Wishlist: Managing the Back-in-Stock Subscriber List – SHOPLINE Help Center

The Alert subscribers page allows you to view and manage customers who have subscribed to back-in-stock notifications for specific products or variants.

When a customer subscribes to receive an alert for an out-of-stock product, their subscription record is stored on this page. Once the product becomes available again, the system sends a back-in-stock notification based on your email notification settings.

This guide will walk you through the features of the Alert Subscribers page and explain how to view, filter, and manage back-in-stock subscription records.

Accessing the Alert Subscribers Page

To access this page:

From your SHOPLINE admin panel, go to Apps > Wishlist.
Click Alert subscribers.

You will see:

Import and Export options
A search and filter bar at the top
A date range selector
A table listing all subscription records

Understanding the Page Layout and Field Descriptions

The Alert subscribers page consists of the following two main sections.

Search and Filter Area

Located at the top of the page, this section allows you to refine the displayed records using the following tools:

Filter type dropdown: Select the search type, either Product name or Customer email, to determine how the keyword search is applied.
Keyword search field: Enter keywords to search for matching products.
Date range selector: Choose a start and end date to filter subscription records within a selected time period.

Subscriber List Table

The subscriber list table displays detailed information for each back-in-stock subscription record:

Field	Description
Customer email	The email address of the customer who subscribed to the back-in-stock alert.
Email subscription	Indicates whether the customer is subscribed to marketing emails: Subscribed Not subscribed
Subscribed products	The product the customer subscribed to for back-in-stock notifications.
Subscribed variants	The specific variant selected by the customer. If no variant was specified, a dash (-) is displayed.
Subscription frequency	The number of times the customer subscribed to alerts for the same product or variant.
Alert sent	Indicates the status of the back-in-stock alert: Sent Scheduled Paused For detailed information, please refer to the "Understanding Alert Statuses" section below.
Date	The date and time when the subscription was created, displayed in the format YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM.
Actions	Pause or resume notifications for individual subscriptions. The available action depends on the subscription's current status. For more information, refer to "Pausing and Resuming Back-in-Stock Alerts" below.

Understanding Alert Statuses

The Alert sent column indicates the status of each back-in-stock alert subscription.

Scheduled

This status indicates that the subscribed product or variant is currently out of stock. The system will send a back-in-stock alert after the product or variant is restocked.

Note: If the product has been restocked but the status still shows Scheduled, make sure your email notification settings are configured correctly.

Sent

This status indicates that the subscribed product or variant has been restocked, and the subscription has entered the notification process.

Note: Sent does not necessarily mean that the back-in-stock email has already been delivered. The actual delivery time depends on your email notification settings, such as the Notification order or Notification interval. As a result, the status may be updated before the email is sent.

Paused

This status indicates that you (or the system through import) have paused notifications for this subscription. Until you resume notifications, the customer will not receive a back-in-stock alert even if the product is restocked. For more information, refer to "Pausing and Resuming Back-in-Stock Alerts" below.

Pausing and Resuming Back-in-Stock Alerts

You can manually pause a customer's back-in-stock alert subscription, for example, if the customer requests to stop receiving alerts or if the product is scheduled to be discontinued. You can also resume notifications for subscriptions that were previously paused.

Pausing a Single Alert

Only subscriptions with the Scheduled status can be paused.

To pause a single alert:

On the Alert subscribers page, locate the subscription you want to pause.
In the Actions column, click Pause, then click Confirm in the pop-up window.

The subscription status changes to Paused.

Pausing Multiple Alerts

To pause multiple alerts at once:

Select the subscriptions you want to pause.
Click Pause, then click Confirm in the pop-up window.

The selected subscriptions are updated to Paused.

Notes:

If your selection includes subscriptions with a status other than Scheduled, the system skips those records and updates only eligible subscriptions.
After a subscription is paused, the customer will not receive a back-in-stock alert even if the product is restocked, unless you resume the subscription.

Resuming a Single Alert

Only subscriptions with the Paused status can be resumed.

To resume a single alert:

On the Alert subscribers page, locate the subscription you want to resume.
In the Actions column, click Resume, then click Confirm in the pop-up window.

The subscription status changes back to Scheduled.

Resuming Multiple Alerts

To resume multiple alerts at once:

Select the subscriptions you want to resume.
Click Resume, then click Confirm in the pop-up window.

The selected subscriptions are updated to Scheduled.

Notes:

If your selection includes subscriptions with a status other than Paused, the system skips those records and updates only eligible subscriptions.
If the product was restocked while the subscription was paused, the system will not send a back-in-stock alert for that restock after the subscription is resumed. The customer will receive a notification only the next time the product is restocked.

