eCommerce Marketing Automation - 29 “Unique” Ideas For Busy Founders

34% of eCommerce marketing managers already use marketing automation to wean off their repetitive tasks like:

• Automating marketing campaigns
• Balancing search rankings
• Keeping website UI/UX and revenue in top shape

Whether you are an eCommerce business owner already using marketing automation or a marketing manager dipping your toe in for the first time, here are 29 extremely effective marketing automation ideas for eCommerce stores.

Let’s begin.

eCommerce Marketing Automation: 29 Underrated Ideas

1. Achieve more purchase completions with automated reminders

58.6% of US shoppers abandon their carts—often because they’re just browsing or comparing products. So, automating the cart recovery process not only helps recover sales but also builds a better customer experience. Here’s what we mean:

▶ Cart recovery automation ideas for your eCommerce store:

✅ Send cart abandonment reminders – trigger email/SMS reminders within 1-2 hours to nudge customers to complete their purchase

✅ Tailor reminders messaging – customize messages based on cart value, urgency (e.g., limited stock), or the customer’s browsing behavior

▶  Automated abandoned cart email workflow:

1. 3-hour reminder: First email—remind them while the product is still fresh in their minds
2. 6-hour follow-up: In case they missed the first email (preferably over a push notification)
3. 12-hour last chance email: Offer a discount code or urgency-driven messaging

▶  Elements to include in reminder emails:

• Recap of abandoned items (+ price drops or stock updates)
• Complementary product recommendations
• Social proof (customer reviews to build trust)
• Compelling CTAs to bring them back  

Here’s Carpe’s abandoned cart flow:

Want more? Check out 15 High-converting examples of automated emails

You’ll also love: 40 Abandoned Cart Email Examples That Actually Win Back Lost Customers

2. Post-purchase automation: The money is in the follow-up

The sale isn’t the end of the journey. It’s the start of a new one. Post-purchase engagement increases repeat purchases and builds long-term loyalty.

A sale isn’t the finish line—it’s the starting point. The brands that win don’t just sell; they re-sell. Here’s what you can do:

▶ Ideas for using post-purchase marketing automation in eCommerce:

✅ Trigger a replenishment reminder – estimate product usage cycles and send automated refill reminders before they run out (over email, push, or retargeting ads)

✅ Detect dissatisfaction signals – if a customer checks your return policy page or reaches out to support, trigger a “How can we help?” message with a personalized offer

✅ Upsell relevant products and content in post-purchase emails – did they buy a coffee machine? Follow up with an email recommending premium coffee beans, filters, and descaling solutions (this way, you build trust)

✅ Push subscriptions towards repeat customers – auto-suggest a subscription plan with a locked-in discount (the discount is there to keep em’ loyal)

3. Flag fraud automatically

Fraudsters don’t take breaks—so why should your fraud protection? Manually reviewing suspicious orders is slow, expensive, and ineffective. AI-powered fraud detection makes sure you flag risky transactions before they become chargebacks. This way, you can focus on selling to real customers.

The best part? It ain’t all that expensive if you know how – here are some automated fraud detection rules:

▶  Ideas for using fraud automation:

✅ Auto-block orders from high-risk regions –  flag transactions from regions with high fraud rates and require manual approval before processing

✅ Flag bulk purchases of high-theft items – if someone tries to buy 10+ high-value items in one go, pause processing and trigger a review

✅ Verify suspicious payment methods – if a payment comes from an unrecognized source, trigger an ID verification step before approving

4. Automate your onboarding by shopper type

First impressions matter. Your welcome email sets the tone for the entire customer relationship. A generic “Thanks for signing up!” won’t cut it.

First impressions aren’t just important—they’re everything. If a new customer or subscriber lands in your world and hears crickets, they’re gone. Onboarding automation ensures they get the right messages, product tips, and incentives at the right time—without you lifting a finger.

▶ Ideas for using welcome drip automation in eCommerce:

✅ Multi-step onboarding based on interest – if a user browses skincare products before signing up, their welcome sequence should highlight bestsellers, skincare tips, and exclusive offers—not generic content

✅ Fast-track high-intent users – if they click on pricing or add items to their cart but don’t buy, move them into a more aggressive lead nurturing automation sequence

✅ Offer exclusive first-purchase perks – automate time-sensitive discounts or early access to sales based on browsing behavior

5. Predict what customer segments will do next

Basic segments like “new vs. returning customers” are outdated. You need to know what a shopper is about to do, not just who they are.

