LaunchList
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For ecommerce brands

Ecommerce waitlist software for product drops

LaunchList puts a waitlist in front of a product drop or a restock on your own store. Each signup gets a place in line that moves up with every friend they bring.

Start from this pageHow drops work

Free for your first 100 contactsNo credit card needed

Pre-order waitlist landing page template: Mesa in the Calm style

Calm. Soft and unhurried: a warm off-white page, rounded type, large soft shapes and no hard lines, with the accent color used lightly. Suits wellness, community and everyday consumer products.

Mesa is a made-up brand, so its prices and counts are examples, and its "Reserve yours" button only joins the list: LaunchList takes no payment. Your version is written around your own product.

At a glance

Updated

What it is
A line of buyers for a product that is not on sale yet, on a hosted page or in a form inside your store.
Starting page
Mesa, the pre-order template: one large product photo, a gallery, the details, prices and how many are reserved.
Works with
Shopify, with no app: the form sits in a theme section, including the password page a store shows before it opens. LaunchList never sees your products, stock or checkout.
Price
Free up to 100 contacts. Rewards for referrers are on the Collect, Launch and Grow plans.
How launches work

How a product drop works on your own store, and which tool runs each part.

Shopify apps handle what happens on a product page that already exists. A drop list starts before that page does.

  • Back-in-stock alerts

    Shopify apps such as Notify! Back in Stock or Amp add a restock alert to a sold-out product and send it by email, SMS or push when the product is back.

    Sources: Shopify App Store, Notify! and Shopify App Store, Amp.

    Use it when

    The product already has a page and you only need to tell people it is back.

  • Pre-order apps

    Shopify lets customers pre-order and pay for products before they are ready to ship, and shows it on your store through a pre-order app.

    Source: Shopify Help Center, pre-orders

    Use it when

    You need the money, or a firm order, before you make the batch.

  • A drop on a set date

    You announce a date and a time, gather the people who want in, and open the product to them first. Scarcity does the selling, so the list has to exist before the date.

    Use it when

    The product is new, the batch is small, and you want buyers waiting before it goes on sale.

Where LaunchList fits

Use the list while the product has no page, then a pre-order or back-in-stock app once it has one; on drop day, the list gives you the line in referral order.

When to use it

A product drop waitlist or a Shopify app: which one fits.

A good fit when

  • The product is new and has no product page yet.
  • The people waiting should bring friends, not only wait.
  • You sell in more than one place and want one list for the drop.
  • You want to know which size or color to make more of before you make it.

Not the right fit when

  • You want a back-in-stock button on each sold-out product: a Shopify back-in-stock app does that inside your theme.
  • You want payment or a deposit up front: a pre-order app takes it, and LaunchList takes no payments.
  • You need stock counts or inventory sync: LaunchList knows your list, not your stock.
Set it up

A drop list on your Shopify store: form, question, email.

  1. Put the form on your store

    Copy your form's snippet from "Embed & API", "Your website", and paste it into a Custom Liquid section in Shopify. Or share your hosted page and skip the theme.On every plan

  2. Ask what they want

    Add a "Single choice" or "Multi-select" question for the size, color or bundle. The answers show how much of each to make, and you can filter Signups by any of them.On every plan

  3. Open the drop to the line

    On drop day, email the product link to the built-in Top referrers segment first, then to everyone else.From the Collect plan

In the docs: adding the form to Shopify, asking for a size or color and emailing a segment.

Real launches

Harry's and Nothing: a line before the first sale.

  • Harry's

    Before its March 2013 launch

    Source:Jeff Raider on tim.blog, July 21, 2014

    What they did

    Nearly 100,000 email addresses in one week, 77% of them through referrals, with rewards at 5, 10, 25 and 50 friends: shave cream, a razor, a premium shave set, then a year of free shaving. Its co-founder wrote it up.

    Take from it

    A few clear reward levels, each one a thing you make, give people a reason to share. In LaunchList you set rewards at any number of referrals, on the Collect, Launch and Grow plans.

  • Nothing phone (1)

    2022, invite system

    Source:GSMArena, June 24, 2022

    What they did

    People joined a waitlist and moved up only when the friends they referred signed up too; each invite came by email with 48 hours to act, and the next step was a paid deposit. More than 20,000 were in the queue at the time.

    Take from it

    A queue that moves only for real signups, then a short window to buy. The paid step belongs in your store: LaunchList takes no deposits.

The details

For drop day: a live count, rewards and a countdown.

  • A live count on your store

    The counter widget shows how many people are waiting on a product or coming-soon page, and never who they are.On every plan

  • Rewards that cost no margin

    Choose what 3 or 10 referrals earn, such as an early pick of the drop. A jump up the line happens on its own; a product or a perk goes on a list for you to ship.From the Collect plan

  • The drop page on your domain

    Serve the drop page from a domain of yours; HTTPS is set up for you after the DNS check passes.From the Collect plan

  • Bots kept off the line

    Each signup gets a spam score, and throwaway addresses and fake signups never reach the line.On every plan

  • Klaviyo and Shopify through Zapier or Make

    Pass each signup to Klaviyo, a Shopify customer list or a sheet, using LaunchList's apps for Zapier and Make.From the Launch plan

  • A countdown to drop time

    Set the drop time and Launch Day counts down to it, with a checklist for the morning and posts ready to share.From the Launch plan
FAQ

Shopify, drops and restocks, explained.

Does LaunchList work with Shopify?
Yes, without an app. Paste your form's two lines into a Custom Liquid section of your theme, on any page, including the password page shown while your store is closed. LaunchList has no Shopify app, so it does not see your products or stock; for a "Notify me" button on sold-out products, use a back-in-stock app from the Shopify App Store instead.
How do I run a product drop with early access?
Send the drop link to your best referrers before anyone else: LaunchList's built-in Top referrers segment holds everyone with five or more referrals. Email the rest of the list later; a send like that needs the Collect, Launch and Grow plans. If the early window has to stay private, use your store's own tools for it, such as a discount code only that group gets.
Can I give referral rewards without tanking my margin?
Yes. A reward is whatever you promise at the number of referrals you choose, so first pick of the drop, a limited color or a jump up the line cost you no margin. Moving someone up the line is automatic in LaunchList; anything you make or ship waits for you to send it. Setting rewards takes the Collect, Launch and Grow plans.
How does this work for limited-edition drops?
Collect the list, let referrals order it, then email the people at the front of the line first. LaunchList does not hold stock or take payment, so the drop itself happens in your store, and your checkout decides who gets the last one.
How do I validate ecommerce demand before manufacturing?
Put the page up before you make anything, and ask which size, color or bundle people want. Count the signups and the answers, and note how many people bring a friend. Interest is not a purchase, so before a big batch, ask for money through a pre-order on your own store.
Can I make a Shopify waitlist landing page?
Yes, two ways. Use a hosted page at its own launchlist.page address, or put the form on a page of your store with a Custom Liquid section. LaunchList's pre-order template, Mesa, is a full product page to start from.
What does an ecommerce waitlist cost?
For up to 100 contacts, nothing, and no card: the Free plan covers the page, the form in your store and CSV export. Rewards and emailing the list are on the Collect, Launch and Grow plans, priced by list size, monthly or yearly.

Fill the line before the drop opens.

On drop day, the people who brought friends get the link first, and your store does the selling.

Build your waitlist

Free for your first 100 contactsNo credit card needed