--- title: "How to send shipment update emails to preorder customers" description: "Send a one-time email about a new estimated shipping date to customers with unfulfilled orders for one preorder product. Check known issues first. All plans." url: https://docs.ezpreorder.com/notifications/shipment-update-email plan: Free last_verified: 2026-11-11 --- # How to send shipment update emails to preorder customers EZ Preorder & Back In Stock can send a one-time Shipment Update email to customers who ordered a specific preorder product, to tell them its estimated shipping date has changed. Go to **Configuration** → **Notification Settings**, click **Customize** under **Shipment Email Customization**, pick the product and the new date, edit the text, and click **Send**. The email goes to unfulfilled orders from roughly the last 60 days that contain that product. As of November 2026 the email has known issues, listed in this article with workarounds, so read them before you send. **Available on:** All plans (Free, Core, Growth, Professional and Scale). **Where to find it:** EZ PreOrder → **Configuration** → **Notification Settings** (under **General**) → **Shipment Email Customization** → **Customize**. ## Known issues with the shipment update email These problems were confirmed on 11 November 2026. Each one has a workaround in the steps that follow. - **The date is not formatted.** Where the text says `[selected shipping date]`, the email shows a raw timestamp followed by the word "undefined" three times, instead of the date you picked. Workaround: type the date into **Content** yourself. - **Only the first two orders are emailed.** One send stops after the first two matching orders. Workaround: contact the remaining customers another way. - **The cancel order button does not work.** Its link is broken. Workaround: delete the button from **Content**. - **The product row can show the wrong item.** It shows the first item in each customer's order, which is not always the product you picked. Workaround: delete the product row and name the product in your text. - **Subject needs `--`.** If the **Subject** field does not contain `--`, no email is sent. ## Before you start - The product must be on your Preorder List. The product picker only lists products on the list. - Fill in **Reply-to**. If it is empty, no emails are sent. - Decide the wording first. The page does not save your text; each time you open it, it starts again from the default text. ## How to send a shipment update email 1. In EZ PreOrder, go to **Configuration** and click **Notification Settings** under **General**. 2. Under **Shipment Email Customization**, click **Customize**. The page **Customize shipment update email template** opens. 3. Under **Branding**, check **From** (the sender name customers see) and **Reply-to** (where replies go). Both are filled in from your order confirmation email settings. 4. Under **Text**, keep `--` in **Subject**. The default is `Pre-Order Shipping Date Changed -- Order : {{{Order Id}}}`. 5. Pick the new date in **Select Shipement date**. 6. Edit **Content** (up to 320 characters). To work around the known issues: - Replace `[selected shipping date]` with the date written out, for example "The new estimated shipping date is 15 January 2027". - Delete the `{{{productsSection}}}` line and name the product in your text instead. - Delete the "Need to cancel your order? Click here" line and the `{{{ButtonSection}}}` line. 7. Click **Select Pre-order Product**, choose the product in **Select pre-order product**, and click **Select**. 8. Check the **Email Preview**, then click **Send** at the top of the page. A message **Emails Sent** confirms the send started. ## Which customers receive the shipment update email The shipment update email goes to the customer email on each order that: - is **Unfulfilled** in Shopify (partially fulfilled orders are skipped), - was placed within about the last 60 days, the order history EZ Preorder can read, and - contains an item whose product title exactly matches the product you picked, in any variant. The match is by product title, not by preorder status. Customers who bought the same product without a preorder, but whose order is still unfulfilled, also receive it. Because of the known issue, only the first two matching orders are emailed per send. ## What the shipment update email contains - **Inbox subject:** always **Pre-Order Shipping Date Changed**. - **Heading:** the **Subject** text before `--`, with the text after `--` and the order number on the line below. - **Body:** your **Content**, one paragraph per line, in the **Text color** you picked. - **Product row:** where `{{{productsSection}}}` is, the image, name, total and quantity of the first item in the customer's order. - **Button:** where `{{{ButtonSection}}}` is, a button labeled with **Button text**, in **Button color** and **Button label color**. - **Sender:** alerts@ezpreorder.com with the name in **From**. Replies go to **Reply-to**. ## Limitations - **One-time send.** The email is sent immediately when you click **Send**. It cannot be scheduled, and EZ Preorder keeps no record of who received it. - **Text is not saved.** The page starts from the default text every time. - **Recent orders only.** Orders older than about 60 days are not included. - **Title match.** The product is matched by its title, so non-preorder purchases of it are included. - **One language.** The email is sent as written. - **Known issues.** The date, the two-order limit, the cancel button and the product row issues described in this article. ## Troubleshooting **No customer received the email.** The **Emails Sent** message can appear even when nothing was delivered. Check that **Subject** contains `--`, that **Reply-to** is filled in with a valid address, and that you picked a product with **Select Pre-order Product**. Also check that at least one unfulfilled order from the last 60 days contains the product. **Some customers did not get the email.** Each send reaches at most the first two matching orders. Orders that are partially fulfilled or older than about 60 days are not included. Contact the other customers directly; in your Shopify admin, search **Orders** for the product and filter by **Unfulfilled**. **The date in the email reads like a timestamp followed by "undefined".** This is a known issue with `[selected shipping date]`. Type the date into **Content** instead. **Customers cannot cancel with the button.** The button's link is broken. Remove `{{{ButtonSection}}}` and tell customers how to contact you instead. **The email shows a different product than the one I picked.** The product row shows the first item in each order. Remove `{{{productsSection}}}` and name the product in your text. ## Frequently asked questions ### Who receives the shipment update email? Customers whose unfulfilled orders from roughly the last 60 days contain the product you picked, matched by product title. Because of a known issue, a send currently reaches only the first two matching orders. ### Can I schedule the shipment update email? No. It is sent as soon as you click **Send**. ### Is my email text saved for next time? No. The page opens with the default text every time, so keep a copy of your wording. ### Can I send it for several products at once? No. Each send covers one product. Send again for each product. ### Does it only go to customers who preordered? No. It goes to every unfulfilled order containing a product with that title, whether or not the item was bought as a preorder. ### Is this the same as the preorder confirmation email? No. The [preorder confirmation email](https://docs.ezpreorder.com/notifications/preorder-confirmation-email) is sent automatically after each preorder. The shipment update email is sent once, by you, when a shipping date changes. ## Related articles - [How to send preorder confirmation emails to customers](https://docs.ezpreorder.com/notifications/preorder-confirmation-email): the automatic email sent after each preorder. - [How to find and manage preorder orders](https://docs.ezpreorder.com/preorders/find-and-manage-preorder-orders): find the orders for a preorder product in your Shopify admin. - [How to hold preorder fulfillment](https://docs.ezpreorder.com/preorders/hold-preorder-fulfillment): keep preorder orders on hold until stock arrives. - [How preorders work in EZ Preorder](https://docs.ezpreorder.com/getting-started/how-preorders-work): the full preorder lifecycle. - [How to manage your preorder list](https://docs.ezpreorder.com/preorders/manage-your-preorder-list): the products the picker lists.