---
title: "Pre-order Strategy: 4 Data-Driven Lessons from $85M in Sales"
slug: "pre-order-strategy-4-data-driven-lessons-from-85m-in-sales"
date: "2025-04-04T05:15:29+00:00"
modified: "2025-04-16T05:00:23+00:00"
author: "admin"
canonical: "https://preproduct.io/pre-order-strategy-4-data-driven-lessons-from-85m-in-sales/"
---

### Intro

> At PreProduct we recently passed one million pre-orders processed for merchants, totalling over $85M USD ([report here](https://preproduct.io/one-million-pre-orders/)). We dug into the data to pull out 4 key lessons to inform your pre-order strategy — things you can actually use to sell more (and smarter).
> Prefer a video? [click here](#lessons-video).

### Lessons

#### **Lesson 1: Ditch the discount**

- **Insight**: 90.4% of pre-orders don’t offer a discount. Turns out, early access is often enough of a hook. The opportunity is to be one of the first to grab the item.
- **Lesson**: Instead of relying on discounts to drive urgency, open the doors earlier. Longer sales windows = more time to capture demand *without* undercutting your price. Bonus: you get to run two launches — one for pre-order, one for general availability

**Source**: [https://preproduct.io/one-million-pre-orders#discounts](https://preproduct.io/one-million-pre-orders#discounts)

![](https://preproduct.io/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/BE4C2D33-E9A1-43A7-94A0-547AC15910C2.png)

#### **Lesson 2: Don’t be afraid to go early**

- **Insight:** The most common stated shipping time range for pre-order is 4 – 5 months from the date of pre-launch
- **Lesson:** Taking pre-orders well in advance is totally doable — especially with charge-later or deposit-based flows. Most customers are happy to wait, as long as expectations are clear.

**Source: [https://preproduct.io/one-million-pre-orders#shipping-timing](https://preproduct.io/one-million-pre-orders#shipping-timing)**

![](https://preproduct.io/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/FE64C994-4129-47F1-B661-67C849C13233.png)

#### **Lesson 3: Whatever the price, as long as it’s above $10**

- **Insight:** Products can do well regardless of price which the partial exception of the $0-10 price range. The $25–$50 range made up 42.7% of orders. But the $250+ range brought in more than 2x the revenue by our estimates.
- **Lesson:** Unless your product is priced under $10, there’s a strong case for running a pre-launch to take pre-orders. Higher price? Consider taking a deposit or charging upfront. Long lead time? consider charging-later pre-orders.

**Source**: [https://preproduct.io/one-million-pre-orders/#pricing](https://preproduct.io/one-million-pre-orders/#pricing)

![](https://preproduct.io/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/85A0C5D3-EC84-4B24-9115-8193D08EFBFA.png)

#### **Lesson 4: Don’t let mixed carts scare you off**

- **Insight:** 62.1% of stores don’t allow buy-now and pre-order items in the same cart — and that’s totally fine.
- **Lesson:** Mixed carts are doable — via [fulfilment holds](https://preproduct.io/docs/fulfilment-holds-for-deferred-charge-pre-orders/) or [conditional line item logic](https://preproduct.io/docs-tag/metafield/) — but they’re not required to get started. Keeping pre-orders in separate orders is often the simplest path early on, and you can always evolve from there.

**Source**: https://preproduct.io/one-million-pre-orders/#mixed-carts

![mixed cart of buy-now / pre-order items](https://preproduct.io/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/E67A758F-4D46-479A-A295-87F4698DBE5F.png)

#### **Bonus insight: Pre-orders aren’t just for startups**

- **Insight:** From what we’ve seen over the last 4 years, more pre-orders come from existing brands than early-stage startups (although there’s plenty of them too).
- **Lesson:** Pre-orders aren’t just a [Kickstarter](https://www.kickstarter.com/) tactic. They’re a flexible tool — whether you’re managing cashflow, gauging demand, or building buzz. Whatever your company size, there’s most likely a way they can provide value.

### **Conclusion**

That’s it — 4 lessons (plus a bonus) from 1 million pre-orders. Hopefully a few ideas in there can help you sell earlier, smarter, and with fewer discounts this year.

If you’re experimenting with pre-orders or planning a launch, feel free to get in touch or click the button below to start a free trial.