Predictive automation analyzes past behavior so you can forecast future actions, which in turn allows you to preempt needs with timely offers, reminders, or nudges. Here are some marketing automation campaign ideas to try:

▶ Ideas on how to automate customer segmentation:

✅ Let AI group people based on their actual behavior – instead of static lists, track things like “keeps looking at the same product but never buys” and auto-tag them as hesitant shoppers. Notice rage-clicks on price filters? They’re probably cost-conscious. Someone scrolling through reviews for 5 minutes? They need social proof. Segment ‘em accordingly

✅ Score people based on hesitation – if someone adds an item to their cart three times a week but never checks out, trigger an email saying, “Still thinking about this? Here’s what other customers love about it.” But don’t spam everyone—just check in on the hesitant ones

✅ Time your follow-ups based on real purchase patterns – if someone rebuys skincare every 45 days, don’t wait for them to run out—remind them on day 42 with a quick reorder button

✅ Proactive email drips that react, not repeat – if a customer ignores two product recommendation emails, don’t keep pushing. Instead, shift the focus—maybe show them how others use the product instead

6. Win back lost customers without looking desperate

Most winbacks fail because they don’t acknowledge why the customer left. Personalize it. Here’s what we mean:

▶ Winback eCommerce campaign automation ideas:

✅ Personalize the messaging based on their last action – if they’ve browsed recently → trigger a “Come Back” WhatsApp nudge with an offer – or move them to a low-intent segment and pause marketing for a bit

✅ Trigger a dynamic exit-intent pop-up before they leave – if a lapsed customer visits your site, show  “We noticed you! Here’s 15% off to welcome you back”

✅ Switch to retargeting ads – instead of flooding them with reminders, offer free loyalty points or exclusive access

7. Keep customers hooked with dynamic content

Personalization has evolved. It’s no longer just about adding a {first_name} tag to emails. Modern marketing automation allows you to match highly tailored content to the exact audience that needs to see it.

▶ eCommerce personalization automation ideas:

✅ Send location-specific offers and tailor marketing campaigns – based on seasonal demand, time zones, zip codes, and weather conditions 

✅ Target specific personas and demographics – adapt automation strategies to fit buyer personas and their pain points. For example, an eCommerce furniture retailer could tailor ad creatives and messaging differently for high-income vs. budget-conscious shoppers

✅ Use pop-ups to automate behavioral targeting – identify visitors frequently viewing certain product pages and trigger pop-ups nudging them toward conversion. For example, you could display ‘save this offer for later’ or urgency-driven messages when users repeatedly visit a product page:

8. Boost your conversion rate with lead scoring

Not all leads are created equal—prioritize the ones that matter. However, predicting when a customer is most likely to buy is challenging—but lead scoring brings you closer.

A lead scoring model assigns values to customer actions, helping identify high-intent shoppers and segmenting them accordingly.

▶  Lead scoring automation ideas for eCommerce stores:

✅ Map customer journey stages – identify where leads are in the sales funnel and what actions they’ve taken:

• Awareness → Engagement → Consideration → Acquisition → Retention
• If your store’s new, focus mainly on Awareness, Engagement, and Consideration
• Focus on retention if you have a large customer base

✅ Assign values to actions and qualify leads based on engagement – track interactions (e.g., page views, time spent) to score leads so you can focus on high-potential prospects:

• Awareness stage: Email sign-ups (+5 points), Quick page exits under 10 seconds (–3 points)
• Engagement stage: Downloading a catalog, interacting with emails (+10 points), Low weekly opens (–5 points)
• Conversion stage: Adding items to cart, visiting checkout (+30 points), Exiting after entering payment details (–40 points)
• Retention stage: First repeat purchase (+25 points), Second purchase within 6 months (+30 points), Hasn’t purchased in 6 months (–30 points), Negative feedback ( –50 points)

Total value cap: 100 points

✅ Segment your audience – use lead scores to segment visitors for more personalized follow-ups:

• High-score customers (80+ points) → VIP treatment, early-access sales, personalized discounts
• Mid-score customers (40-79 points) → Win-back offers, exclusive incentives, product recommendations
• Low-score customers (below 40 points) → Urgent retention strategies, surveys to understand their dissatisfaction, re-engagement campaigns
• Negative-score customers (0 to –50 points or more) → Pause non-essential outreach, switch to low-commitment touchpoints, send a last-ditch opt-out or survey, and if unresponsive, enforce a silent period before a final re-engagement attempt

Here’s a great example of a lead scoring system:

✅ Automate with your CDP – assign scores to each customer profile and make sure you get notified of score drops (ideally before it’s too late)

Speaking of which, have you seen this? Top 20 lead nurturing emails in eCommerce

9. Land more sales with checkout automation

The aim of marketing automation isn’t just to achieve faster checkouts. It’s also to ensure there are fewer friction points along the way. 

