Should wish lists require account creation?

Allow guest wish lists using cookies for anonymous visitors, but encourage account creation for persistence across devices. Offer a compelling reason to sign up ("Save your wish list permanently and get notified of price drops"). A hybrid approach works best.

How do wish lists differ from shopping carts?

Shopping carts represent immediate purchase intent (items for the current transaction). Wish lists represent future interest (items saved for later consideration). Both are valuable: carts drive immediate revenue, wish lists drive future revenue through remarketing.

What metrics should I track for wish lists?

Key metrics include wish list creation rate, wish list to cart conversion rate, average time from wish list to purchase, most wish-listed products, and email notification conversion rates.

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Wish List

Also known as:wishlistfavouritessave for later

A feature allowing customers to save products for future reference, serving as a purchase intent signal and remarketing opportunity for e-commerce businesses.

In-Depth Explanation

Wish lists (also called save-for-later or favourites) allow customers to bookmark products they are interested in without committing to an immediate purchase. For e-commerce businesses, wish lists are valuable both as a customer convenience feature and a marketing tool.

Wish list functionality:

Save products: Quick-add button (usually a heart icon) on product pages
Multiple lists: Allow customers to organise items into themed lists
Sharing: Enable wish list sharing for gift-giving occasions
Price alerts: Notify customers when wish-listed items go on sale
Stock alerts: Notify when out-of-stock wish-listed items become available
Move to cart: Easy one-click transfer from wish list to shopping cart

Marketing opportunities:

Email campaigns: "Items in your wish list are on sale" notifications
Price drop alerts: Automated emails when wish-listed items are discounted
Back-in-stock alerts: Notifications when out-of-stock items return
Seasonal reminders: "Complete your wish list before the holidays"
Social proof: "X people have this on their wish list" messaging

Analytics from wish lists:

Products most frequently wish-listed (demand signals)
Conversion rate from wish list to purchase
Average time between wish-listing and purchasing
Products wish-listed but rarely purchased (pricing or availability issues)

Wish lists can be implemented through e-commerce platform features, apps (like Wishlist Plus for Shopify), or custom development.

Business Context

Wish lists capture purchase intent and enable targeted remarketing, with wish-listed items converting at 2-4x higher rates than general product page visits when combined with email follow-up.

How Clever Ops Uses This

Clever Ops implements wish list features and associated automation workflows for Australian e-commerce businesses, including price drop notifications, back-in-stock alerts, and seasonal reminder campaigns.

Example Use Case

"A fashion retailer implements wish lists with automated price drop alerts. Customers who receive sale notifications on wish-listed items convert at 12%, compared to 2% for general sale emails, generating $8,000/month in additional revenue."