Best Practices For Out Of Stock Email Notification
Retailers tend to lose potential sales because customers can’t buy products that are temporarily out of stock. Implementing an effective out of stock email notification system can help you retain those customers and boost sales when items are restocked. This post will guide you through setting up these notifications for your eCommerce store and share best practices to maximize their effectiveness. What is Out Of Stock Email Notification? When a product is “out of stock,” it means that the item is currently unavailable for purchase because the inventory has been depleted. This situation can occur due to high demand, supply chain issues, or delays in restocking. An out of stock email notification is a message sent to customers who have shown interest in the unavailable product. This email typically informs them that the item is out of stock and may offer alternatives or provide an option to be notified when the product is back in stock. These notifications help maintain customer interest and engagement, and they can encourage purchases once the item becomes available again. How to Set Up Out-of-Stock Email Notifications Below are the top strategies on how to set up out of stock email notifications that you should consider to create the best customer experience: Employ a Service that Automatically Sends Out Emails Customize your email alert schedule to align with your business needs. Automating these notifications with a powerful BigCommerce Automation app like Atom8, allows you to focus on core revenue-generating activities. Consider sending follow-up messages to customers who haven’t engaged with your emails after a set period. For larger customer bases, implement a system that monitors engagement patterns and alerts you to prolonged inactivity, enabling timely interventions to maintain customer interest. Clear Subject Line To differentiate yourself from competitors, personalize your out of stock email notification subject lines to give them character. You can achieve this by analyzing customer data, including purchase history and location, to determine what resonates most effectively with your audience. Create unique and compelling subject lines for your out of stock email notifications to boost their open rates. Consider incorporating a touch of humor to forge a stronger connection with your customers. Include Relevant or Hot Selling Products With BigCommerce back-in-stock notifications, feature complementary products that pair well with the restocked item. Including multiple product suggestions can increase average order value and simplify the shopping experience for customers, eliminating the need for extensive browsing. This strategy not only informs customers about restocked items but also encourages additional purchases by presenting a curated selection of relevant products. Deliver a Sense of Urgency Leverage the power of FOMO (fear of missing out) by creating a sense of urgency in your messaging. Incorporate compelling calls-to-action (CTAs) that prompt immediate action, such as: These urgency-driven phrases encourage customers to make a purchase quickly, reducing the risk of the item selling out before they can act. Add Clear Calls-to-Action When a customer opens your back-in-stock email, what’s your main message? Include clear links to products, services, or contact info to keep them engaged. Make purchasing easy directly from the email by adding prominent “Buy Now” or “Shop Now” buttons. Link these CTAs directly to the product pages, simplifying the buying process for your customers. Notify Customers When the Product is Back in Stock Notify customers promptly when products are restocked, especially those who’ve subscribed to out of stock email notifications. After sending the initial notification, follow up with a reminder email to encourage purchases. This two-step approach helps capture attention and motivate buying decisions among interested customers. Keep Your Tone Consistent We apologize to your customers for the disappointment and inconvenience caused by the product shortage. This will show how responsible you are toward them and help build a trusting relationship with them. Remember that even if you use the same language in every out of stock email notification, your audience will expect certain things based on how you speak to them. Your tone should always reflect the business at hand, maintaining consistency and reinforcing your brand’s identity to effectively resonate with your audience. Best Practices to Send Out-of-Stock Email Notifications In this section, we’ll explore best practices for out-of-stock email notifications. These tips will help you maintain customer satisfaction while maximizing the potential of your restock notifications. Acknowledge and Apologize for the Inconvenience While “the customer is always right” may not always apply, it’s crucial to recognize when you’ve fallen short of providing the best customer experience. A brief, sincere apology goes a long way. In your out of stock email notification, take responsibility for the situation and aim to delight your customers despite the setback. Briefly explain that you’re actively working to resolve the issue and ensure it doesn’t happen again. Be Transparent Without Making Excuses Honestly, explain the reason for the stock issue, whether it’s a processing error, manufacturer discontinuation, or an order mix-up. Customers value truthfulness as long as it’s