Bakery Social Media: Pre-Orders, Sell-Outs and Seasons

Short answer

• Write down your real capacity first: how many cakes, boxes or loaves you can make for the date. Every post is built on that number.
• Use a countdown: announce 14 days before, remind at 7, last call at 2, close the list, then post the sell-out or the thank-you.
• Put the pickup date, price, deposit and cut-off in the first line of each post.
• A sell-out post is a sales post: say it is gone, say when the next bake is and how to be first in line.
• Treat "gluten-free", "vegan" and "nut-free" as claims, and follow the allergen labeling rules for packed items where you sell.

Start from capacity, deposits and the cut-off

Before you post anything, decide four numbers and write them in your facts note. They go into every caption in the sequence.

The numbers in this table belong to an invented bakery, shown only to illustrate the layout. Use your own. If your capacity changes, update the posts that quote it, because an out-of-date "a few left" can sell what you no longer have.

The 14-day pre-order countdown

T minus 14 means 14 days before the order cut-off. Adjust the dates to your calendar. Every post carries the same four facts: what, price, cut-off, how to order. These are editorial templates. Replace the brackets.

What to post when you sell out

A sell-out is not a failure to hide. It is information for the next customer. Done honestly, it tells people to order sooner next time. Done badly, it invites accusations of fake scarcity.

• Say it was real. Post the empty tray or the shelf, and the time it went. Do not invent urgency with "only 2 left" if you have 20.
• Say when the next one is. A sell-out with no next step loses the customer.
• Offer a way to be first. A waiting list, a pre-order form or a reminder message.
• Update the old posts. An unedited "available now" post is the most common source of angry messages.
• Use daily sell-outs sparingly. If you sell out every morning, the post that helps is the one about baking more or a larger pre-order window.

Seasons and cut-off dates

Bakeries run on a calendar that is half fixed and half local. Plan the countdown backwards from the pickup date.

Do not state the date of a variable holiday from memory. Check an official calendar for the year, and check the organizer's page for markets and events.

Allergens, claims and local food rules

• US packaged food. Packaged foods must name the food source of each major allergen. The FDA lists nine: milk, eggs, fish, crustacean shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, soybeans and sesame. Sesame was added from 1 January 2023 (FDA).
• UK prepacked-for-direct-sale food. Food packed by the same business that sells it, before the customer orders, needs a full ingredient list with allergens emphasized. This is sometimes called Natasha's Law (FSA page on PPDS). The rule has applied since October 2021, but the FSA page we read did not state the start date, so check the FSA for the current requirement.
• "Gluten-free" and "vegan" are claims. In the US, the FDA defines gluten-free as under 20 parts per million (FDA). If your kitchen handles wheat, say what you can prove. "Made without wheat flour; prepared in a kitchen that also uses wheat."
• Cottage-food and home-bakery rules vary. States, countries and councils have different rules on what a home baker may sell, how it is labeled and whether it can be sold online. We have not covered each place, so check your local authority before you post a price or a pre-order.

Keep an allergen sheet per product, update it every time a recipe changes, and add "allergens checked" to your approval step for every caption.

A shot list for the order cycle

1. 1

   The finished product

   One clean shot per item, side light, plain surface. Add a hand for scale.

2. 2

   The process

   Dough, piping, scoring, glazing. Five-second clips with sound.

3. 3

   The pickup

   A packed box on the counter with the pickup label. Hide names and numbers.

4. 4

   The empty tray

   Take it at close, honestly lit.

5. 5

   The price card

   The menu or board, readable.

Keep a dated folder per drop. A drafting tool such as KeepsPosted can build the countdown captions from your photos and facts, but the capacity number, cut-off and allergen wording are yours to confirm each time.

Common mistakes

• Quoting a capacity or a price in a caption that has changed.
• Leaving a "pre-orders open" post up after the cut-off.
• Inventing scarcity with "last few" when stock is high.
• Calling a product "gluten-free" from a shared kitchen with no proof.
• Showing a customer's name on an order sheet.

For a café that sells by the cup and the slice, see café social media. For a dinner service week, see restaurant social media.

Common questions

Sources

• FDA: Food allergies (checked 10 Nov 2026)
• FDA: FASTER Act, sesame as the ninth major food allergen (checked 10 Nov 2026)
• FDA: Gluten-free means what it says (checked 10 Nov 2026)
• UK Food Standards Agency: introduction to allergen labelling for PPDS food (checked 10 Nov 2026)

Written by the KeepsPosted editorial team from the FDA and Food Standards Agency pages listed above, with AI assistance for drafting and a person reviewing every claim. The countdown is an editorial template, not measured results. The example numbers are fictional. This is general information, not legal advice.