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Waitlist email examples

Six waitlist email examples, from the welcome email to launch day, each shown as it lands in an inbox in five looks. Learn when to send each one, copy its words, or send it from LaunchList.

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  1. Waitlist welcome emailRight after someone joins
  2. Referral nudge emailTwo or three days after someone joins
  3. Founder update emailEvery two to four weeks while you build
  4. Feedback request emailOne to two weeks after someone joins
  5. Early access invite emailWhen you let the next group in
  6. Launch day emailThe day you open to everyone

Every email is written for Tallybook, a made-up bookkeeping app for freelancers. Swap in your own product and details.

Right after someone joins

Waitlist welcome email

Says the signup worked, what happens next and how often you will write. It arrives while they still remember signing up, so it also hands them their spot and the link that moves them up.

How it looks in the inbox

You're on the Tallybook waitlist

Sam from Tallybook
to Alex

Your spot is saved. Here is what happens next.

Who it is for

Every waitlist. It is the one email every signup gets, and the one most people open, so it is worth getting right before any other.

When to send it

Within a minute of the signup, while they still remember your page. Sent a day later, it reads like mail from a stranger.

How to make it yours

  • Say how often you will write, and keep to it.
  • Point the button at the one thing you want next: their spot, their share link or a question.
  • Sign it with your own name, not the company's.

Sending it from LaunchList

LaunchList sends it on its own when someone joins, with their name and spot filled in. It starts switched off, so you can reword it before you turn it on.

Copy this email

Subject: You're on the [Product] waitlist Preview text: Your spot is saved. Here is what happens next. You're on the list Hi [First name], Thanks for joining the [Product] waitlist. Your spot is saved. Here is what happens next: - I'll write about once a month, when there is something worth showing you. - When we open, people get in by their place in line. - Your page shows your place and a link to share. Every friend who joins with it moves you up. See your spot: [Link to their spot] Sam Founder, [Product]

Paste the subject and preview text into your email tool's own fields. The rest is the email. Fill in the parts in brackets.

Two or three days after someone joins

Referral nudge email

Asks for one thing: share the link. It names what sharing gets them, a place nearer the front, and puts the link in one button.

How it looks in the inbox

Move up the Tallybook waitlist

Sam from Tallybook
to Alex

Every friend who joins with your link moves you closer to the front.

Who it is for

Waitlists where people move up by inviting friends. If yours has no referral reward, skip it: there is nothing to nudge toward.

When to send it

Two or three days after someone joins. They still care, and the welcome email has already said how sharing works.

How to make it yours

  • Name who would want your product, the way the sample names freelancers who dread tax season.
  • Show their place and how many friends they brought in, so the ask feels real.
  • Keep one button. A second link splits the clicks.

Sending it from LaunchList

Each reader's place, count and own link fill in for them. Send it to everyone as a broadcast, or on its own a few days after each signup with an automation.

Copy this email

Subject: Move up the [Product] waitlist Preview text: Every friend who joins with your link moves you closer to the front. Want to get in sooner? Hi [First name], Your place on the [Product] waitlist right now is [Place in line], and your link has brought in [Number] so far. Every friend who joins with it moves you closer to the front. If you know a freelancer who dreads tax season, send it their way. Share my link: [Referral link] Thanks for spreading the word, Sam

Paste the subject and preview text into your email tool's own fields. The rest is the email. Fill in the parts in brackets.

Every two to four weeks while you build

Founder update email

Keeps the list warm until launch. Three short parts (what shipped, what changed, what is next) read faster than a newsletter and show the product is moving.

How it looks in the inbox

What we built this month at Tallybook

Sam from Tallybook
to Alex

Bank sync works, the tax estimate moved, and invoices are next.

Who it is for

Waitlists that run longer than a few weeks. It is how people remember why they signed up, and why they open the launch day email.

When to send it

Every two to four weeks while you build, and only when there is something real to say.

How to make it yours

  • Keep the three parts: what shipped, what changed, what is next.
  • Mention something the list asked for, so readers see replies are read.
  • Add a screenshot of what shipped, if you have one.

Sending it from LaunchList

Send it as a broadcast to the whole list or to a segment, such as everyone who joined this month, now or at a time you schedule.

Copy this email

Subject: What we built this month at [Product] Preview text: Bank sync works, the tax estimate moved, and invoices are next. What we built this month Hi [First name], A short update from [Product]. What shipped. Bank sync works. Connect your account and every payment you get is sorted into income or expenses for you. What changed. Many of you asked to see your tax estimate at a glance, so it now sits at the top of the home screen. What is next. Invoices you can send in a minute. The first people on the list get to try them first. Thanks for following along. Reply any time: I read every one. Sam See your spot: [Link to their spot]

Paste the subject and preview text into your email tool's own fields. The rest is the email. Fill in the parts in brackets.

One to two weeks after someone joins

Feedback request email

Asks one question and asks for a reply. No button, so it reads like a note from a person, and the answers tell you what to build and what to say on launch day.

How it looks in the inbox

One quick question, Alex

Sam from Tallybook
to Alex

A sentence is plenty. Your answer shapes what we build first.

Who it is for

Founders still deciding what to build first or how to describe it. The people who reply are often your first customers.

When to send it

One to two weeks after someone joins, once the welcome email has set the tone.