Importing Back-in-Stock Subscribers

This section explains how to bulk import existing back-in-stock subscriber data into your SHOPLINE store. This feature is particularly useful when:

Migrating subscriber data from another platform
Restoring historical subscription records

Importing this data ensures that customers can continue receiving email notifications when their subscribed products are restocked.

Note: Once imported, the data will also be automatically included in your store’s Back-in-Stock Analysis.

Preparing Your Import Data

Before uploading your data, you must format it using the official system template. The system only accepts .xlsx files with a maximum file size of 10MB.

Note: The official import template can be downloaded from the pop-up window during the import process. Refer to the "Importing the Subscriber File" section below for detailed instructions.

Ensure your file meets the following field requirements:

Subscriber Email (Mandatory): The email address must already exist in your store’s customer database.
Product ID & Variant ID (Mandatory): The specified product and variant must exist in your store. Deleted or unpublished items cannot be imported.
Alert Status (Mandatory): Enter either:
- SENT: The customer has already received the notification.
- PENDING: The customer is waiting for a notification.
- SKIPPED: The notification for this subscription has been paused.
The system uses this value to determine whether to send a back-in-stock alert when the product is restocked. If you enter any other value, the import will fail.
Date (Optional): The date the customer subscribed. It must use the YYYY/MM/DD format and cannot be a future date. If left blank, the system will record the time of the file import as the subscription date.

Importing the Subscriber File

Follow these steps to upload your prepared file:

In the Wishlist app, go to the Alert subscribers page and click Import.
In the pop-up window, download the template if you have not prepared your file. Then, follow the guidelines in the "Preparing Your Import File" section to complete the template before uploading it.
Select and upload your completed .xlsx file, then click Import.

Notes:

After uploading the file, the system will display a message indicating that the import is in progress. Large files may take longer to process.
You can navigate to the bulk processing progress page to check the import status.
Once the import is successful, the default subscription frequency for these records will be set to 1.

Troubleshooting Common Import Errors

If your file fails to upload, check the following common issues:

Q: Why did I get a "Duplicate data" error?

The system identifies each record using a unique combination of customer, product ID, and variant ID. If your file contains identical rows, or if the customer is already subscribed to the same product and variant, the duplicate records will be skipped.

Q: Why am I getting an "email does not exist" or "product does not exist" error?

Subscriptions cannot be imported for unregistered customer emails or for products that have been deleted or removed from your active catalog.

Q: Why is my file format rejected?

Ensure that you are using the official template and have not modified the column headers. Changing the column names will cause the upload to fail.

Exporting Back-in-Stock Subscribers

This section explains how to export back-in-stock subscriber data from your SHOPLINE store. Exporting this data is useful for:

Generating reports
Analyzing product demand trends
Conducting external marketing follow-ups
Backing up subscriber records

Exporting Subscriber Data

Follow these steps to export subscriber records:

In the Wishlist app, go to the Alert subscribers page and click Export.
In the pop-up window, select your export range:
- All subscribers: Exports all back-in-stock subscription records in your store.
- Subscribers matching selected time range: Exports only subscribers that fall within the currently selected date range on the page.
Click Export to generate the file. The system will begin processing the export, which may take some time depending on the data volume.
Once the file is ready, click your profile icon, go to the Bulk processing page, and click All records to download it.

Frequently Asked Questions About Back-in-Stock Alert Subscriptions

Q1: What happens if I pause a customer's alert and they subscribe to the same product again?

If a customer subscribes to the same product or variant again while their existing subscription is Paused, SHOPLINE reactivates the existing subscription instead of creating a new one. The subscription status changes back to Scheduled, and the Subscription count increases by one.

Q2: Does pausing a subscription delete the customer's subscription record?

No. Pausing a subscription only changes its status to Paused. The subscription record and its history remain on the Alert subscribers page, and you can resume the subscription at any time.

Best Practices

To effectively manage back-in-stock subscribers and maximize engagement, consider the following recommendations:

Regularly monitor high-demand products: Review subscription records and frequency to identify products with strong demand and prioritize restocking.
Review "Not sent" records after restocking: After restocking a product, review the Alert sent status to ensure notifications have been delivered.
Keep customer email records up to date: Ensure subscriber email addresses exist in your customer database to prevent import errors or failed notifications.
Use date filtering for campaign analysis: Apply the date range filter to evaluate subscription trends during campaigns or seasonal promotions.
Back up subscriber data regularly: Periodically export subscriber records for backup, reporting, or marketing analysis.