Practical guide

Tell buyers about an update without assuming everyone receives it

Last materially reviewed 2026-09-27

Quick answerA revised file, an eligible email audience and a read notification are separate facts.
What to know

Start with the message purpose

A material correction, an optional improvement and a new-product promotion are not interchangeable messages. Write the purpose before choosing recipients. Keep the explanation specific to the product and change; avoid burying an important correction inside a sales announcement. Consult applicable communication requirements when the distinction matters.

What to know

Know the platform boundary

Payhip documents product-specific update emails and a download-link tag, but its help also explains that consent can exclude some customers from the update audience. Sellfy likewise documents consent-limited product-update emails. Do not describe either system as a guarantee that every historic buyer is notified.

What to know

Use a concise original structure

Our suggested notice has four parts: affected product/version, what changed, what action the buyer should take and where to obtain legitimate help. Use the correct customer-specific delivery mechanism rather than pasting a private link into a public page. Review the message against the actual released file.

What to know

Keep separate evidence

Record that the new package is available and that a permitted notice was sent, without claiming it was read. Provide a clear support route for someone who missed the message. Do not resubscribe opted-out buyers or repeatedly resend a notice merely to make the recipient count look complete.

What to know

An original working example

A fictional notice structure is: “Pattern A, revision1.1: the instruction sequence in section2 has changed. The layout file is unchanged. Replace the instruction document through your legitimate purchase download route. If you cannot access it, contact the seller with your order reference.” Adapt that structure to the real facts and applicable communication rules; do not paste a private link into a public announcement. Record the intended audience and any known limits to the platform’s recipient list. A second channel may require separate permission, so do not assume that an unavailable email route authorises unsolicited messages through social accounts or imported customer lists.

Continue when useful

Next: Keep a revision log that helps old and new buyers

Record what changed, which files changed and who needs the correction; a new date alone is not enough.

Open Keep a revision log that helps old and new buyers →

Sources used for this page

These records support the facts and comparisons above. Merchant-controlled records are labelled so you can separate product claims from independent evidence.

  1. Email updates — Merchant documentation · help.payhip.com · Merchant-controlled · checked 2026-09-27
  2. Sellfy digital products — Merchant documentation · docs.sellfy.com · Merchant-controlled · checked 2026-09-27