Abandoned Checkouts and Recovery Detection
3 min readLast updated: February 20, 2026Customers & Contacts
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Abandoned carts are a missed revenue opportunity -- and at the same time a chance to win back customers through targeted campaigns. AutoLetter automatically detects abandoned checkouts and their recovery, so you can use this information for your letter campaigns.
Abandoned checkout and recovery detection is available exclusively for Shopify integrations. For other data sources (Billbee, CSV, API), no checkout abandonments are captured.
An abandoned checkout occurs when a customer in your Shopify store adds products to their cart, begins the checkout process, but does not complete the purchase. Typical reasons include unexpected shipping costs, distractions, or uncertainty.
AutoLetter automatically imports this information from Shopify and assigns it to the corresponding customer profile.
In the "Orders" section of the customer profile, AutoLetter marks abandoned and recovered checkouts with colored badges:
The gray "Abandoned" badge appears next to a checkout that the customer did not complete. You can see the date of the abandonment as well as the cart value and the products it contained.
The green "Recovered" badge indicates that a previously abandoned checkout was eventually converted into an order. The customer completed the purchase after all -- whether through a reminder email, an AutoLetter letter, or on their own.
An abandoned checkout is not included in the customer's statistics. Only when the checkout is marked as "Recovered" and an actual order exists does the revenue count toward LTV and order count.
The abandoned checkout data is also available as a filter criterion for your campaigns. This allows you to specifically target customers who abandoned a cart:
Create a new campaign or open an existing campaign for editing.
Use the campaign filter to select customers with abandoned checkouts. This way, you specifically reach customers who showed interest in your products but did not complete the purchase.
Design your letter template to address the abandoned cart. A personalized discount code or a reference to the products in the cart can significantly boost the conversion rate.
Abandoned checkout campaigns are among the most effective direct mail strategies. The customer has already shown purchase intent -- a physical letter can provide the decisive impulse to complete the purchase after all.
Scenario 1: Abandoned and not recovered A customer adds three products worth 89 euros to their cart, starts the checkout, but abandons it. In the customer profile, you see the gray "Abandoned" badge. This customer is an ideal candidate for a win-back campaign via letter.
Scenario 2: Abandoned and recovered A customer abandons a checkout but completes the purchase two days later. AutoLetter shows the green "Recovered" badge. The order is included in the statistics as normal. You can send this customer a thank-you campaign.
Scenario 3: Multiple abandonments A customer has multiple abandoned checkouts. In the customer profile, you see each individual abandonment with date and cart value. This may indicate technical problems or price sensitivity.