Abandoned Cart Recovery on iMessage for Black Friday

At a glance

• iMessage, Apple Messages for Business, SMS and RCS are four different channels with different rules about who can start a conversation.
• With Apple Messages for Business, the customer must start the conversation; messaging a customer's phone number won't open one (Apple).
• iPhones took 69% of US smartphone sales in the fourth quarter of 2025 (Counterpoint Research), so iMessage matters most for US shoppers.
• Every iMessage plan needs an automatic SMS fallback for Android phones and for numbers that can't receive iMessage.

Outcraft has opened early access to iMessage, so ecommerce brands can reach iPhone shoppers in the Messages app where they already read and reply. That matters most during Black Friday and Cyber Monday, when most shoppers are on their phones.

How?

iMessage can help recover abandoned carts on Black Friday by carrying the checkout link inside a conversation the shopper is already having, such as a recovery call.

It reaches iPhones only and needs the shopper's consent. Apple's own business channel lets only the shopper start a chat. You can use it for the link and the reply, and use SMS for everyone else.

iMessage, Apple Messages For Business, SMS And RCS Are Four Different Things

Most confusion about iMessage for business comes from treating four channels as one.

Apple is explicit about the second column. With Messages for Business, the customer must start the conversation, and messaging a customer's phone number won't open one (Apple Business Register FAQ). Use that limit to decide when to route shoppers elsewhere.

That makes Messages for Business a strong support channel, but it is the wrong tool for reaching a shopper who left checkout.

Outbound business messages over regular iMessage come from third-party messaging providers, not from an Apple business product. Choose those providers only when you need an outbound messaging path.

Each provider sets its own rules on consent, on when a business may message, and on what happens to a sending line that Apple restricts. Read those rules before you plan BFCM volume around them, since they shape what is and isn't possible.

Why Does iMessage Matter For A US Black Friday?

iPhones dominate US phone sales. Apple took 69% of US smartphone sales in the fourth quarter of 2025, a record share (Counterpoint Research, reported February 2026). Cyber Monday is a phone day too: 57.5% of US online sales on Cyber Monday 2025 came from mobile devices (Adobe Analytics).

For a US store, that means a large share of BFCM shoppers who abandon checkout are on iPhones. So send a checkout link that opens in the same app as their personal conversations, while they're talking to you, because it's easy to act on.

Outside the US, phone mix and messaging habits differ by country, so use the app that fits each market. In markets where WhatsApp is the everyday messaging app, use WhatsApp instead and keep iMessage for your US shoppers.

Where iMessage Works Best In Cart Recovery

iMessage earns its place where a conversation already exists. Three moments fit that rule.

During a recovery call. The shopper is on the phone; you just answered a question, and they need the link now. Sending it to the app they're already looking at removes a step.

In reply to a shopper who wrote first. A shopper who texts a question about sizing or delivery has started the conversation. A quick, specific reply with their own checkout link is service, not marketing.

Through Apple Messages for Business, before the cart is abandoned. A message button on your product or checkout page lets shoppers ask a question from the Messages app, and Apple routes it to your support team. Answering pre-sale questions there can prevent cart abandonment in the first place.

iMessage fits poorly as a cold first touch to every abandoned checkout. SMS and email with consent belong there, reaching every phone and inbox under well-established rules.

What iMessage Can't Fix

iMessage changes where a message lands. It doesn't change the rules or why shoppers leave.

Android phones are out of reach. Every iMessage plan needs a fallback, usually SMS, for shoppers on other phones and for numbers that can't receive iMessage.

Consent still applies. Treat an iMessage to a shopper's phone number with the same consent standard as a marketing text, and confirm the rules for each market with your legal adviser.

The main inbox isn't a given. iOS 26 was released on September 15, 2025. It added a setting that moves texts from unknown senders into a separate folder without notifications (Omnisend Help Center).

Apple says the Screen Unknown Senders setting is off by default in iOS 26 (Apple Support). A message from a number the shopper hasn't saved is still from an unknown sender, so don't assume any channel skips the iPhone's filters.

