Abandoned cart and product : how the email is collected?

Shopify Plus
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Topic summary

The discussion centers on how Shopify’s abandoned cart and abandoned product automations collect email addresses when customers haven’t completed checkout.

Key Points:

  • Email collection requires customers to have previously provided their address through:

    • Logging into the store
    • Subscribing to marketing emails

  • Testing the automations:

    • For abandoned browse: Subscribe to marketing emails, browse products without adding to cart, then close the browser
    • For abandoned cart: Subscribe to emails, add products to cart without completing checkout, then close the browser
    • Important: Use different email addresses to test both automations, as Shopify only triggers the automation for the most significant abandonment step per customer

  • Cookie behavior: While email information is stored in cookies, triggering automations isn’t guaranteed—it depends on browser settings and user behavior. The system can recognize returning visitors who previously subscribed, but functionality varies based on technical factors.

Summarized with AI on October 27. AI used: claude-sonnet-4-5-20250929.
1

Hi everyone,

I have 2 automations from shopify activated : abandoned cart and abandoned product.

I don’t understand how email address are collected since, in both cases, customers didn’t complete the order and filled their email ? This would help me to understand ans optimized the emailing and the recovery rate.

Bonus question : How may I test these 2 automation, to see if it’s works ?

Thank you so much

Manu

1 Like
2

For abandoned cart and abandoned browse automations, the customer must have provided their email address at some point during their interaction with your store, such as by logging in or subscribing to marketing emails.

To test abandoned browse, try subscribing to marketing emails on your storefront and browsing products without adding any to your cart, and then end the session by closing the window.

For abandoned cart, subscribe to emails on your storefront and add products to your cart (without proceeding to complete the checkout), and then end the session by closing the window.

Please note that if you want to test both automations, you will need to use a different email address as it will only trigger the automation for the most significant abandonment step for a customer, meaning only the abandoned cart automation would send if you use the same email address.

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3

Thank you Paul for your help,

If I subscribe to email marketing, and few days after I browse products (or put it in my cart), does the automation works ? In other words, does the email is stocked in cookies or cache, that allow to work each time I visit to the website ?

many thanks

4

We do store info in cookies, but it’s not guarantee that it will generate an abandonment as what happens depends on browser settings and user behavior.

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