Cart abandonment—it’s a frustrating reality for every online retailer. You’ve done the hard work of capturing a shopper’s attention, guiding them through your site, and getting them to add items to their cart. And then, in a split second, they leave without completing the purchase. What do you do next?

The good news? Cart abandonment is not the end of the story. With the right strategy, those abandoners can be turned into loyal customers. The solution lies in leveraging omnichannel programmatic advertising to re-engage these potential buyers across the web and bring them back to complete the sale.

Why switching on more ad channels matters for cart abandoners

The modern shopper is everywhere—browsing on mobile, researching on desktop, and consuming content across social media, streaming services, and beyond. To bring them back to their abandoned cart, you need to be just as present across all of their touchpoints. 

This is where omnichannel programmatic advertising comes in. By reaching your audience across multiple channels—whether it's display, video, connected TV (CTV), or social—you ensure your message stays top of mind. It’s about creating a seamless, unified experience, reminding shoppers of their unfinished purchase wherever they spend their time online.

Step 1: Identify your cart abandoners

Before you can win back cart abandoners, you need to know who they are. Programmatic advertising platforms like Quantcast use AI-powered insights to identify potential buyers based on their behavior across the web. Whether it’s from browsing data or retargeting through abandoned cart triggers, you can build a clear picture of your audience and segment them for tailored messaging.

Step 2: Re-engage across channels

Once you’ve identified cart abandoners, it’s time to bring them back. Here’s how omnichannel advertising can help:

Display Ads: Remind shoppers of the items they left behind by serving personalized display ads on the websites they visit. Timing is key: shoppers can have preferred times to purchase and a well-timed reminder can often be the nudge they need to return and complete their purchase.

Video & CTV: Use eye-catching video ads to tell the story of your brand, or showcase the products they’ve left in their cart. Programmatic CTV, in particular, allows you to reach potential buyers in a less cluttered environment, driving greater impact.

Mobile & In-App Ads: Given that many users shop via mobile, retargeting them with in-app or mobile web ads is crucial. Ensure your ads are optimized for mobile to make it easy for them to click back and complete their transaction.

Social Media: Platforms like Instagram and Facebook are key places to retarget cart abandoners with programmatic ads. These channels not only offer visibility but also create an opportunity to engage with potential customers where they’re actively spending time.

Step 3: Create personalized, relevant messages to nurture customers

Shoppers leave their carts for a variety of reasons—shipping costs, lack of trust, or simply getting distracted. Your programmatic ads need to address these concerns. Personalize your messaging by offering discounts, highlighting free shipping, or emphasizing the product's benefits. The more relevant and timely your message, the higher your chances of converting.

Quantcast's programmatic platform allows you to dynamically customize and add content to speak directly to each cart abandoner, ensuring the right message is delivered at the right time. This level of personalization can be the key to turning indecision into action.

Step 4: Measure, optimize, and scale

One of the biggest advantages of programmatic advertising is the ability to track and optimize in real time. Monitor the performance of your campaigns to see which channels and messages are driving the most conversions. Quantcast's AI-driven insights help you identify patterns and continuously refine your strategy.

Once you see what's working, you can scale your efforts to reach more cart abandoners and improve your return on ad spend (ROAS). The goal is not just to win back a one-time sale but to foster long-term customer loyalty through thoughtful, relevant engagements.

Turn cart abandoners into loyal customers

Cart abandonment may feel like a lost opportunity, but it’s really just the beginning of a conversation with your shopper. With omnichannel programmatic advertising, you can re-engage these potential buyers across the digital landscape, deliver personalized and timely messages, and drive them back to your site to complete their purchase.

Quantcast's demand-side platform (DSP) helps retailers tap into the power of AI and programmatic advertising to create smarter, more efficient marketing campaigns. By understanding your audience and leveraging a data-driven approach, you can not only recover lost sales but also build lasting customer relationships. See how Pandora reached untapped cord-cutting consumers on smart TVs, streaming, and gaming devices, converting them to new loyal customers.