> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://help.retainful.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Back in stock

> Tell waiting shoppers the moment a sold-out product returns — demand you've already captured, converted automatically.

A sold-out product is demand you've already earned and can't yet fill. When shoppers ask to be notified, they're telling you they're ready to buy the instant it's available. A back-in-stock automation closes that loop on its own: the moment inventory returns, the people waiting hear about it first — often converting within minutes, before the item sells out again.

## When to use it

* You carry popular products that sell out and get restocked.
* You let shoppers request a "notify me when available" alert on out-of-stock items.
* You want to recover sales that would otherwise quietly vanish when an item runs out.

## How it works

<Steps>
  <Step title="A shopper asks to be notified">
    On an out-of-stock product, a shopper submits their email through a "notify me" [signup form](/forms/overview). They're added to a [list](/audience/lists) tied to that product.
  </Step>

  <Step title="The product is restocked">
    When inventory returns, your store fires the **Product back in stock** event for that item.
  </Step>

  <Step title="The alert goes out immediately">
    Everyone waiting gets an email right away: "It's back — and going fast." One click takes them straight to the product.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Urgency does the rest">
    A short follow-up to non-buyers reinforces scarcity — restocked favorites often sell out again quickly.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Set it up

1. Add a "notify me when available" [signup form](/forms/create-a-form) to your out-of-stock product pages, feeding a waitlist [list](/audience/lists).
2. Create an automation with the **Product back in stock** trigger (see [Triggers](/automations/triggers)).
3. Filter to the right audience — the contacts who asked about that product.
4. Write the alert email with the product block and a direct shop link.
5. **Publish.**

## The proven sequence

| Email             | When                              | Angle                                                                                                     |
| ----------------- | --------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **1. It's back**  | Immediately on restock            | "Good news — it's back in stock." Lead with the product image and one button to buy. Speed is everything. |
| **2. Going fast** | \~24 hours, only if not purchased | "Still available — but not for long." Reinforce scarcity for the people who didn't act yet.               |

<Tip>
  Send the first alert the *instant* stock returns, not on a schedule. Back-in-stock emails convert because they're timely — a restocked best-seller can sell out again in hours, and the waitlist is racing everyone else to it.
</Tip>

## Make it work harder

* **Capture the waitlist well.** The flow is only as strong as the list feeding it — make the "notify me" form prominent on every out-of-stock page.
* **Keep it product-specific.** Alert only the people who asked about *that* item. A blast to everyone reads as noise; a precise alert reads as a favor.
* **Lean on scarcity, honestly.** "Limited quantities" works because it's true — restocks are often smaller than the original run.

## Measure it

Open the automation's [analytics](/automations/analytics) to see how much of the waitlist converts and the **revenue recovered** from restocks. This is demand that would otherwise have disappeared the moment the item sold out — every order here is a save.