Skip to main content

Convert browsers into buyers with automated product recommendations

Not every visitor who looks at your products is ready to buy immediately, but their browsing activity shows clear intent. By re‑engaging these contacts with personalised product recommendations after they leave your site, you can turn interest into sales.

Bartlomiej Rekosiewicz avatar
Written by Bartlomiej Rekosiewicz
Updated today

The Dotdigital Tag tracks events like product views, carts, and orders, and sends this data into WebInsight. From there, you can build segments for contacts who viewed product pages without purchasing, and trigger automated follow‑up campaigns featuring relevant products, reviews, and complementary items.

This use case builds on the abandoned cart email program. See Re‑engage site visitors based on browsing activity to learn more.


Use case

A contact visits your Autumn Offers page, spends several minutes looking at best‑selling products, but leaves without buying.
Your follow‑up campaign could:

  • Highlight the products they viewed

  • Include reviews or testimonials to build trust

  • Suggest related or complementary products

With the Dotdigital Tag, WebInsight, and automation, you can send this campaign automatically — no manual checking or sending required.


Before you start

You need:

  • Dotdigital Tag installed and active on your site.
    See Add the Dotdigital Tag to learn more.

  • WebInsight data available in your Dotdigital account. It is automatically populated when web behavior tracking is active and enabled in your Tag settings.

  • To capture abandoned browse data (for targeting users who visit but don’t purchase), you need to extend the Dotdigital Tag with additional scripting beyond basic configuration.
    Learn more in Extend the Dotdigital Tag for Abandoned Cart and Browse.

  • A segment based on behaviour, for example: Viewed product page but did not purchase.
    See Re‑engage site visitors based on browsing activity

  • Familiarity with creating segments, email campaigns, and programs in Dotdigital.


Step‑by‑step guide to automating product recommendation follow‑ups

Step 1: Create the program

  1. In Dotdigital, go to Automation > Programs and select NEW PROGRAM.

  2. Name your program, for example, Browsed Products — No Purchase, and choose a folder.
    Learn more in Create a program.

Step 2: Add enrolment rules

  1. Select the Start node, then select SET SCHEDULE and choose frequency.

  2. Under Enrolment rule, select SET RULE and choose a Segment.

  3. Choose your browsing‑based segment, for example: Viewed product page but didn’t purchase.

  4. Under Enrolment limits, select Enrol contacts only the first time they meet the start criteria.

Step 3: Add a campaign node

  1. Drag a Campaign node onto the canvas.

  2. Select or build a campaign containing:

    • Products the contact viewed

    • Reviews or testimonials for those products

    • Related or complementary products

  3. Use dynamic content blocks to populate the most relevant products based on WebInsight browsing history.

Step 4: Add an exit node and activate

  1. Add an Exit node to end the program.

  2. Select SAVE to save changes.

  3. Select TEST to preview journeys and verify that enrolment and dynamic content work correctly.

  4. Select ACTIVATE.

  • Your program will now send personalised campaigns automatically to contacts matching the segment.


Summary

By joining Dotdigital Tag tracking, WebInsight audience segmentation, and automation programs you:

  • Follow up based on actual browsing intent — not just general interest.

  • Increase sales through relevant product targeting.

  • Improve customer experience with timely, personalised recommendations.

  • Create new upsell and cross‑sell pathways while maintaining audience focus.


Expand your automation journeys

You can adapt this method to:

  • Retarget contacts interested in a product category who didn’t complete a form or download.

  • Engage visitors who repeatedly view the same product or service — send deeper content or incentives.

  • Combine with OrderInsight data to exclude customers who already purchased.

Did this answer your question?