A reminder still can't ask why. A one-way iMessage is a nicer-looking reminder. Shoppers leave carts over extra costs, slow delivery, and declined cards (Baymard Institute), and a reminder answers none of them unless someone quickly replies to the shopper's question.

How To Choose An iMessage Provider Before Black Friday?

If you plan to use iMessage, ask any provider these questions before November 20.

A Black Friday iMessage Recovery Playbook

Set this up before Thanksgiving (November 26, 2026), and test it on your own phone.

1. Confirm consent per channel. Check which shoppers agreed to receive messages on their phone number, and keep a record.
2. Use iMessage inside conversations. Send the checkout link by iMessage during a call or in reply to a shopper's question, not as a cold blast.
3. Send the link, not the catalog. One short message, the shopper's own checkout link, and the deal deadline.
4. Make it two-way. Shoppers reply to iMessages. Someone, or an AI agent working from your policies, has to answer within minutes during the weekend.
5. Fall back to SMS automatically. Shoppers on Android, or messages that can't be delivered over iMessage, get the same message as a text.
6. Use one stop rule across channels. A purchase or a stop reply ends every channel at once, so nobody gets the same reminder twice.
7. Measure recovered orders by channel. Compare iMessage, SMS, and email by placed orders over Cyber Week, not by delivery or read receipts.

Where Outcraft Fits

Outcraft is the AI Sales Team for Ecommerce Brands: AI agents that call, text, and message shoppers across voice, SMS, email, WhatsApp, and iMessage.

Outcraft calls within minutes of an abandoned checkout, asks what stopped the order, and sends the checkout link during the call so that the shopper can finish while still on the phone.

iMessage is in early access. Outcraft's iMessages go out as up to three short bubbles with the shopper's cart link, and when no iMessage line is free, the shopper gets SMS instead.

You set contact hours, frequency caps, and eligible shoppers, and opt-outs are honored across every channel immediately. See how Outcraft recovers abandoned checkouts, or join iMessage early access.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can businesses send iMessages to customers?

Businesses can reach customers on iMessage in two ways. Apple's official route is Apple Messages for Business, where customers start the conversation. Some third-party providers also send business messages over regular iMessage under their own terms, which may include conditions like consent, so check what each provider allows before relying on it.

Is iMessage better than SMS for abandoned cart recovery?

iMessage isn't better than SMS for every abandoned cart. It suits iPhone owners who are already in a conversation with your store, such as during a recovery call. SMS reaches every phone, so it remains the default first text, and it's the fallback when iMessage isn't available. Compare both by recovered orders.

Does Apple Messages for Business work for abandoned cart recovery?

Apple Messages for Business doesn't work for reaching shoppers who abandoned a cart because Apple requires the customer to start the conversation. Messaging a customer's phone number won't open a Messages for Business chat. It works well before abandonment, for answering pre-sale questions from shoppers who tap a message button on your site.

What happens if the shopper uses Android?

A shopper on Android can't receive iMessage, so an iMessage recovery plan needs a fallback. The usual fallback is an SMS with the same checkout link, sent automatically when iMessage isn't available. WhatsApp is the better fallback in markets where most shoppers use it.

Do I need consent to send abandoned cart messages over iMessage?

Treat abandoned cart messages over iMessage with the same consent standard as marketing texts. The message goes to the shopper's phone number, and calling and messaging rules differ by market. Confirm the rules for each country you sell to with your legal adviser before Black Friday.

What is the difference between iMessage and RCS?

iMessage is Apple's messaging service between Apple devices. RCS, or Rich Communication Services, is a carrier-based upgrade to SMS that supports richer messages and works across iPhone and Android, where carriers support it. Businesses send RCS through providers that offer business RCS, and many keep SMS as the fallback.

Abandoned Checkouts Need Proper Addressing And On Time

The channel decides where the message lands. The conversation decides whether the order completes. Bring one week of abandoned checkouts. We'll show you what a phone call recovers. Book a Demo

Related: Why cart abandonment explodes during BFCM · See Outcraft's Black Friday pricing · Outcraft homepage