New arrivals and back-in-stock posts, the day they land

A delivery is the best content your shop gets all week. Something new is on the shelf, and some of your customers would want to know today. The trouble is timing. The box arrives when you’re busiest, and by the time you’re free to post, the moment has gone.

This page shows how to make those posts quick enough that they actually happen.

What a good new-arrival post says

Keep it to four things:

1. What it is. The name, the maker or the author, in plain words.
2. Why it’s worth a look. One line: where it comes from, what it tastes or feels like, who it’s for.
3. The price, if you’re comfortable sharing it.
4. What to do next. Come in, ask at the counter, or reserve one by message.

A back-in-stock post is even shorter: it’s back, here’s what it is, and roughly how many you have if they tend to sell out. That’s it. Don’t over-explain. The photo does most of the work.

How the Shelf makes this quick

In ShelfSocial, your Shelf is the list of products you sell. You save each product once, with its name, photos, price and whether it’s in stock. You don’t have to type it all in: ShelfSocial can read the label from a photo, and you check the details.

Then, when a product lands for the first time, you make a new arrival post from it. When it sells out and comes back, you make a back in stock post. Either way you start from what’s already saved: pick a look for your kind of shop, tick Post, Story or both, check the caption, and post or schedule it.

New and returning products stand out on your Shelf, so you can see at a glance what’s worth posting. See it on the home page or in the Shelf feature.

Each image is 1 credit. Caption rewrites are free, so you can tweak the wording until it sounds like you.

Caption starters for four kinds of shop

Use these as a starting point. ShelfSocial writes a caption for your shop every time, and you can rewrite it as often as you like.

Boutique and fashion

First look: the linen overshirt just came out of the box, in sand and olive. Sizes S to XL on the rail today. Pop in and try one on.

Back on the rail: the cedar candle you kept asking about. Only a dozen this time, so we’d come in this week.

Gourmet and specialty food

New on the shelf: wildflower honey from a small producer two hours north. Light, floral, very good on toast. $14 a jar.

It’s back. The aged cheddar sold out in four days last month. Fresh wheels arrived this morning.

Books and paper

Just in: a new novel we’ve been waiting for since spring. Signed copies at the counter while they last.

Back in stock: the dot-grid notebooks in all four colours. Ask us to put one aside for you.

Liquor and bottle shops

New on the shelf this week: a small-batch Spanish red. Ask the team what it goes with. Please enjoy responsibly.

Back in: the gift sets everyone asked for last December. A few more on the shelf now. Please enjoy responsibly.

For liquor shops, the caption line “Please enjoy responsibly.” is on by default, and you can switch it off.

A simple routine that works

• When the delivery arrives, set aside the one or two products worth a post. Snap each one by the window.
• Save them to your Shelf with the price. If you’ve sold them before, they’re already there.
• Make the post before you unpack the rest. Or schedule it for when your followers are most active; Instagram Insights shows you when that is.
• When something sells out, mark it out of stock. When it comes back, the post is a few taps away.

You don’t need a content plan for this. Your deliveries are the plan. Each box that comes through the door is a post your customers want to see.

Related

If you post new stock often, it helps to take product photos the same way every time. Our guide to product photos on your phone has five quick rules. For quiet weeks between deliveries, try the 52 post ideas.