Where is my order? For most stores, it's the single most common support question. Here's how to get fewer of those emails, and answer the rest faster.
Send tracking every time
First, answer the question before it's asked. Add tracking to every fulfillment, so Shopify can send a shipping confirmation with a tracking link, and show progress on the order status page.
- Add a tracking number to every fulfillment
- Shopify emails the shipping confirmation
- The order status page shows progress
Set honest expectations
Second, be honest about timing. Put realistic processing and delivery times on your product pages and your shipping policy. Most of these emails come from an expectation you set, and then missed.
| Vague | Clear |
|---|---|
| Fast shipping! | Ships in 1–2 business days. Delivery in 3–5 business days. |
Look it up first
When the email does come in, look up the order before you reply. Check whether it's fulfilled, read the latest tracking event, and note when it shipped. A reply with real details stops the follow-up email.
- Status: Fulfilled or unfulfilled?
- Tracking: Latest carrier event
- Date: When it shipped, and when it's due
Know when to step in
Then decide when a person needs to step in. A package with no tracking movement for several days, a delivered scan the customer disputes, or any refund request, should go to someone who can make the call.
- Stalled: No tracking update for several days
- Disputed: Marked delivered, customer says no
- Money: Any refund or reship request
Doing this at scale
Reclaim triages each support ticket by intent, sentiment, and urgency, drafts a reply from the real order and tracking, and escalates out-of-policy refunds to a human. One note: today it builds its queue from your recent orders, and doesn't connect to a helpdesk yet. See Reclaim.