How to set up a Klaviyo abandoned cart flow that actually works

Abandoned cart vs abandoned checkout in Klaviyo

Klaviyo can trigger on two different events. Added to Cart fires when someone adds a product. Started Checkout fires when they reach checkout and Shopify knows their email.

Start with abandoned checkout: those shoppers were closest to buying, and you can always reach them. Add an abandoned cart flow second, and exclude anyone who has started checkout so nobody gets both.

Pick the right trigger and filters

• Flow filter: Placed Order zero times since starting this flow, so buyers drop out straight away.
• Keep Smart Sending on so people don’t get several emails from different flows in one day.
• Exclude people already in browse abandonment, or give cart a higher priority.

Timing: how many emails, and when

My default is three emails:

1. About 4 hours after they leave: a friendly reminder.
2. 1 day later: answer the doubts that stopped them.
3. 3 days later: a last reminder.

That’s a starting point, not a rule. Test it against your own results.

What to put in each email

• Email 1: the product they left, a photo, a review or two and a clear button back to the cart.
• Email 2: handle objections: sizing, delivery, returns, how it works.
• Email 3: a gentle nudge and a way to ask a question. If you use an incentive at all, save it for this one.

Getting the product block to show the right items

The most common bug I fix: the email shows the wrong product, no image or a blank block. It happens when the template’s dynamic variables don’t match what Shopify actually sends.

Open a real event on a test profile, read the event data, and point the product block at the right fields. On one supplement brand’s account, fixing those variables was what made the cart emails show real products again.

Testing before you turn it on

1. Preview each email with a real profile that has a real cart.
2. Send tests to yourself on a phone and in dark mode.
3. Check the exclusions by placing a test order mid-flow.
4. Turn the flow on, then watch the first few sends.

Common mistakes I fix in other accounts

• Using Klaviyo’s default template, sent once, a day too late.
• Old agency flows still live, so customers get two cart emails.
• No SPF, DKIM or DMARC, so emails land in spam.
• No exclusions, so buyers keep getting reminders.

If that sounds like your account, a Klaviyo audit is a quick way to find out what’s running.