Read This Before You Start Doing Pre-Orders and Waiting Lists
Operational workflows for pre-orders and waiting lists.
If your brand is thinking about pre-orders or waiting lists, stop and read this first. While these strategies can unlock revenue and manage demand, they’re not as straightforward as installing an app and walking away. When done right, they’re transformative. When done wrong, they’re a logistical and customer experience nightmare.
Here’s everything you need to know before diving in.
Why Pre-Orders and Waiting Lists Are More Than Marketing Tools
Pre-orders and waiting lists have become go-to strategies for brands aiming to build hype or manage limited inventory. But these tactics do more than just create buzz:
Pre-Orders Capture Commitment Early: By taking a deposit or full payment upfront, you lock in revenue before stock arrives. This minimises financial risk and helps gauge real demand.
Waiting Lists Gauge Interest Without Financial Commitment: Waiting lists let you build a pipeline of interested customers while keeping their experience frictionless. It’s a lower-risk, lower-reward strategy for handling high-demand items.
For high-growth brands with complex supply chains, these systems are also critical for achieving stock efficiency. The question isn’t just “should you do pre-orders or waiting lists?” but “how do you do them without breaking your operational flow?”
What You’re Really Solving With Pre-Orders and Waiting Lists
At their core, pre-orders and waiting lists address three key challenges. First, they help manage demand and supply imbalances. If your stock is limited or arriving in staggered batches, pre-orders ensure you’re purchasing only what customers truly want, avoiding overstocking or underestimating demand. Second, they mitigate risk by capturing funds or commitments before stock arrives, reducing the financial burden of unsold inventory. Lastly, they streamline stock allocation. Certain off-the-shelf tools allow pre-order systems to dynamically assign incoming stock to customers, keeping processes efficient.
For brands selling high-demand limited editions or exclusive collections, these advantages are invaluable.
One Item, One Checkout
The Operational Challenges You Can’t Ignore
While the concept of pre-orders sounds simple, the execution is anything but. Here’s where brands often trip up:
1. Shopify Limitations
Shopify doesn’t natively support pre-orders in a seamless way. Some off-the-shelf solutions “hijack” the checkout process to handle pre-orders, routing payments through their system instead. While this works, it creates challenges:
Branding Gaps: Customers are redirected to non-Shopify checkouts, which can feel jarring.
Payment Restrictions: It’s very unlikely that they’ll support all the payment methods available to Shopify checkouts, this can make a significant impact on cross-border set ups.
Operational Fragmentation: Running separate systems for pre-orders and regular sales complicates your back end and makes reporting more difficult.
2. Conversion Risks With Waiting Lists
Waiting lists are easier to set up but rely on customers taking the next step when stock becomes available. Without capturing payments upfront, you’re banking on email follow-ups and conversion rates. Even with strong CRM support, there’s no guarantee they’ll return to purchase.
3. Handling Cancellations and Reallocations
Pre-orders can lead to last-minute cancellations, creating unanticipated gaps in stock availability. If your system isn’t set up to reallocate that inventory automatically, you’ll end up with inefficiencies—or worse, unhappy customers.
4. Limited Out-of-the-Box Tools for Complex Catalogues
For brands selling bundled products, pre-order solutions often fall short. Shopify’s native bundling capabilities, for example, historically didn’t work with pre-orders. If your product catalogue isn’t simple, you’re likely looking at custom development to make pre-orders viable.
Stock Efficiency
Pre-orders and waiting lists are not just customer-facing strategies; they’re tools for optimising stock efficiency. Pre-orders act as a live forecast, letting you order just enough stock to meet customer needs without overcommitting. Implemented correctly, systems should dynamically update stock availability, reducing manual intervention and minimising inventory waste. For limited-edition or high-cost items, pre-orders ensure you’re not left with unsold pieces that eat into your margins. By capturing funds upfront, you improve cash flow and reduce the need for over-leveraging during production cycles.
When Pre-Orders and Waiting Lists Make Sense
Not every brand will benefit from these strategies equally. Here’s when they work best:
High-Demand Limited Editions: Perfect for generating hype and guaranteeing sell-through before launch.
Products With Known Lead Times: If you can confidently communicate stock arrival dates, pre-orders help manage expectations and avoid disappointment.
Seasonal Drops or Capsule Collections: Waiting lists can build anticipation without risking customer frustration if stock delays occur.
Start Smart, Stay Efficient
If you’re ready to implement pre-orders or waiting lists, take the time to assess your operational setup. The right solution—whether it’s an off-the-shelf tool or a custom build—should work seamlessly with your systems, optimise your inventory, and enhance the customer experience.
Pre-orders and waiting lists aren’t just about creating hype or improving cash flow; they’re about making smarter, more efficient stock decisions. Done well, they can transform how your brand handles inventory. Done poorly, they can create chaos.
So before you dive in, ask yourself: Is your system ready to handle the complexity? If not, start there first.