Forter’s survey backs this up. Among the top reasons why customers didn’t checkout, two were having to enter the shipping and credit card info twice. Here is where you start:

▶ Checkout automation ideas for faster sales:

✅ Integrate Google Maps API – auto-fill address fields to reduce user input and speed up the process (here’s a quick guide from Google):

✅ Integrate social login on checkout – automatically detect the device type and log the user in to bring up saved payment methods and addresses (which helps complete faster checkouts)

✅ Allow users to keep the shipping and billing address the same: Make it easy for customers to skip redundant steps and check out faster

Also read: 35 Stunning Examples of Checkout Pages

10. Get faster feedback with automated review requests

94% of shoppers avoid brands with negative reviews. Yet manual follow-ups are time-consuming, so it only makes sense to automate the review process for a faster turnaround time.

▶  Review request automation ideas for eCommerce stores

✅ Set up post-purchase review requests – automatically send emails or SMS either through review management systems or CDPs after a purchase to collect feedback at the optimal time

✅ Target specific product feedback – trigger requests based on the type of product purchased to gather more relevant reviews

✅ Use review management platforms – send post-purchase review requests via email, SMS, or push notifications

✅ Trigger grievance redressal tickets for negative reviews 

✅ Send discount codes or thank-you messages – when a review is submitted (here’s a great review template)

✅ Use Google Sheets for review tracking and sentiment analysis 

11. Draw in more customers with targeted landing pages

Landing pages that feel disjointed reduce trust and conversions. With eCommerce landing page automation, you can easily ensure customers feel part of a continuous journey and don’t get distracted due to any dissonance. Here are some ideas to try out:

▶  Landing page automation ideas for eCommerce:

✅ Dynamically change descriptions based on traffic source – for example, if a visitor lands from an email campaign, ensure the page matches the email offer – or use the same keywords as initial search terms on ads (just fetch utm parameters to fetch the keywords)

✅ Trigger offers based on shopper behavior – if someone’s been lurking on a product page but hasn’t added to cart, don’t wait—drop a “Limited-time deal just for you” banner right then and there. No annoying pop-ups. Just really smart nudges (and maybe animate the banner CTA a bit)

✅ Live recommendations, no refresh needed – let’s say, someone’s deep into browsing and has scrolled to the bottom – all you need to do is inspire them – like a ‘shop the look’, or more styles, similar to the product range on browse 

✅ Swap content based on what actually works – track which reviews, videos, or influencer posts convert best and push them for similar shoppers. Is someone scrolling fast? Show a quick 5-star snippet. Taking their time? Pull up that detailed TikTok review

Here’s a great landing page example from Inflinite Moon:

Also read: 

• Boost eCommerce Landing Page Conversions: 18 Scientific Strategies
• 33 eCommerce Product Page Optimization Hacks (+ Examples)

12. Boost customer loyalty with automated discounts

Can you automate a first-time buyer to turn into a loyal shopper? Yes. How? Just make sure to automate your discounts correctly – and we aren’t just talking about the onboarding marketing automation. Here is what we mean:

▶ eCommerce Discount automation ideas to increase loyalty:

✅ Offer free gifts based on order value – you can create an automated workflow to trigger free gifts. For example, if a customer has crossed a particular price threshold and earned a certain number of points, they are eligible for a free gift. Here’s a great example from Sephora:

✅ Send loyalty points automatically – reward customers who subscribe for repeat purchases by adding points for them. You can also send personalized thank-you emails and discount offers to encourage them to purchase more

✅ Set a price floor for discounts – you can easily automate the amount of discounts, but make sure there is a minimum amount that doesn’t bite into your profit margins 

✅ Don’t discount products people are ready to pay full price for – automate your discounts to recognize returning buyers who would pay full price – and also recognize weather patterns – for example, you shouldn’t offer deep discounts on raincoats for people coming in from Louisiana 

✅ Dynamic banners based on returning visitor behavior – show ‘Recently Browsed’ products or a loyalty-based discount at the top of the page

Hey, you'll love this: Limited Time Offer: 10 compelling examples + how to copy them

13. Offer personalized customer service with AI chatbots

There’s no alternative to being available. Customers may need help at any stage of their journey. It may not be possible as an eCommerce business to always be present to answer customer questions. 

