Retail Restock Alerts via Scan-Limit Webhooks
How Indian D2C and retail brands pair a scan-limit redirect rule with a webhook so the ops team learns the instant a launch promo runs out and restocking or the next drop needs planning.
The Silent Promo Cutoff
A scan-limit redirect rule (Basic plan and above) is a simple, effective D2C tactic: the first 200 scanners of a packaging or shelf QR code get sent to a launch-discount page, and everyone after that gets the regular product page instead — no reprinting, no manual monitoring required for the switch itself to happen. The gap is what happens next. The rule fires exactly as designed, but nothing tells the ops or inventory team the moment it crosses that threshold, so the actual business follow-through — restocking the discounted batch, briefing the team the offer has ended, or planning the next drop — depends on someone remembering to check the dashboard.
qr.scan_limit_reached: The Event Built for This Exact Moment
SMLLR's Webhooks feature (Pro plan and above) includes an event, qr.scan_limit_reached, that fires exactly once — on the specific scan where a scan-limit rule crosses from its limit URL into its fallback URL, not on every scan afterward. That single, precisely-timed firing is what makes it useful for a retail or D2C ops workflow: it's a genuine crossing signal, not a stream you'd have to filter or deduplicate yourself.
Two Plan Tiers, One Combined Setup
It's worth being clear about the plan requirement, because it spans two tiers: the scan-limit redirect rule itself is a Basic-plan-and-above feature, but receiving a webhook or Slack notification when it fires requires Pro and above. A brand on Basic can run the redirect rule perfectly well — scanners still get routed correctly — but won't get an automatic alert when the threshold crosses; that requires upgrading to Pro (₹4,999/month) to add Webhooks and Slack on top.
What the Alert Looks Like
Routed to Slack, the event posts as a single readable line in whatever channel your ops team already watches: "🚦 QR code Diwali Launch Promo hit its scan limit (200 scans) and switched to its fallback URL." Routed to a generic webhook endpoint instead, the same event arrives as signed JSON — qrCodeId, qrCodeName, scanId, scannedAt, and the relevant redirect-rule details — for a team that wants to feed it into an internal inventory or ops tool rather than a chat channel.
What Ops Teams Actually Do With It
The point of the alert isn't the notification itself — it's what it triggers on the human side:
- **Restock the discounted batch.** If the launch-price allocation was tied to physical stock set aside for early buyers, the crossing is the cue to check what's left and reorder.
- **Swap physical signage.** A shelf display or standee advertising "first 200 get 20% off" needs updating or removing once the promo has actually switched over — the alert is the trigger to do that before a customer scans expecting a discount that's no longer live.
- **Plan the next drop.** For brands running sequential limited batches (a common festival-season tactic), knowing exactly when one batch's threshold crossed is useful data for timing the next one.
- **Brief the sales or support team.** If customer queries reference the promo, whoever handles them should know the moment it's ended rather than finding out from a confused customer.
India D2C Context: Festival and Launch-Day Promos
Scan-limit rules see particularly heavy use around Indian festival seasons and product launches — a "first 500 scans get early-bird festival pricing" packaging code, or a QR code on a limited first print run of a new SKU. These campaigns are time-pressured by nature, and the value of an instant alert scales with how fast the team needs to react — a launch-day promo that sells out its allocation in an hour benefits far more from a real-time Slack ping than a promo that runs for a slow week.
What This Costs
Scan-limit rules are Basic plan and above (₹1,999/month); the webhook or Slack alert on top requires Pro (₹4,999/month), which also includes the full Webhooks suite and up to 10 endpoints per account. For a D2C brand already using SMLLR for QR-driven packaging campaigns, adding the alert is a plan-tier decision, not a new tool to adopt. See the full Webhooks overview for all six event types, or the Slack notifications guide for exact setup steps.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Does qr.scan_limit_reached fire on every scan after the limit, or just once?
Just once — on the specific scan where the rule crosses from its limit URL to its fallback URL. Every scan after that is a normal scan, not a repeated alert.
Can I set up a scan-limit rule without getting an alert when it fires?
Yes. Scan-limit redirect rules work on the Basic plan (₹1,999/month) on their own. The webhook or Slack alert requires upgrading to Pro (₹4,999/month) to add Webhooks and Slack.
What plan do I need for the full setup — rule and alert together?
Pro plan, ₹4,999/month, covers both the scan-limit rule and the webhook/Slack notification when it fires (the rule itself is also available on Basic, but the alert specifically requires Pro).
Does the alert tell me who scanned the code?
No. The payload is QR and scan analytics only — QR name, scan ID, timestamp, and redirect-rule details — never a scanner's name, phone number, or any Lead Hub contact data.
Can the alert go to a generic endpoint instead of Slack?
Yes. A generic webhook endpoint receives the same event as signed JSON (HMAC-SHA256), which a team can feed into their own inventory or ops tooling instead of a chat channel.
Is this useful outside of festival or launch promos?
Yes — any scan-limit rule benefits from the alert, including ongoing tactics like "first 50 scans this month get a referral bonus," where knowing exactly when the batch resets matters just as much as a one-time launch.