How to enable preorders on all out of stock products

STOQ can automatically track all products in your store and convert them to preorders when they go out of stock. Instead of manually adding products to a preorder offer, you can set up STOQ to monitor your entire catalog and show the preorder button whenever a product's inventory reaches zero.

This means you capture more sales from out-of-stock products without any manual intervention.

How All Products Tracking Works

When you select "All products" as your product source, STOQ continuously monitors your entire product catalog. Here's what happens:

1. STOQ tracks all products in your store, regardless of their current inventory status.
2. When a product goes out of stock and "Continue selling when out of stock" is enabled, STOQ automatically displays the preorder button.
3. When inventory is restocked, the preorder button automatically disappears, and the regular "Add to Cart" button is displayed.

This automated approach ensures you never miss a preorder opportunity and keeps your store running smoothly without constant manual updates.

Setting Up All Products Preorders

Follow these steps to configure STOQ to sell preorders on all out-of-stock products.

Step 1: Create a New Preorder Offer

1. From your Shopify admin, open the STOQ app.
2. Click Preorders in the left navigation menu.
3. Click Add new offer to create a new preorder offer.

Step 2: Configure Offer Settings

Before adding products, configure your preorder offer settings:

1. In the Button section, customize your preorder button text (e.g., "Preorder Now").
2. In the Payment section, set up payment options (full payment, deposit, or discount).
3. In the Shipping section, configure fulfillment timeline settings.
4. Adjust any other settings as needed for your preorder offer.

Step 3: Select All Products

1. Scroll to the Products section in the offer editor.
2. Under Product type, select All products.
3. This configures STOQ to track every product in your store.

Step 4: Choose Tracking Mode

After selecting "All products," you'll see two tracking options:

Track all products (recommended)

• STOQ tracks all products in your store.
• When a product goes out of stock, STOQ automatically enables "Continue selling when out of stock" and shows the preorder button.
• This is the most hands-off option.

Only products with Continue selling enabled

• STOQ checks all products but only shows preorders for products where you've already enabled "Continue selling when out of stock" in Shopify.
• Use this if you want more control over which products can become preorders.

Step 5: Add All Products

1. Review the information displayed about what will happen.
2. Click Add all products to confirm.
3. STOQ will:

• Add all currently eligible products to the offer
• Convert out-of-stock products to preorder immediately
• Set up tracking for future inventory changes

Step 6: Save and Enable

1. Click Save to save your offer settings.
2. Ensure the offer is Enabled (toggle should be on).
3. Your store is now set up to automatically sell preorders on all out of stock products.

Understanding Continue Selling Setting

The "Continue selling when out of stock" setting is crucial for preorders to work.

What It Does

This Shopify setting allows customers to purchase products even when inventory is zero. Without it enabled, out-of-stock products show as unavailable and customers cannot add them to cart.

Automatic vs Manual Control

With "Track all products" mode:

• STOQ automatically enables "Continue selling when out of stock" when products go out of stock.
• You don't need to manually manage this setting.

With "Only products with Continue selling enabled" mode:

• You must manually enable "Continue selling when out of stock" in Shopify for each product you want to sell as preorder.
• STOQ only shows the preorder button for products where this setting is already enabled.

Customizing Individual Products

Even with "All products" tracking, you can still customize settings for individual products.

Setting Product-Specific Limits

1. In your offer's Products section, find the product you want to customize.
2. Click on the product to expand its settings.
3. Set quantity limits specific to that product or variant.
4. Save your changes.

Setting Product-Specific Fulfillment

If you're using "Different timeline per product" in your Shipping settings:

1. Find the product in your offer's Products section.
2. Set a specific fulfillment date or timeline for that product.
3. This overrides the default offer timeline for just that product.

When Products Are Added and Removed

Understanding when STOQ adds and removes products from preorder helps you manage your store effectively.

Products Become Preorders When:

• Inventory reaches zero AND "Continue selling when out of stock" is enabled.
• A new product is created with zero inventory and the setting enabled.
• You manually enable "Continue selling when out of stock" on an out-of-stock product.

Products Return to Regular Sale When:

• Inventory is restocked (quantity becomes greater than zero).
• You disable "Continue selling when out of stock" on the product.
• You remove the product from the offer manually.

Best Practices

Follow these recommendations for effective all-products preorder management.

Use Clear, Generic Button Text

• Since the button applies to all products, use text that works universally.
• Good examples: "Preorder", "Preorder Now", "Reserve Yours"
• Avoid product-specific text like "Preorder New Collection"

Set Realistic Fulfillment Timelines

• Consider your typical restocking timeline when setting fulfillment dates.
• If restocking varies by product, use "Different timeline per product" and set specific dates.
• Communicate clearly with customers about expected delivery.

Monitor Your Preorder Reports

• Regularly check Preorders > Reports to see preorder activity.
• Track which products are generating the most preorders.
• Use this data to inform your inventory planning.

Consider Quantity Limits

• Set quantity limits to avoid overselling products you can't fulfill.
• Limits can be set at the offer level or per product/variant.
• Review and adjust limits based on your supply chain capacity.

Paid Feature Note

The "All products" tracking feature is available on paid STOQ plans. If you're on a free plan, you'll see an upgrade prompt when trying to select this option.

Benefits of upgrading include:

• Track unlimited products automatically
• Automatic inventory monitoring
• Hands-off preorder management
• Collection-based tracking options

Known Limitations

The all products tracking feature has some constraints to be aware of.

• "All products" tracking is not available when specific markets are selected. Use "All markets" to enable this option.
• Only one offer can use "All products" tracking at a time. If another offer already uses this, you'll need to use "Specific products" or "Collection" instead.
• "Continue selling when out of stock" must be enabled for preorders to appear. STOQ can enable this automatically only if you choose the "Track all products" mode.
• Products with variants require "Continue selling" enabled on each variant individually for variant-level preorder control.
• Very large catalogs may take a few minutes to fully sync when first enabling all products tracking.

Troubleshooting

If you encounter issues with all products preorders, use this guide to identify and resolve common problems.

FAQs

Q : Can I exclude certain products from all products tracking?

A : The "All products" option tracks your entire catalog. If you need to exclude specific products, consider using "Collection" or "Specific products" instead. Alternatively, ensure "Continue selling when out of stock" is disabled on products you don't want to sell as preorders (when using "Only products with Continue selling enabled" mode).

Q : What happens when I restock a product that was on preorder?

A : When you add inventory to a product, STOQ automatically detects the change. The preorder button disappears and the regular "Add to Cart" button returns. Existing preorders remain in your system and can be fulfilled normally.

Q : Can I have different preorder settings for different products?

A : Yes, even with "All products" tracking, you can customize quantity limits and fulfillment timelines for individual products. However, button text, payment options, and other offer-level settings apply to all products in the offer.

Q : How quickly does STOQ detect inventory changes?

A : STOQ syncs with Shopify regularly to detect inventory changes. Most changes are reflected within a few minutes. For immediate updates, you can manually sync from the STOQ app.

Q : Can I use all products tracking with multiple preorder offers?

A : No, only one offer can use "All products" tracking at a time. If you need different preorder settings for different product groups, create separate offers using "Collection" or "Specific products" for each group.

Q : Will this affect products that are intentionally out of stock (discontinued)?

A : If a product is discontinued and you don't want it available for preorder, disable "Continue selling when out of stock" for that product in Shopify. Alternatively, use "Only products with Continue selling enabled" mode so you have manual control over which products become preorders.

Updated on: 18/02/2026