AI chatbots fill that gap seamlessly. In fact, as per Global Market Insights, the market size for chatbots is set to grow to $1.3 billion by 2024.

With automated chatbot operations, you can offer your customers a more personalized and consistent customer experience. Here’s how:

▶  Chatbot automation ideas for eCommerce stores:

✅ Engage customers during the consideration stage – program chatbots to provide product recommendations or answer questions about products/services – like summarizing reviews or answering FAQs

✅ Recover abandoned carts – use automated chat conversations to bring back customers who’ve left items in their cart – in this stage, make sure you actually have people ready to connect; factor in customer data like previous browsing history on the store or purchasing history (like Staples does):

✅ Trigger relevant live chat messages as nudges – if a user is on the checkout page, highlight return policies as nudges – if they’re reading a product description, offer a video demo within your live-chat nudge

✅ Get some first party data through survey automation – attach a NPS survey after a query is resolved (this way you not only know where you stand, but also have juicy data)

Also read: 20 Scientific Strategies to Increase Your eCommerce Conversion Rate

14. Automate social listening to track conversations around your brand

You wouldn’t blurt out “I love you” without knowing how the other person feels—so why respond to customers without listening first? Social listening helps you track brand conversations, spot opportunities, and jump in at the right time. Here’s how to automate it:

▶ Social listening automation ideas for eCommerce stores:

✅ Track mentions across platforms automatically – use a social listening tool (like Mention, Buzzsumo, or Google Alerts) to scan brand mentions, reviews, and relevant keywords in real time:

✅ Auto-log mentions into a shared CRM – export all brand mentions into a CRM like HubSpot, Zendesk, or Freshdesk for better tracking and follow-ups

✅ Generate instant AI-powered responses – use Zapier to connect the CRM with ChatGPT API, crafting smart replies based on context (if possible, cross-reference social data with your order data, which is usually almost always the first response)

✅ Notify the right team instantly – when AI generates a response, make sure the automation pings the right team (support, marketing, or sales) via Slack, email, or CRM notifications

✅ Auto-assign tickets for critical cases – if a response requires human attention, ensure the CRM system instantly creates and assigns a support ticket to channel the right kind of energy

Pro Tip: Use social automation to automate your UGC efforts – for example, you can use Zapier + Instagram API to auto-collect posts tagged with your brand’s hashtag – here’s what we mean: 

→ Scrape Insta URLs mentioning you 

→ Auto-log them via the Mentions API 

→ Push to Notion for review 

→ Trigger AI APIs to generate a reply 

→ Formulate replies if a user has DM’d before (via Conversations API) 

→ Automatically raise tickets in CRM for approval

15. Automate your omnichannel

Not everyone checks their email. But almost everyone checks their phone—so your communication should move too.

Your goal here is to sync customer interactions across all channels and ensure consistency. Whether it’s retargeting an Instagram viewer via email or offering cart recovery through SMS/WhatsApp.

▶ Omnichannel marketing automation Ideas:

✅ Adapt cart recovery to behavior  – if a customer abandons their cart on desktop, trigger a mobile push notification instead of another email, within 2 to 3 hours – if they ignore that, switch to a WhatsApp reminder with a limited-time offer in 2 days (and give them some space, till the limited offer ends)

✅ Provide support over WhatsApp – in the thank-you page, ask shoppers if they would like to connect with your brand over WhatsApp – if they select yes, redirect to WhatsApp with a click to chat link (a pre-filled message is filled in to trigger your WhatsApp automation)

✅ Service the full funnel – make sure you define keywords that connote user lifecycle stage – for example, you can set product category names to trigger actions like ‘view product categories’ 

✅ Escalate appropriately – set certain phrases like ‘are there issues’ or ‘bad quality’ to detect urgency and escalate them to a live agent instantly

✅ Send back-in-stock alerts over SMS —but only if the customer engaged with the last email/message sent

Also read: 7 Whatsapp Marketing Ideas For eCommerce Stores & Some Great Examples

16. Run ads on autopilot

Ever felt like your ad budget is disappearing into a black hole? You’re not alone. Running ads without automation is like throwing darts blindfolded—you might hit the target, but you’re mostly wasting shots. 