not presented as an excuse. People tend to favor brands that take responsibility for their mistakes rather than those that make excuses. Offer Alternative or Similar Products Recommend similar items that might satisfy the customer’s needs. This strategy serves two purposes: it helps prevent lost sales and maintains customer satisfaction. By offering alternatives, you provide solutions and demonstrate your commitment to meeting your customers’ requirements, even when their first choice is unavailable. Clarify the Refund Process Be transparent about how refunds work when items are out of stock. Clearly explain the refund procedure, and any available options for the customer’s money, and provide a specific timeframe for when they can expect to receive their funds. This clarity prevents confusion and frustration, ensuring customers aren’t left wondering about the status of their payment after learning an item is unavailable. Include Clear Customer Service Details Don’t overlook the importance of providing comprehensive customer service information. Clearly state all available contact methods, including phone numbers, email addresses, and relevant social media handles. Also, specify your hours of operation. This allows customers to reach out through
How to Convert Customers Who Are Interested in Out-Of-Stock Products on BigCommerce
Losing a customer is a pain, especially when it is due to sold-out products. It takes effort to bring a customer to a website. So you need a solid strategy to handle stockout situations to retain the customer interested in your products. If you are on BigCommerce, some ways to retain customers even when you went out of stock are: Encourage Back-in-Stock Notification Signup If the product is currently out of stock, then you can prompt the visitor to enter their email so that they can be notified by email when the product is back in stock. Moreover, submission of an email by a user has two advantages; first, it signifies they intend to purchase and are likely to be converted when contacted by email. Secondly, you get their email for approaching them in the future for promotions. Communication plays a huge role after a visitor is added to the mailing list. The company should send them automated emails for thanksgiving for their interest, for alerting them when the product is in stock. The company must make them feel valuable and important as the chance of their conversion into customers is very high. This is not a native feature of BigCommerce, but you can find a solution by searching the app marketplace or contact developers for custom coding. Allow Backordering on BigCommerce When a visitor places an order for a product that is out of stock, it is called backordering. Some businesses view backorder as guaranteed sales and thus allow visitors to place backorders. In the case of backorders, a customer is willing to wait sometime for the delivery of their favorite product. The company should allow backorders only if it can deliver as managing customer’s expectations is an essential aspect of managing backorders. Be sure to check out other blog posts to discover best practices for handling backorders, how to write the best backorder policy, and 5 simple steps to set up backorder. On BigCommerce, you can find a simple solution to enable backorders for out-of-stock products that is using the BackOrder app. It does more than just changing purchasability. For instance, it can ensure your customers get notified of availability on the storefront. As well as automatically handle threshold and back-in-stock date and give you a sale report. Share Related Products Another effective technique to convert a customer interested in an out-of-stock product is to share related products. This tactic can help you capture sales from visitors looking for an out of stock product as these customers might be interested in a similar product. You can catch a customer’s attention by recommending products based on how other customers tend to shop. You are more likely to capitalize on the sale by matching their habits and suggesting products accordingly. If you don’t have too many out-of-stock products, use this guide to set related products on your BigCommerce store. But seeing too many sold-out products might decrease the conversion rate, so you should either hide them or turn on backorder. Clarify Expected Restock Date Providing an expected restock date will help consumers to make better decisions. If your business has a shorter out-of-stock window, then mentioning the restock date will help you save a sale as it will appeal to visitors who are willing to wait. Add Personal Info/ Extra Bonus in Back-In-Stock Email Personalizing the back in the stock email goes a long way in improving the conversion rate. If you can collect a visitor’s email address and their name on the webpage of an out-of-stock product, it will help you send a more personalized email when the item is restocked. You can also try to convince the customer with a coupon/voucher to return to your website later to make a purchase when the product is restocked. You can also motivate the visitor to share their email for back-in-stock notification in return for the savings/discounts. Conclusion It is possible to convert customers who land on out-of-stock product pages by using various methods supported by BigCommerce. It is an opportunity to build on communication and improve their experience so that they have positive views for your brand.
