Setting Up Promotions for Inactive Products Before Launch
When you plan a product launch, you can add a product to a promotion while the product is still inactive, so the promotion is ready the moment the product goes on sale. For example, you can set a purchase limit on a limited-quantity handmade item, or prepare a pre-order activity for a product that will switch to pre-order once its initial stock sells out.
This guide explains which promotions support inactive products, how to select or import them, and when the promotion takes effect.
Promotions That Support Inactive Products
You can choose inactive products in the following promotions:
| Promotion | Ways to add inactive products | Related guide |
| Discount codes and automatic discounts | Select products or variants | Guide to Creating Discount Campaigns |
| Flash Sales | Select products or variants, or import products | Flash Sales: Setting Up Flash Sales |
| Pre-order | Select products or variants, or import products | Pre-order: Setting Up Pre-order Activities |
| Gift Offer | Select products | Gift Offer: Free Gift Campaign Management and Display |
| Product Upsell & Add-ons | Select main products, add-on products, gift box products, and after-sales promotion products | Product Upsell & Add-ons Guides |
Preparing a Product and Its Promotion Before Launch
To get a product and its promotion ready before the product goes on sale:
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Create a product and schedule its launch date and time to ensure it becomes available at the specified time.
Note: To schedule a product launch, you must enable the Activate toggle and set the launch time. If the toggle is disabled, the product won't be activated automatically at the scheduled time.
- Go to Discounts to create an automatic discount or discount code, or use a promotion app, such as Flash Sales or Pre-order, to create a promotion.
- Add the inactive product to the promotion by selecting it from the product list or importing it. For details, see the sections below.
- Set the promotion’s start time to match the product’s launch time, then complete the other promotion settings.
- Save the promotion.
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Example: You plan to launch a handmade bag at 10:00 AM on Friday.
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Selecting Inactive Products in a Promotion
To select an inactive product for a promotion:
- In the promotion’s product section, click the button to select products, for example, Select products.
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In the product selection window, find the product you want. Inactive products appear in the list with an Inactive status tag.
- Select the product or variants, then confirm your selection.
After you add an inactive product, the following applies on the promotion’s edit and details pages:
- Product stays in the list: The inactive product is shown with the other selected products, along with its current status.
- No effect on saving: You can create, save, and enable the promotion even if some selected products are inactive.
Importing Inactive Products into Flash Sales and Pre-order Activities
In Flash Sales and Pre-order, you can also add products by importing a file. Inactive products in the file are imported in the same way as active products.
An error appears only if a product in the file doesn’t exist in your store, for example, because of an incorrect product ID. In this case, you’ll see the message Product SPU ID does not exist. Check the product ID in your file, then import the file again.
When a Promotion Takes Effect for an Inactive Product
Adding an inactive product to a promotion doesn’t change when customers can buy it. The promotion applies only when all of the following are true:
- The product is available for sale: The product is active and can be purchased in your store.
- The promotion is running: The promotion is enabled and within its active period.
- Other promotion conditions are met: The product meets any other conditions the promotion already requires.
| Note: Adding a product to a promotion doesn’t activate the product. Make sure the product is scheduled to go on sale, or activate it manually, so customers can buy it at launch. |
Frequently Asked Questions About Promotions for Inactive Products
Q1: Can customers see the promotion before the product is active?
No. Inactive products aren’t sold in your store, so customers can’t buy the product or get the promotion until the product is active.
Q2: Do I need to temporarily activate or hide a product to add it to a promotion?
No. You can add the product to the promotion while it’s inactive. You don’t need to activate it early or use the Hide Product app as a workaround.
Q3: What happens if I deactivate a product that’s already in a running promotion?
The product stays in the promotion, but the promotion doesn’t apply to it while it’s inactive. The promotion applies again once the product is active and the promotion is still running.