When you automate bidding, audience segmentation, and retargeting, you ensure your dollars go exactly where they matter most—toward the shoppers ready to buy.

▶ eCommerce advertising automation ideas:

✅ Retarget your email list, but segment it first – by value, and make sure you're using lookalike audiences as well

✅ Run separate campaigns for each value group – but keep one ad set for lookalike and one for retargeting (this way you reach the most engaging shoppers)

✅ Test creatives across campaigns – tailor the messaging, offer type, and for each campaign and automatically scale or reduce budgets

✅ Make sure you cover the full funnel – so you move audiences down to a purchase through careful retargeting when certain actions get triggered

⚠ Make sure your audience settings have exit flows mapped (for example, someone displaying add-to-cart behavior shouldn't be re-shown prospective ads).

17. Automate your SEO efforts

SEO is like a gym membership—great in theory, exhausting in practice. You could spend hours optimizing keywords, fixing broken links, and tracking rankings… or you could automate the heavy lifting. Here’s what we mean:

▶ Ideas for SEO automation in eCommerce:

✅ Instant alerts for page performance drops – if a product or landing page tanks, trigger an automatic report comparing the last two weeks before the drop so you know what changed

✅ Track and fix keyword ranking drops – set up automation to detect ranking declines and generate an improved page version with updated keywords (Zapier + GPT API) so you can review and publish instantly

✅ Auto-generate schema and internal links – whenever a new page goes live, automation ensures it’s properly structured for search and links it contextually to related pages, boosting SEO without manual effort

✅ Auto-optimize product images on upload – automatically compress, resize, and convert images to WebP for faster load times, ensuring they meet Google’s Core Web Vitals standards

18. Social media automation = Chat automation

Posting on social media is just one piece of the puzzle. Responding to potential customers in real time is where the real impact happens.

Social media isn’t just about posting anymore—it’s about talking. And if you’re still manually responding to every DM, you’re already behind. Automating chat responses, lead captures, and even checkout processes in DMs means customers get answers instantly—before they lose interest and move on.

▶ Ideas for using social media marketing automation for eCommerce:

✅ Auto-reply to FAQs in DMs – set up a chatbot to instantly answer common questions about shipping, returns, and order tracking (or offer lead magnets like routines via your DMS)

✅ Live chat triggers based on browsing behavior – if a user visits the checkout page twice without purchasing, trigger a proactive chat message offering assistance

✅ Retarget users who interact with posts but don’t convert – this way, you ensure you reach people who’re actually interested in your brand (but keep existing purchasers and landing page viewers from this list) — or hold a quiz like H&M does:

19. Automate A/B tests (partly)

Your gut feeling is not a marketing strategy. What is? Cold, hard data. A/B testing tells you what actually works—but who has time to manually set up, track, and analyze every experiment? Automating the process means constant optimization without the headache of manually updating a spreadsheet. 

▶ Ideas for A/B test automation for eCommerce stores:

✅ Auto-run tests based on traffic thresholds – set rules to trigger A/B tests once a page receives a certain number of visits

✅ Dynamically adjust winning variations – if a new banner, CTA, or product page layout outperforms the original, automatically shift traffic towards the winner

✅ Set up automated reports – get real-time updates when a test reaches statistical significance so you don’t have to monitor it manually

✅ Test your messaging automatically – for example, you can rotate messages to adjust for shopper types – here’s a great example of this in action from Skandium:

Also read: 153 A/B Testing Ideas for eCommerce (Homepage, PDP, Cart, Checkout)

20. Get your house in order with operations automation

Your back-end operations should be as smooth as your front-end experience. Automation helps eliminate manual work and errors. But this isn’t about robotic process automation (RPA). Here’s what we mean:

▶ Ideas for using backend automation:

✅ Auto-generate shipping labels & notify customers – both on Slack (for you) and on email/WhatsApp (for shoppers)

✅ Log all ‘Track My Order’ clicks – spot patterns in delivery anxiety and reduce cancellations by providing better tracking updates

✅ Trigger alerts for underperforming site pages – if conversions drop by 20% on a key product page, notify the team instantly

Pro Tip: Track people who click on track my order – reach out with in-site ‘were we able to satisfy you’ in-site and on email as well (but actually do include some order info, just to add that extra level of service

21. AI content ❌ Automated content ✅

Creating content is one thing. Making sure it reaches the right people at the right time? That’s another game entirely. Most brands post content on their blogs and hope people find it. 

