow-up email. You know what they’ve bought, so give them a few extra titbits. Product care tips and styling guides are a strong option for showing you understand the product and want to form a stronger relationship with the customer. 

Days 7–10: Strengthen your relationship with special offers. Give the customer exclusive access to a discount or offer on their next purchase. This increases brand loyalty and trust, and they’ll be even more likely to buy from you the next time. 

For even better results insights and personalised marketing, send over a ScoreApp quiz or survey. The data it brings in will be sent to your CRM, where it can be used to improve personalisation, insights, and even conversions.  

3. Improve customer retention with re-engagement campaigns

Just because a customer hasn’t engaged for a while, it doesn’t mean they won’t ever again. But that doesn’t mean you should leave them to come around on their own, not when you can use a re-engagement campaign.

A re-engagement campaign is a perfect way to reconnect with warm and hot leads, as well as lapsed customers. ScoreApp’s analytics data will show you when someone last bought from you, so remind them of who you are and why they chose you in the first place

You can also hit previous customers with special offers and discounts to tempt them back. If you have a loyalty points system, then consider giving them a boost in points. It’s an effective incentive that won’t actually cost you a whole lot. 

How to use re-engagement campaigns

A good re-engagement campaign should look like:

• A ‘we miss you’ email: Let them know you’re thinking about them with discounts and special offers based on their buying history. ScoreApp integration will give you all the data you need. 
• Let them know what they’ve missed: Spotlight some new and popular products that fit their buying profile. 
• Make them feel special: Special offers, loyalty points, free delivery. Give them a reason to come back to you sooner rather than later. 

4. Promote upselling and cross-selling with targeted emails

Upselling and cross-selling are your friends. Upselling is where you encourage an existing or a potential customer to upgrade from what they thought they wanted to something even better. Cross-selling, while similar, is actually recommending a product that goes well with what they were already buying. 

So, if you were upselling running shoes, you might try and convince the customer that a more expensive brand or model would be better for them in the long term. Or, you could cross-sell clothes like shorts or vests. 

With the results of a ScoreApp quiz or survey, you’ll already know what a customer thinks is important and what their budget is. The data will show how serious they are about certain products. You can also use their buying history to see whether upselling or cross-selling is likely to be a worthwhile tactic. 

How to upsell or cross-sell for more e-commerce sales

Some email ideas to get you started: 

• Customers also bought: Let customers know what others have bought as a bundle.
• Highlight a premium version: Give customers the lowdown on an even better version of what they’re looking at.
• This goes with that: Highlight some complementary products that go great with what the customer already has and why they go together so well.

Example campaigns:

“Love your new trainers? Complete the look with these accessories!”

“Your new television needs this sound system.”

“More memory, faster speeds, and a brighter screen – the new [computer] will change the way you work.”

Did you know, people who bought [X] are loving [Y]?

5. Drive repeat purchases through engagement campaigns

We’ve said it before, but it’s worth repeating – you shouldn’t be waiting until a customer decides to buy again to engage with them. In fact, taking the initiative will often lead to repeat purchases. 

Using the data from ScoreApp lead magnets and previous purchases to make the message even more personal is even more likely to lead to success.

How to improve engagement for your e-commerce business

• Alert customers with product restock alerts or reminders: Particularly useful if you have convinced a potential customer to sign up to a product-specific waitlist. Also a great way to follow up on long-abandoned carts
• Shine a light on top sellers and well-reviewed products: We trust what our fellow consumers have to say. Customer reviews can build hype for products you want to spotlight, or even for upselling. 
• Add value and increase engagement: Showing you understand your products and how they’re used is a surefire way to boost engagement and brand loyalty. Product demos, style inspiration, and user guides will all get more eyes on your content and improve clickthrough rates. 

6. Offer a better shopping experience with personalised email campaigns

By linking ScoreApp to your email marketing platform, you can instantly access data and insights for personalised campaigns. Not only that, but ScoreApp’s segmentation will make it easier to create blocks of personalised content and emails that appeal to different groups based on the products they buy.

Segmentation lets you split customers based on demographics, purchase history, and even the pages and products they’ve visited on your site. In short, you’ll know exactly who your customers are and what they’re interested in. That’s a powerful basis for a personalised email campaign. 

How to personalise emails

• Dynamic content: Show personalised product recommendations.
• Recognise loyalty: Mark anniversaries or spending milestones with special discounts and rewards. Everyone likes to feel appreciated now and then, and it creates brand loyalty.
• Show you know them: Send customers discounts and special offers on products that align with their buying history. This can be a particularly effective tactic for seasonal campaigns. Think of it this way: if a shopper buys one Christmas present from you, then they’ll probably appreciate an incentive to buy another. 

Examples: 

“It’s our anniversary, and we’ve got you a little something.”

Because you loved [previous product], we think you’ll want this…”

7. Continuously test your e-commerce email campaigns for better results

It’s not enough to create an e-commerce campaign, press send, and sit back. Instead, a great campaign relies on continuous testing and tweaking. It’s what turns a good campaign into a great campaign, what boosts clickthrough and conversion rates.

How to test e-commerce emails for success

• Metrics to monitor: To make improvements, you need to narrow down the important metrics to test. For e-commerce sites, it’s vital you maximise open rates, clickthrough rates, conversion rates, and revenue per email.
• A/B testing: Once you have your metrics in place, you can measure the success of your emails in real time. Swap and change options to see what sticks.

Example test:

• Subject line A: “Find an exclusive deal inside. Open now!”
• Subject line B: “We’ve got a special offer just for you – hurry, it ends tonight!”

By integrating ScoreApp with your email marketing platform, you can carry out simultaneous A/B testing. Send variations of subject lines, content, product images, and CTAs to see which has the best impact and go from there. 

Just don’t stop tinkering, otherwise you won’t find out what might be the best combination. 

Send targeted e-commerce email campaigns with ScoreApp

Targeted email campaigns are one of the strongest tools an e-commerce business has at its disposal.

With a well-thought-out email marketing campaign, you can increase brand loyalty, promote further sales, and overcome some of the most vexing challenges e-commerce companies face on a daily basis. 

Adding ScoreApp into the mix isn’t just a way to smooth the process or add a bit of value, it’s actually essential to unlocking the potential of your campaign. 

Buying history, automatic segmentation, automated responses, and instantaneous A/B testing all come together to add potency to your email strategy and, ultimately, improve sales.

And, luckily for you, ScoreApp is free to try.

Sign up, and start using ScoreApp to boost your email marketing campaigns today.