How to Add a Sales Countdown Timer on Shopify?

Today, in the highly competitive world of e-commerce, businesses are constantly on the go for increasing sales and grabbing the attention of new customers.

One of the effective ways to achieve this is by creating a sense of urgency among customers – by adding a sales countdown timer to your Shopify store.

It is a simple yet powerful tool that can make a significant impact on sales and conversion rates. By setting a deadline for your sales or special offers, you can create a sense of scarcity and urgency, driving shoppers to make a purchase before the deal expires.

In this blog, we’ll discover the benefits of using a sales countdown timer on your Shopify store. Also, we’ll walk through simple and easy-to-follow steps for adding it to your store, making it a quick and hassle-free process for both newbies and experienced entrepreneurs.

So, let’s get started with it!

What is a Countdown Timer?

A countdown timer is a visual timer that counts down the time remaining until a sale or promotional offer ends. It is a marketing tool used by online merchants to create a sense of urgency and FOMO (Fear of Missing out) among customers and encourage them to make a purchase.

It could be in the form of a limited-time sale, a flash sale, a special offer, or any other offer that may be ending in a particular period of time. This can help merchants boost sales, and hence, increase conversion rates.

Benefits of Adding a Sales Countdown Timer to your Shopify Store

A recent study reveals the fact that a sales countdown timer can improve sales by 50%, which clears that you can make more money just by implementing this small feature. Some of the other benefits of adding a sales countdown timer to your Shopify store include.

1. Creates a Sense of Urgency

One of the benefits of adding a countdown timer to your Shopify store is that it creates a sense of urgency in the minds of customers.

That’s because when any customer sees a timer ticking down and the sale or offer is time-limited, it creates a feeling of urgency that encourages them to take an action before it gets too late.

Also, the sales countdown timer also adds a sense of excitement to the shopping experience. They feel as if they are part of a limited-time promotion which makes their shopping experience more memorable. This can lead to increased customer loyalty and repeat business.

2. Boosts Conversions

Another important benefit of adding a sales countdown timer to your Shopify store is that it can help to boost conversions.

The sense of urgency can help to overcome common objections that customers might have about making a purchase, such as wanting to think it over or shopping around for a better deal.

When customers see that the timer is counting down rapidly, they may assume that other customers are taking advantage of the offer and feel more confident in making a purchase themselves. Thus, they end up making purchases, and hence, boost conversions for the merchant.

3. Improves Customer Engagement

Adding a sales countdown timer to your Shopify store can also help to improve customer engagement. By creating a sense of urgency and excitement, the countdown timer can encourage customers to engage more with your brand and your products.

One way that the sales countdown timer can improve customer engagement is by encouraging customers to spend more time browsing your products.

Moreover, the sales countdown timer can be used to promote new products or services and generate interest in your brand. When customers see there’s a limited offer or sale in your store, they are more likely to try your product or service that they may not have otherwise.

4. Drives Repeat Business

One of the significant benefits of adding a sales countdown timer to your Shopify store is that it can help to drive repeat business.

By using a sales countdown timer to create a sense of urgency and scarcity around your promotions, you can motivate customers to make a purchase and build a stronger relationship with your brand.

Moreover, the sales countdown timer can be used to promote your loyalty program or other incentives for repeat customers.

For instance, you can offer a percentage discount or free shipping for customers who purchase up to a certain amount or within a specific time period. This way, you can motivate customers to return to your store and increase their lifetime value.

5. Differentiates From Competitors

By using a sales countdown timer to create a sense of urgency and scarcity around your promotions, you can set yourself apart from other brands and create a unique value proposition for your customers.

Additionally, the sales countdown timer can be used to promote your brand’s unique selling points, such as your commitment to sustainability or your focus on high-quality materials.

The countdown timer can be used to highlight these differentiators, you can appeal to customers who are looking for products that align with their values and priorities. Also, you can build a loyal customer base.

How to Manually Add a Sales Countdown Timer to Shopify?

Adding a countdown timer has now become a powerful feature in online stores since it helps boost sales to great extent. So, how would you add a sales countdown time to your Shopify store using coding?

Let’s explore the steps below!

Step 1: From your Shopify store’s admin area, go to Online Store > Themes > Actions > Edit Code.

Step 2: Scroll down the left sidebar until you find Snippets. Click on Add a new snippet.

Step 3: Give your snippet a name ‘timer’ and click on Done.