Automating content scheduling, distribution, and even topic ideation means your brand stays visible without you scrambling for last-minute posts. Bonus: It also keeps your messaging consistent—no more off-brand one-offs.

▶ Ideas for using content automation:

✅ Push new content on socials automatically – Set up an RSS-to-social automation so new blog content, feature drops, or collection launches get instantly shared across LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook without you lifting a finger

✅ Repurpose content into email newsletters → identify top-performing blog posts and automatically convert them into email digests for segmented audiences

✅ Sync event or livestream content to post-stream nurture → if someone attends a webinar, trigger a personalized follow-up email with key takeaways and related offers

Pro Tip: You can create highly personalized content through quizzes – like a "Find Your Perfect Foundation" quiz—users swipe left/right on skin tone preferences, and the automation refines recommendations dynamically (with results sent to email).

22. Automate analytics before you drain profits

Instead of staring at month-end reports and panicking over lost sales, why not automate your analytics in real time? Automating analytics gives you real-time insights without the spreadsheets—so you act fast instead of figuring things out after profits slip.

▶ Ideas for eCommerce analytics automation to catch problems in real time:

✅ Get alerts when conversion rates dip—not just reports – if cart abandonment jumps 15% in a day, get a Slack alert ASAP so you can fix the issue before it tanks sales

✅ Trigger session recordings the moment something looks off – Instead of watching random replays, only start recording when people suddenly start rage-clicking on checkout buttons or bailing mid-form.

✅ Detect “rage quits” instantly – if a user visits your checkout page and bounces in under 10 seconds, something’s off. Set up automation that flags common exit points and tweaks copy, offers, or support prompts dynamically.

✅ Catch customers slipping away before they churn – if a VIP hasn’t bought anything in 3 months, automatically trigger a “Hey, we miss you” email with an exclusive offer

23. Nudge shoppers cleverly across the funnel

The same pop-up for every visitor? Nah, that’s just gonna convert up to a point. Smart recommendations feel personal, not pushy.

▶ eCommerce automation ideas for customer journeys:

✅ Only show urgency when it actually makes sense – instead of blasting FOMO to everyone, only trigger “Only 2 left in stock” if someone has viewed that item multiple times

✅ Turn lurkers into buyers – if someone’s scrolling forever but not adding to cart, trigger an “Ask Me Anything” chatbot or a UGC popup (like: “Sarah just styled this with ____”)

✅ Make exit-intent offers smarter – if someone bounces at checkout, don’t just throw another 10% off. Try a step-by-step nudge—first a reminder, then free shipping, then a bonus gift if they still don’t budge

✅ Change the experience based on what they’re browsing – if someone’s looking at high-end watches, show luxury perks like “Free lifetime servicing.” If they’re checking out budget items, highlight bundle discounts instead (or offer Free Shipping like Birkenstock does)

24. Get people to buy more (without feeling like they’re being sold to)

Amazon-level recommendations should be your standard, not your goal. Here are some ideas on how you can automate product recommendations, yet make them feel natural:

▶ eCommerce automation ideas for product recommendations:

✅ Bundle things in a way that feels natural – if someone adds running shoes but no socks, don’t just suggest random stuff—offer a bundle that saves them money instead

✅ Show recommendations based on real-life pairings, not just “people also bought” fluff – if someone buys running shoes, don’t just push socks—suggest hydration belts, recovery balms, or real essentials runners love

✅ Stop recommending things people keep returning – if a shopper always returns jeans due to size issues, stop pushing more jeans. Show them a fit guide or elastic-waist options instead

✅ Make suggestions shift based on how deep they are in their session – if they just landed, show bestsellers. If they’ve been browsing the same product category for 10 minutes, hit them with “Customers who loved this also bought…”

25. Automate your holiday marketing

When the holidays come knockin’, you’ve got to fire all chambers. So, apart from the standard automated marketing campaigns, here are some automation ideas to try:

▶ Holiday eCommerce marketing automation ideas:

✅ Trigger a personalized bundle email with the holiday theme – like “Best Luxe Fragrances for the Holidays”, when a customer browses a category like “luxury fragrances” 3 times but doesn’t buy

✅ Offer smart upgrades over discounts –  instead, offer free premium gift wrap (people will pay extra for convenience)

✅ Unlock early access to limited-edition holiday drops for high-value shoppers – without them having to sign up

