What is a pre-sale offer?
A pre-sale offer is a promise you sell before the product exists: a specific thing, delivered on a specific date, for a specific price, paid now. The buyer gets a better price or a guaranteed spot. You get the one signal that compliments, sign-ups and survey answers can never give you: someone moved money from their account to yours.
Tailors, architects and wedding photographers have taken deposits before doing the work for generations. The startup version adds three guardrails that protect both sides: a delivery date in writing, a refund promise, and a hard cap on the number of spots.
When should you use it?
Use a pre-sale when you already know the problem is real and you need to know whether people will pay your price for your version.
- Good fit: courses, coaching packages, done-for-you services, physical products in small batches, templates, local services, B2C apps with a clear first feature.
- Also works for B2B: a pre-paid first month or a setup fee. For bigger deals, a paid pilot or a letter of intent fits better.
- Skip it when you can’t name a delivery date you are confident about, when the product needs certification before sale (medical devices, food in some countries, financial products), or when you have spoken to fewer than 10 people with the problem. Do problem interviews first.
How do you do it, step by step?
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Write down exactly what the buyer gets. One sentence for the result, then a list: format, quantity, length, what is NOT included. “A 6-week live course, 6 calls of 90 minutes, recordings, one template pack” beats “a course on bookkeeping”. If you can’t list it, you can’t sell it.
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Set a delivery date you can hit with a 2-week buffer. Put the date on the offer in plain words: “First session on 12 January. If we slip, you can cancel and get every cent back.” In the United States, the FTC’s Mail, Internet or Telephone Order Merchandise Rule says you need a reasonable basis for any shipping date you state (30 days if you state none), and if you can’t ship on time you must let buyers choose between the delay and a full refund. Build your promise around that standard wherever you sell.
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Decide deposit or full payment. Full payment is the stronger signal. A deposit of 20 to 50% lowers the barrier for expensive items (our rule of thumb: ask for a deposit above about 300 euros, full payment below). Never call a pre-sale a “reservation” if you plan to keep the money.
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Write the refund promise. Our favourite wording: “Full refund, no questions, until the day before delivery starts. Full refund if we miss the date.” In the EU, consumers buying online already have a 14-day right of withdrawal, counted from delivery for goods and from the day the contract is agreed for services. Your promise sits on top of that, never below it.
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Cap the spots and give a real reason. “10 places, because I run the calls live” is honest scarcity. “Only 3 left!” when nobody has bought yet is a lie, and people smell it.
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Set up payment in 20 minutes. A payment link from Stripe or PayPal is enough. Add a one-page description (a one-page offer sheet or a simple landing page) and a sheet to log every ask.
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Ask people directly, one by one. Start with the people you interviewed. Message template:
“Hi Sam, you told me last month that month-end bookkeeping eats your Sunday. I’m opening 10 spots in a 6-week group that fixes exactly that, starting 12 January, 290 euros (420 after launch). Full refund until the day before we start. Want a spot? Here is the link.”
Then stop typing and wait. Log every answer: yes, no, “later”, and the reason.
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Close the window on the date you set. Deliver, or refund everyone the same day. Both outcomes teach you something; ghosting buyers teaches you nothing and burns your name.
What does a worked example look like?
Say Lotte, a hypothetical bookkeeper, wants to sell a group programme that gets freelance designers “tax-ready in 6 weeks”. She has done 14 interviews, and 9 people described the same Sunday-evening receipt panic.
She writes a one-page offer: 6 live calls, a spreadsheet template, a checklist, 290 euros for the pilot group, 10 spots, start date 8 weeks away. Refund promise in bold. She creates a Stripe payment link capped at 10 payments.
Over 9 days she sends 31 personal messages. Results in her log: 6 paid, 4 said “next round”, 12 said no (price came up 7 times), 9 never replied. Six buyers out of 31 asks is 19%, a strong first result, and 4 of the 6 had never met her. On top of that, the “price” objections tell her the full price of 420 euros needs a payment plan. She runs the course, gets 2 testimonials, and opens round 2 with a monthly option.
Which free tools help?
| Tool | What you use it for | Free plan |
|---|---|---|
| Stripe Payment Links | Hosted checkout page, payment cap, refunds | No monthly fee, you pay per transaction |
| PayPal Payment Links | Checkout for buyers who prefer PayPal | No monthly fee, you pay per transaction |
| Google Docs | The offer sheet and refund terms | Yes |
| Google Sheets | Logging every ask, answer and objection | Yes |
What mistakes should you avoid?
- Counting “I’d buy that” as a sale. Only money in the account counts. A friendly yes on a call costs the speaker nothing.
- Selling something vague. “Early access” to an unnamed product gets curious clicks and very few payments. Name the thing and the date.
- Hiding the refund rule. A clear refund promise takes the risk off the buyer, so put it right next to the price.
- Pre-selling to friends only. Friends pay out of kindness. At least half your buyers should be people with no personal reason to support you.
- Missing the date without telling anyone. Write to buyers the moment you know about a delay, offer the refund, and let them choose.
How do you know it worked?
Count two numbers: asks (people who saw the price in a direct message or call) and paid buyers.
Our rule of thumb for warm, one-to-one asks:
- Go: 10% or more of asks pay, and at least half of the buyers are strangers. Build and deliver.
- Adjust: 3 to 10% pay. Read your objection log; the fix sits in price, format or audience.
- Stop or rethink: under 3% after 30 or more direct asks. The problem is real to people, but your offer misses.
Also track refund requests. More than 1 in 5 buyers asking for money back before delivery means the offer promised something people didn’t want.
What should you do next?
If people paid, lock in loyalty with a founding member offer and deliver the first round by hand, like a concierge test. If the asks stalled, widen your reach with a warm network launch before you change the product. Want someone to pressure-test your offer before you send it? The F/MS startup game walks you through validation with an AI co-founder.
FAQ
Is it legal to sell a product that doesn’t exist yet?
Yes, in most countries, as long as you describe it honestly, state a delivery date you can meet, and refund buyers when you can’t. Consumer rules on delivery and withdrawal still apply to pre-orders. Check the rules for your country and product type, especially for food, cosmetics and anything medical.
How many pre-sales do I need before I build?
Our rule of thumb: 5 to 10 paying customers for a service or course, and enough orders to cover your minimum production run for a physical product. The ratio of asks to buyers matters more than the raw count.
Should I give a discount for pre-orders?
A modest early price of 20 to 40% off the planned price is fair, because buyers carry the risk of waiting. Bigger discounts attract bargain hunters and teach you nothing about your real price.
Updated 26 October 2026 · Written by the Fe/male Switch team