Amazon Marketing Cloud

Revive Abandoned Carts with Amazon Marketing Cloud

Archit Arora

23 Apr 2024

Have you ever browsed through Amazon, adding items to your cart, but then got sidetracked and didn’t finish your purchase? It happens to everyone. But for people selling on Amazon, those unfinished purchases mean lost sales.

The solution? You can bring back those potential customers with effective retargeting methods.

However, regular advertising tools don’t make it easy to target people who leave items in their cart without buying them. That’s where Amazon Marketing Cloud (AMC) Custom Audiences comes into play.

In this blog, we’ll explore how to use AMC Custom Audiences to reach out to people who abandon their carts on Amazon.

Who Are Cart Abandoners?

Cart abandoners on Amazon are individuals who select items for purchase and add them to their virtual shopping cart but don’t complete the checkout process. There are various reasons for this behavior, such as distractions, changing their mind, technical issues, or encountering unexpected costs. Some may also use the cart to save items for future consideration without immediate intent to buy.

Why Is It Important to Target Cart Abandoners?

Targeting cart abandoners is important for several reasons:

Recover lost revenue: Cart abandonment represents missed sales opportunities, so targeting abandoners allows businesses to reclaim potential revenue.
Capitalize on existing interest: Cart abandoners have already shown intent to purchase by adding items to their carts, making them more likely to convert with targeted marketing efforts.
Improve customer experience: Addressing the reasons behind cart abandonment, such as high costs, can help enhance overall customer satisfaction and retention rates.
Stay competitive: In the competitive e-commerce landscape, targeting cart abandoners is essential for staying ahead of competitors and maximizing profitability.

How to Re-Engage with Cart Abandoners Using Amazon Marketing Cloud?

The Amazon Marketing Cloud is an SQL-based analytics platform where you write queries to download data or create custom audiences based on supported attributes and query table parameters. If you are someone who doesn’t know SQL, we have good news: Amazon has already provided a premade query template to create an audience of cart abandoners.

Here is a quick preview of the query:

/* Audience Instructional Query: Audience that added to cart but did not purchase */
-- Optional update: To filter by ASINs, add one or more ASINs to the list of ASINs below and uncomment lines [1 of 2] and [2 of 2]
WITH asins (asin) AS (
  VALUES
    /* Update: Populate the list of ASINs below to filter by ASINs */
    ('asin1'),
    ('asin2')
),
purchase AS(
  SELECT
    user_id,
    MAX(event_dt_utc) AS purchase_dt_max
  FROM
    conversions_for_audiences
  WHERE
    event_subtype = 'order'
    /* AND tracked_asin IN ( SELECT asin FROM asins ) -- Optional update [1 of 2]: Uncomment this line to enable ASIN filters. Leave the line commented to skip filters. */
  GROUP BY
    1
),
atc AS (
  SELECT
    user_id,
    MAX(event_dt_utc) AS atc_dt_max
  FROM
    conversions_for_audiences
  WHERE
    event_subtype = 'shoppingCart'
    /* AND tracked_item IN ( SELECT asin FROM asins ) -- Optional update [2 of 2]: Uncomment this line to enable ASIN filters. Leave the line commented to skip filters. */
  GROUP BY
    1
)
SELECT
  atc.user_id
FROM
  atc
  LEFT JOIN purchase ON atc.user_id = purchase.user_id
WHERE
  atc_dt_max > purchase_dt_max
  OR purchase_dt_max IS NULL

How to Create a Custom Audience?

Step 1: Open the Amazon Marketing Cloud Instance and click on the “Audience tab.”

Step 2: Click on “Create Audience” and then click on “Create with instructional query.”

Step 3: Click on the tab with “Audience that Added to Cart but did not Purchase” written on it.

Step 4: Go to section 3.2 “Create an Audience”, here you will find the link to the query for Add to Cart but did not purchase. Click on “Open in audiences query editor”

Step 5: Choose an Advertiser, enter the name of your audience, and write the description if you want to remember some details regarding this audience.

Step 6: Select the date range and time zone. Click on “Create Audience”.

The Add to Cart and Did not Purchase audience will be created and will be visible in the audience tab for you to add to your DSP campaigns.

Best Ways to Utilize this Audience

Discounts: Offer incentives such as discounts to sweeten the deal and encourage completion.

Additional Information: Provide additional product information to address any lingering questions or concerns, fostering confidence in the purchase.

Product Benefits: Showcase product benefits to rekindle interest and highlight the value proposition, reminding customers why they initially desired the item.

Additional Strategies

Segmentation: Don’t treat all cart abandoners the same. Segment your audience based on factors like purchase history, abandoned cart value, or time since abandonment. This allows for tailored messaging that resonates more deeply with specific customer segments.

Urgency and Scarcity: Create a sense of urgency by highlighting limited-time discounts or low stock availability. This can incentivize customers to complete their purchases before the offer expires or the product runs out.

Retargeting Across Channels: Extend your reach beyond Amazon by retargeting abandoned cart audiences on third-party display advertising networks. This reinforces brand awareness and increases the likelihood of customers returning to complete their purchase.

A/B Testing and Optimization: Utilize A/B testing to compare different creative elements, messaging strategies, and offer structures. Analyze the results to identify the most effective approach for re-engaging your abandoned cart audience and maximizing conversions.

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Conclusion

In conclusion, Amazon Marketing Cloud Custom Audiences unlocks a powerful retargeting strategy for savvy sellers. By leveraging this tool, you can turn abandoned carts into completed purchases, boost conversions, and gain valuable customer insights. Remember, cart abandonment doesn’t have to be the end of the road. With a targeted retargeting campaign fueled by AMC Custom Audiences, you can turn those “almost-there” into loyal customers who keep coming back for more.