How to handle Limited Edition sales - Lottery / Raffle / Lucky Draw

[doublestack]

Hello!

I am a business looking to move to shopify.

A large amount of our sales are for limited edition products and are frequently targeted by scalpers and resellers. 
Typically we conduct sales by "Lottery", where only selected a few winners are able to complete the purchase of the product.

Is there any way for me to conduct sales in this method?
If there is no App, I am not exactly opposed to doing it manually.................

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Additional Notes:

On our current platform we conduct lottery in the following steps.

1. Create a list of products that don't require payment
2. Accept lottery entries in the form of orders from customers for a designated period of time.

3. Export order information 
4. Randomize entries and get list of customers
5. Tag customers with their respective items (limit access from non-winners)
6. Contact customers to pay

Hopefully this helps clarify...

[Elias]

Hello, @doublestack.

Thank you for reaching out and posting this question!

I understand that you're looking for a way to sell limited edition products to customers through a raffling system. I believe the most efficient way to do this is through the use of third-party apps as they come with built-in features that can help you manage the availability of your products for specific customers as well as running and managing your raffles. 

For example, you can try using a combination of apps, such as LockSmith and Raffle or PineRaffle. Locksmith provides the ability to lock/hide your products and you can grant access to customers through a variety of methods, such as customer tags. Raffle or PineRaffle allows you to create raffles to purchase specific products and they also provide built-in email notifications. If you need any help with one of these third-party apps, the app developers are always available to assist you - you can reach out to them directly through the contact information found in the Support section of their app pages. 

That being said, if these apps don't exactly meet what you're after, then you can consider doing some parts manually or explore third-party integrations outside of Shopify. With Shopify's APIs, you can integrate with third-party integrations through private apps. On the other hand, you can also consider hiring a developer to help build a custom solution for your store. If you need help with finding a developer, then please take a look at our directory of certified developers on Shopify Experts. 

I'd love to hear more about your business! Which platform are you migrating from? Was there a particular reason that led to your decision to switch platforms?