Back in Stock Email Templates

How to Use These Back-in-Stock Email Templates

A sold-out product isn't lost revenue. It's deferred revenue, if you have a way to capture the interest and follow up when inventory returns. That's what back-in-stock emails do.

The conversion rates on these emails are incredible compared to other email types. Open rates above 65% are common. Click-through rates of 15-20% aren't unusual. That makes sense when you think about it: you're emailing someone about the exact product they already wanted.

Setting Up Back-in-Stock Notifications

You need two pieces to make this work:

1. A way to capture interest. Add a "Notify me when available" button on sold-out product pages. Collect just their email address (and the specific variant they want, if applicable). Don't ask for anything else. Friction kills signups.

2. A way to trigger the notification. When inventory comes back, the email needs to go out fast. With Sequenzy's Shopify integration, this happens automatically. Inventory updates in Shopify trigger the notification within minutes.

Speed Matters

The single most important factor in back-in-stock email performance is speed. Every hour between the restock and the notification reduces your conversion rate.

Why? Because:

• Popular products might sell out again quickly from organic traffic
• Customer intent fades over time
• Competitors might restock the same (or similar) product

Aim to send the notification within 15 minutes of the inventory update. Automated triggers handle this perfectly.

Handling Popular Products That Sell Out Repeatedly

Some products sell out over and over. For these, consider:

A waitlist with position numbers. "You're #47 on the waitlist" gives people a sense of their chances and makes the notification feel more personal.

Staggered notifications. Instead of emailing everyone at once, email the waitlist in batches (first in, first notified). This prevents the frustration of getting a "back in stock" email only to find it's already sold out again.

Alternative suggestions. If a product is consistently sold out, include similar products in the notification. "The Blue Hoodie is back, and you might also like the Navy Pullover we just added."

When to Skip the Follow-Up

The follow-up reminder (template 3) isn't always necessary. Skip it when:

• The product has already sold out again (sending "still available" when it's not is embarrassing)
• The customer already purchased something from the notification email
• The customer unsubscribed from notifications for this product
• The initial email had very high engagement (70%+ open rate means most people already saw it)

Use the follow-up mainly for products with healthy stock levels where you know inventory will hold for at least another 24-48 hours.

Measuring Back-in-Stock Performance

Track these metrics:

• Waitlist signup rate: What percentage of visitors to a sold-out page sign up for notifications? 5-10% is solid.
• Notification open rate: Should be 50-70% given the high intent.
• Notification conversion rate: 10-20% of people who open should purchase.
• Revenue recovered: Total revenue attributed to back-in-stock emails. This is money you would have lost without the notifications.
• Time to purchase: How quickly do people buy after the notification? Most purchases happen within 2 hours.