Availability and notification
For articles with stock, visitors see a state, but never the number of pieces – a number would be a promise the next buyer can break.
The states
| in stock | enough on hand |
|---|---|
| only a few left | at or below the reorder level |
| currently unavailable | stock 0; with “available again from …” if a date has been entered |
| on order, longer delivery time | sold on without stock |
On the tile the best state of the visible variants counts; in the variant selection “(currently unavailable)” appears at the respective option. Search engines get the same state in the structured data.
In lists and filters
- The product list can put Unavailable last; “on order” counts as available.
- The product filter can offer “Available only”. A product with variants counts as available if one visible variant is; if the visitor filters by an option, exactly that one has to be available.
Notification when back
Logged-in customers see “Notify me when back” at an unavailable article and can unsubscribe again; guests are asked to log in. Once the article is back in stock, one mail “Back in stock: …” goes to the account's address. An hourly cron sends it.
As long as the account's e-mail address is not confirmed, a customer can have at most three notifications open – Contao accepts any address at registration and under “Personal data”, so the shop could be made to write to a stranger's address. A fourth request answers “You already have three notifications open. More are possible as soon as your e-mail address is confirmed.”
Only article, customer, shop, language and date are stored. The request is deleted after sending, as well as with the customer account, and appears in the data access copy. In the stock view you see per article how many are waiting.