Step 4: After creating a new snippet, copy and paste the below-mentioned code and click on Save.

 {% if end_date != blank %}
<div class="timer">
{% if title != blank %}
<h4 class="timer__title">{{ title }}</h4>
{% endif %}
<div class="timer-display">
 
<div class="timer-block"><span class="timer-block__num js-timer-days">00</span> <span class="timer-block__unit">Days</span></div>
 
<div class="timer-block"><span class="timer-block__num js-timer-hours">00</span> <span class="timer-block__unit">Hours</span></div>
 
<div class="timer-block"><span class="timer-block__num js-timer-minutes">00</span> <span class="timer-block__unit">Minutes</span></div>
 
<div class="timer-block"><span class="timer-block__num js-timer-seconds">00</span> <span class="timer-block__unit">Seconds</span></div>
 
</div>
 
</div>
 
<style> 
   .timer { 
     background: #f6fafd; 
     padding: 10px; 
     margin: 10px 0; 
   } 
   .timer--expired { 
     display: none; 
   } 
   .timer__title { 
     @extend .paragraph; 
     text-align: center; 
   } 
   .timer-display { 
     display: -webkit-box; 
     display: -ms-flexbox; 
     display: flex; 
     -ms-flex-wrap: wrap; 
         flex-wrap: wrap; 
     -webkit-box-pack: justify; 
         -ms-flex-pack: justify; 
             justify-content: space-between; 
     margin-top: 5px; 
   } 
   .timer-block { 
     position: relative; 
     width: 25%; 
     padding: 0 10px; 
     &:not(:last-child):after { 
       content: ':'; 
       position: absolute; 
       right: 0; 
       top: 3px; 
     } 
   } 
   .timer-block__num, 
   .timer-block__unit { 
     display: block; 
     text-align: center; 
   } 
 </style>
<script type="text/javascript"> 
   var second = 1000, 
       minute = second * 60, 
       hour = minute * 60, 
       day = hour * 24; 
   var countDown = new Date('{{- end_date -}}').getTime(), 
       x = setInterval(function() { 
       var now = new Date().getTime(), 
           distance = countDown - now; 
     document.querySelector('.js-timer-days').innerText = Math.floor(distance / (day)), 
       document.querySelector('.js-timer-hours').innerText = Math.floor((distance % (day)) / (hour)), 
     document.querySelector('.js-timer-minutes').innerText = Math.floor((distance % (hour)) / (minute)), 
     document.querySelector('.js-timer-seconds').innerText = Math.floor((distance % (minute)) / second); 
     }, second) 
 </script> {% endif %}

Step 5: Next, you need to decide where you wish to show the countdown timer. If you want to display it on the products, click on the main-product.liquid file.

Step 6: Next, render the snippet file anywhere you want to display the countdown timer.

{% render 'timer',
title: "Special Offer End In",
end_date: "Dec 31, 2023"
%}

Change the title and end date according to your requirements. Lastly, click on Save.

This is how the timer looks at the frontend!

How to Add a Sales Countdown Timer to Shopify Using an App?

You can easily find many apps on the Shopify App Store for adding a sales countdown timer to your Shopify store. Here, we’re using the Amai Sales Countdown Timer Bar.

The steps to add a countdown timer to your Shopify store using Amai Sales Countdown Timer Bar are as follows:

Step 1: Go to the Shopify App Store and search for ‘Amai Sales Countdown Timer Bar’ in the search bar. Click the ‘Add App’ button.

Step 2: Next, follow the prompts to install the app on your store.

Step 3: Once you’ve installed the app, follow the steps to set a new countdown timer for your store. Also, customize the look and feel of the timer bar by changing the background color, text, color, font, and other design elements.

Step 4: Upon customizing the timer bar, Save the changes.

That’s it! Your sales countdown timer should now be live on your Shopify store.

Wrapping Up

That’s all for the ways of adding or custom-creating a countdown timer for your Shopify store. we hope that it proves to be fruitful for driving sales and results in increased conversions.

If you’re facing any issues related to this, do not hesitate to reach out to us. We’ll be happy to assist you every step of the way!

Also, do you need more tutorials on Shopify? Check out below-mentioned blogs!

How To Add ChatBot to Your Shopify Store?

How to Add Video to Your Shopify Store Pages?

How to Add Product Reviews to Your Shopify Store?

How to Add Filters To Shopify Store?