✅ Offer VIP treatment around the holidays but bind the time – for example, you can send a time-sensitive QR code via WhatsApp for in-store pickups

✅ Make the recommendations really gift-savvy – for example:

• If a user has bought multiple items for kids → auto-trigger a “Top 10 Holiday Gifts for Kids” email
• If they shop for themselves year-round but suddenly browse “gifts for men” → auto-segment them into “Last-Minute Gift Shopper” and send quick-ship recommendations

✅ Send targeted holiday content – send hyper-personalized “Your 2024 Gift Guide” based on what they bought last year

Also read: 32 Holiday Marketing Ideas for eCommerce Stores (2024 Update)

26. Automate free trials and returns

Free trials and returns – can you convert them into marketing automation campaigns? Yes. How? That’s exactly what we have outlined below:

▶ Free trial automation marketing campaign ideas:

✅ Automatically raise free-trial tickets – as soon as a customer signs up for a trial, raise a return ticket in your CRM to auto-initiate return labels (make sure the shopper receives clear communication on the procedures and what communication they will receive)

✅ Trigger a personalized reminder email – if there’s no purchase within 5 days, simply follow up with a simple “Hey [Name], found the perfect fit? Wanna make it official – {YES} {I’m not sure yet}”

✅ Nurture high-intent users – for example, if they revisit the product page but don’t purchase, trigger a WhatsApp message offering a stylist consult – “Need a second opinion? Chat with our expert before your trial ends.”

✅ Segment out discounts once the return is complete – offer deep discounts to non-engagers, immediate (but limited time) discounts to engaged shoppers who didn’t purchase, and loyalty points to purchasers

27. Automatically generate UGC

UGC should feel natural, not forced. But you do have to give slight nudges, at the right point in time, here’s what we mean:

▶ UGC marketing automation ideas for eCommerce stores:

✅ Trigger UGC requests after the 2nd or 3rd purchase – show an in-checkout (non-intrusive) pop-up like “Want an additional $10 off your order? Record this order’s unboxing (and send it to us) & get $10 off your next order”

✅ Reward your community – especially if any post goes viral – this way they feel really locked in and incentivize them to post way, way, way more  (for example, you can simply offer a gift card of $10 value that applies on any purchase)

✅ Switch to review requests if you get ignored – but don’t wait forever 

28. Reward more than just birthdays

Birthdays aren’t the only milestone you can automate; you can also do customer and brand anniversaries – but they are just the surface. Here’s what we mean:

▶ Milestone automation marketing campaign ideas:

✅ Track the right customer behavior for milestones – for example, you can track activity-based milestones instead of birthdays to offer exclusive rewards – like many active wear brands do with Strava (a physical activity tracker app)

✅ Show how close they are to free-stuff – if a customer has placed two orders, automatically trigger a progress reminder in one month from the date of the last order – say something like “You’re 2 orders away from VIP. Unlock early access now!”

✅ A/B test incentives and triggers when they don’t respond – for example, you can switch to easier tasks, like “Add {slow-selling product} to your next order to get $X off + free shipping”

Also read: 30 Amazing Drip Email Campaign Examples That Actually Drive Sales

29. Automate replenishment to keep em’ shopping

Pushing subscriptions is one thing. You need to time your reminders to coincide with real usage patterns. Here’s what we mean

▶ Replenishment automation ideas for eCommerce stores: 

✅ Estimate usage & trigger smart reminders – if a customer bought a 30-day supply of vitamins, trigger a WhatsApp reminder on Day 25

✅ Detect bulk buyers & offer better deals – for example, if a customer bought 2x their usual amount, pause auto-reminders & instead offer a bundle discount (or if a shopper buys for 12 months, ask them to stock up in advance to save on price)

✅ Offer a coupon code if there’s no engagement – if a customer ignores 2 replenishment nudges, auto-switch to a “we’re just leaving this here, okay? In case you feel like coming back” (this way you can automatically trigger a “where did we go wrong in a few months”)

Also read: Writing Replenishment Emails That Convert

Lastly, your UX needs automation too

98% of visitors who visit an eCommerce site—drop off without buying anything.

Why: user experience issues that cause friction for visitors.

And this is the problem Convertcart solves.

We've helped 500+ eCommerce stores (in the US) improve user experience—and 2X their conversions.

How can we help you:

Our conversion experts can audit your site—identify UX issues, and suggest changes to improve conversions.