Set alerts that don't spam you

Start with three rules, not a hundred#

On the Alerts page, set the three starters: any of your products out of stock at 20+ stores, any rival going on promo, and any rival cutting its price by 10% or more. Each covers every product in the group, including ones you add later. At Coles, most products have a store or two out on any day, so 20 stores is news, not the usual level.

Narrow by chain and state when one matters more#

If you manage one retailer or one state, use New alert and pick the chain and state, such as "Coles, WA only". The stores counted are the ones there.

Use one-product rules for your biggest lines#

For your biggest products, set "It's out of stock at N+ stores for 2+ days" on the product itself. The suggested number is about 3% of its stores, at least 5 and at most 50.

Raise the bar if it fires too often#

If a rule emails you about things you wouldn't act on, open the product's alerts button (Alert me, or Alerts once it has some) and set a higher number of stores. Setting the same rule again updates your own rule. A colleague's rule stays as it is.

Use rival promos for timing#

"Any rival goes on promo" tells you when to respond. If you watch many rivals and it's too much, narrow it to the chain that matters, or set "A promo starts" on your one or two main rivals instead.

Let Home do the rest#

You don't need an alert for everything. Home shows up to 20 of the last week's changes, newest day first and biggest first within each day, and What changed has the rest. Alerts are for what you'd act on before you next open Home.

Rules each chain can't fire#

A rule is only offered where it can fire. There's no out-of-stock rule at IGA, New World, PAK'nSAVE, Chemist Warehouse or Mitre 10 NZ, or on ALDI's regular range, because their stock isn't read (ALDI's is read for Special Buys only). Chemist Warehouse and Mitre 10 NZ have no dropped-from or added-to-stores rule, and Bunnings and Bunnings NZ have no promo rule. See Alerts.

How alerts stay quiet#

• One line per product, never one per store.
• A rule fires once when it crosses its line, and again only after it's dropped back under.
• Everything that fires overnight comes in one email at 7:00, and nothing comes between 9 pm and 7 am. Each rule emails only the person who set it.