How to Retarget Abandoned Registration Forms and Boost Conversion Rates

If you run a dance studio, gym, swim school, or any other registration-based service, you know that not everyone who starts a registration process completes it.

In fact, most people who visit your registration form end up abandoning it.

This is a common challenge for businesses that rely on online registrations as their largest source of revenue.

Unfortunately, most registration platforms on the market don’t even let you know your conversion rate and who abandoned the form.

But with the right strategy (and software), you can turn these missed opportunities into new customers.

In this article, we’ll discuss

• Why people abandon registration forms
• How to Filter People Who Have Abandoned Registration
• Automate Retargeting with SMS or Email
• How Retargeting Improves Conversion Rates
• Offer a Discount Code to Seal the Deal

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Author’s note: Olivier shares tips and tricks he’s learned over the past decade as the owner of a kids’s activity center. After working with online registration tools, today, as the co-founder of Activity Messenger, he now helps hundreds of organizations in North America improve their online registration process and increase their conversion rates.

Why Do People Abandon a Registration Form?

People abandon registration forms for a variety of reasons, and understanding these reasons can help you refine your retargeting approach. Common reasons include:

Reason for Abandonment
1. Lack of time	Busy parents or individuals may start a registration but get interrupted.
2. Too many steps	If the form feels long or complicated, users may give up halfway through.
3. Payment hesitations	Potential registrants may hesitate if they’re not sure about payment options or the total cost.
4. Unclear details	Lack of clarity about class schedules, pricing, or commitment can cause someone to abandon the process.
5. Technical difficulties	Slow loading times or form errors can frustrate users and cause them to leave before completing the enrollment process.
6. Need to talk to spouse	Many parents make joint decisions about their child’s activities. If one spouse fills out the form but needs to confirm with their partner, this can delay or halt registration.
7. Comparison shopping	They may be browsing for alternatives and comparing prices or features.

How to Filter People Who Have Abandoned Registration

To effectively retarget people, you first need to identify those who started the registration process but didn’t complete it.

Here’s how to do it:

1. Leverage your registration system: Platforms like Activity Messenger allow you to track users’ progress through your forms. You can see who started filling out the form and didn’t finish.
2. Filter by registration stage: Track the progress of registrants and filter out those who reached a certain point but didn’t submit the form. Whether it’s an incomplete payment or missing information, you can isolate these users.
3. Capture contact information early: Make sure your registration form captures the user’s contact information (e.g., email or phone number) in the early stages. This will give you a way to reach them if they abandon the registration process.

Automate Retargeting with SMS or Email

Now that you’ve identified those who have abandoned the form, the next step is to get them back to register. Automating the retargeting process makes it easy and effective.

Here’s how to do it:

1. Send a follow-up SMS or email: Within 24 to 48 hours of abandonment, send a friendly reminder. This message could be a simple nudge like, “Hi [Name], we noticed you didn’t finish your registration. There’s still a spot waiting for you!”
2. Resend pre-filled forms: To make the process even smoother, send a link to a pre-filled form with the information they already entered. This eliminates the hassle of starting over, making it more likely that they’ll complete the registration.
3. Automate the process: Set up automation in Activity Messenger to automatically send these reminders 24-48 hours after a form is abandoned. You can customize the timing and message content to suit your audience.

How Retargeting Improves Conversion Rates

Automated SMS and email retargeting can dramatically improve your conversion rates.

Here’s why:

1. Maintains brand awareness
   Retargeting keeps your business top of mind even after visitors have left your registration form. An SMS or email reminder can gently nudge them back toward completing the registration process by reminding them of your offer and the value they initially expressed interest in.
2. Recover lost leads
   Sometimes people need multiple touch points before they’re ready to commit. Retargeting ads give you the opportunity to re-present your offer to prospects, increasing the likelihood that they’ll convert.
3. Tailored messaging
   Retargeting allows you to create customized outreach based on a user’s behavior. For example, if someone viewed a particular class but didn’t register, you can focus your outreach on that class and even offer a discount to encourage them to complete registration.
4. Cost-effective marketing
   Because retargeting focuses on people who have already started to fill out a registration form, it tends to have a much higher ROI compared to other forms of advertising.
5. Encourages decision making
   In cases where a user is hesitating to sign up because they need more time or information, retargeting can provide the extra push they need. Ads that highlight limited-time offers, class availability, or upcoming deadlines can create a sense of urgency and drive action.

Organizations that use retargeting campaigns report a significant boost in their registration completion rates.

Offer a Discount Code to Seal the Deal

To further increase conversion rates, offer a limited-time discount code to those who abandoned their registration. For example, “Use code COMPLETE10 to get 10% off your registration if you sign up in the next 48 hours!” This adds a sense of urgency and gives potential customers a compelling reason to finish the process.

Discount codes are an effective way to lower the barrier to completing the registration, especially for customers who may have hesitated due to price concerns.

Conclusion

Abandoned registration forms don’t have to be a lost opportunity.

By identifying who has abandoned, automating retargeting messages via SMS or email with pre-populated forms, and offering an incentive such as a discount code, you can increase your registration completion rates and get more people enrolled in your programs.

Take control of abandoned registrations today with these simple steps and watch your conversions soar!

If you’d like to see how Activity Messenger can help automate your retargeting strategy, contact us – we’d be happy to show you how it works!