How to make it yours

  • Ask one question only, about their problem rather than your product.
  • Leave out the button, so replying is the only thing to do.
  • Use the words people reply with on your launch page.

Sending it from LaunchList

Send it as a broadcast with a reply-to address you read, so answers land in your own inbox. A short note like this reads best in the Plain look.

Copy this email

Subject: One quick question, [First name] Preview text: A sentence is plenty. Your answer shapes what we build first. Can I ask you one thing? Hi [First name], You joined [Product] early, so your answer counts for more than most right now. How do you keep track of your income and expenses today, and what is the most annoying part of it? Just hit reply. A sentence is plenty, and I read every answer. Sam

Paste the subject and preview text into your email tool's own fields. The rest is the email. Fill in the parts in brackets.

When you let the next group in

Early access invite email

Tells someone their spot is open and gives them one way in. The access code is written out too, for a reader whose mail app hides the button.

How it looks in the inbox

Your Tallybook invite is here

Sam from Tallybook
to Alex

Your early access is ready. Here is your way in.

Who it is for

Waitlists that let people in a group at a time, such as a private beta or a product with limited spots.

When to send it

When you open the next group of spots. Invite only as many people as you can support that week.

How to make it yours

  • Say how long setup takes, so they start now rather than later.
  • Keep the access code written out, for mail apps that hide buttons.
  • If your invites run out, say when.

Sending it from LaunchList

LaunchList sends it on its own when you let someone in, with their own link and access code.

Copy this email

Subject: Your [Product] invite is here Preview text: Your early access is ready. Here is your way in. You're in Hi [First name], Your spot on [Product] is open. You joined early, so you get in before everyone who joined after you. Setting up takes about five minutes: connect your bank, and your first month is sorted for you. Claim my access: [Invite link] Your access code is [Access code], if you are asked for it. Sam

Paste the subject and preview text into your email tool's own fields. The rest is the email. Fill in the parts in brackets.

The day you open to everyone

Launch day email

The send the whole list waited for. It says you are open, what they can do on day one, and thanks them for waiting, with one button to start.

How it looks in the inbox

Tallybook is live. You're first in.

Sam from Tallybook
to Alex

The wait is over. Here is your way in.

Who it is for

Every waitlist, on the day you open. It is the email the whole list was waiting for.

When to send it

The morning you open to everyone, in your readers' time zone if most of them share one.

How to make it yours

  • List what they can do on day one, three things at most.
  • Thank them for waiting, in one line.
  • Add an early supporter offer here, if you promised one.

Sending it from LaunchList

Send it to the whole list as a broadcast, and schedule it ahead so it goes out while you are busy launching.

Copy this email

Subject: [Product] is live. You're first in. Preview text: The wait is over. Here is your way in. The doors are open Hi [First name], Today [Product] opens to everyone. You joined the waitlist early, so you're at the front of the line. Here is what you can do from day one: - Connect your bank and see your income and expenses sorted. - See how much to set aside for tax each time you get paid. - Send your first invoice in under a minute. Get started: [Link to their spot] Thank you for waiting with us. Sam

Paste the subject and preview text into your email tool's own fields. The rest is the email. Fill in the parts in brackets.

How it works

How to use a waitlist email template

  1. Pick the moment

    Each email has its moment, from the minute someone joins to the day you open. Send the one that fits where your launch is now.

  2. Make the words yours

    Fill in the parts in square brackets and swap the sample details for your product. Keep it short and sign it with your name.

  3. Send it from your waitlist

    In LaunchList the personal parts fill themselves in for each signup, and every email takes the look and color you pick.

Questions

Waitlist email questions

What emails should I send my waitlist?
Start with a welcome email the moment someone joins, then a referral nudge a few days later. While you build, send a short founder update every few weeks and one feedback question. When you open, send an invite to each group you let in, and a launch day email to everyone.
How often should I email my waiting list?
Every two to four weeks while you build is enough to keep people from forgetting you. Write more often in the last week before launch, when there is real news each time.
Can I copy these waitlist emails?
Yes. Under each email its words are written out with the personal parts in square brackets, such as [First name] and [Product]. Copy them into any email tool, fill in the brackets and change the details to fit your product.
Can I send these emails from LaunchList?
Yes. The welcome email and the invite email go out on their own when someone joins or is let in, on every plan, and you can reword both. The welcome email starts switched off, so you turn it on when you are ready. The update, the nudge, the feedback question and the launch day email are broadcasts, which come with the Collect, Launch and Grow plans. Sending the nudge on its own a few days after each signup is an automation, which comes with the Launch and Grow plans.
What are the looks?
A look sets the colors, typeface, corners and frame of every email your project sends: Classic, Plain, Ink, Paper and Contrast. Your logo or your product name sits at the top, and your brand color is on the buttons. You can change any color after you pick a look.
How are the placeholders filled in?
In LaunchList each one is filled in for every signup: their first name, their place in line, their own referral link. A name always has a fallback, such as "there", so a signup who gave no name reads "Hi there".
What goes in the footer of a waitlist email?
Every broadcast ends with an unsubscribe link and your postal address, which anti-spam laws such as CAN-SPAM ask for. The welcome and invite emails are part of joining, so they carry your product name without an unsubscribe link.

See how email works in LaunchList.

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