Fulfilling Trouble

[CesarR4LG]

I'm new to Shopify and I'm not really understanding the fulfillment process. There's vendors that I bought from and everything went smoothly but I have orders that says fulfilled but I never purchased the order for the customer. It has a UPS tracking number but it says USPS awaiting item. Just kind of stressed about it because I don't want to lose customers. I locked my site so that I won't get more while I figure it out.

[Allan · Accepted solution]

Hey, @CesarR4LG!

Jason here from Shopify Support. Welcome to Shopify and congratulations on the sales so early on!

Great question. Based on the information you had provided, it sounds like you're running a dropshipping store. If so, there are a few pointers on the fulfillment workflow. Let's address your questions one by one to make sure we ease your stress with answers.

There's vendors that I bought from and everything went smoothly but I have orders that says fulfilled but I never purchased the order for the customer. 

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This is part of the Order processing setting that you can change. Go to Shopify admin > Settings > Checkout. Under the Order processing section, in the After an order has been paid box, select Do not automatically fulfill any of the order's line items.

This way, the orders won't get automatically marked as fulfilled automatically when you haven't purchased the order for the customer.

It has a UPS tracking number but it says USPS awaiting item.

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Since you haven't actually fulfilled the order, the tracking information provided to the customer through the email notification is incorrect. The sample link was autogenerated from the app, which usually led to the UPS tracking page with information that wasn't related to this order.

As far as the USPS awaiting items, it's most likely that you had accidentally purchased a USPS shipping label while trying to fulfill the order. If this is the case, here's how you can void a shipping label. After you've voided the shipping label, you can go to the related app to where the products came from and process the order with the correct shipping method and tracking number.

Keep in mind that with dropshipping, it's the vendors who will be fulfilling the orders and providing the tracking numbers for you. You don't need to purchase any shipping labels. That being said, just in case if this isn't the case, feel free to clarify the details of the order. We can troubleshoot together.

I hope this information helps. Should you have any questions, don't hesitate to reply back here and I'd be happy to help out!

All the best,
Jason

[asnader3]

I did the same thing - my settings had "automatically fulfill order's line items" checked off and then my first order came in.  I changed the settings in time for subsequent orders, but for that first order, I am unable to change the order back to "unfulfilled"  AND there is no "void shipping label" option either.  The order shows "shipped" but there is no tracking info I don't think.  What do I do?  Did the order get placed and shipped and sent out by the customer automatically without me ever placing the order for them?  If so, will they get the order?  How do I fix this order!  Please please help!  

[Allan]

Hey, @asnader3!

Jason here from Shopify Support.

Great question. It sounds like you're running a dropshipping store and the first order was automatically marked as fulfilled by the system. If so, this means your order was never properly fulfilled by the vendor. Based on your post, it also looks like you've mistakenly purchased a shipping label. Bear in mind that when you're running a dropshipping store, it's the vendors who are handling and shipping your orders. This is why you won't be needing any shipping labels for the orders. If you've accidentally purchased a shipping label for the first order, here's how you can void this shipping label. 

Once you've voided the shipping label. You're on the right track of fixing this order by switching the order's status to unfulfilled. Here's a great guide on how to cancel a fulfillment. After you have the order back to the unfulfilled status, you can proceed with the normal fulfillment workflow. The updated order information will get sent to the customer as you go. For your reference, here's an example of the supply chain and fulfillment process. In case if you run into any issues during the process, feel free to reach out to this thread or our 24/7 live support channels. We are always here to help. 

Best,

Jason

[asnader3]

Hi Jason,

I already switched my settings so that the orders are not automatically
fulfilled, yes. I have also double checked that I have not purchased a
shipping label as well.

The problem is - for that one order that was placed (before I switched my
"automatically fulfill line order items" settings), I cannot unfulfill it
so that I can manually place the order correctly and proceed. I saw the
info in the links you sent me before I reached out to you, but I'm saying
that I can't do what it says to do in the links....

Specifically, in the "How to Cancel Fulfillment" link, *there is no "Cancel
Fulfillment" button when I click "More" on the order page. *There is only
a "View in Oberlo" button, which just brings the order up in Oberlo....

Once there in Oberlo, the status next to the order displays "shipped".
There is no Ali order number, and the tracking number reads "1". (However,
when I click the dropdown box for "Actions" it does give me the option
"Order Product" - although it does NOT give me the usual "Get Tracking
Code" option above that like it does for my subsequent orders....?)

My guess is that, once the customer submitted the order on my site, and
because I had the Automatically Fulfill Line Order Items" checked off, the
order actually went through my shop portal and then got literally
automatically fulfilled and shipped from the supplier DIRECTLY. Which
would mean:
1. The supplier sent the product without knowing that I'm dropshipping and
without removing all the invoices and branded material (like they would
have done had they known I was dropshipping)
2. The customer will see the difference in what she paid on the invoice,
and the supplier made more money on the transaction
3. Any automated emails about her order will be seen as coming from
AliExpress, probably freaking her out...
4. Absolutley NOTHING about my company will be on anything she receives.
To her, my company didn't exist once she placed the order!

Please please help!

[Allan]

Hey, @asnader3!

Thanks for the detailed reply. In this case, it's best for us to take a closer look at this order in question together. I've sent an authentication email at ticket #14981150. Kindly reply to it with the order number. This way, I can properly authenticate you and start the investigation.

The reason why your guess didn't happen is that no vendor would fulfill an order without payment, even if the system told it to. Since it's important to protect you and your customer's privacy, we need to go through the order via email, chat, or phone, so we can identify the issue and resolve it. 

If the email is taking a little too long and you deem the matter urgent, don't forget that you can reach out to our 24/7 live support as well. We'd be happy to take a closer look for you!

Best,

Jason

[asnader3]

Hi Jason,

Thank you very much for your quick response and assistance on this! (This
has been my first live interaction with Shopify/help/etc, and I’m
thoroughly surprised by your great service! Thank you!)

The order number in Shopify is 1002.
Do you need the checkout number? Or just that?

Thanks again!

[Allan]

Hey, @asnader3!

Thank you so much for the lovely feedback and the order number. The order number is enough information.

Since we're in public forum, to access your admin, I need you to reply to ticket #14981150 from your account owner email first. If you don't see it in the inbox, don't forget to check the spam/junk folder as it sometimes ends up in there. Once you reply to the ticket, I can start investigating and troubleshoot together. Thanks!

Best,

Jason 

[clashcityappare]

Sorry if I'm late to this, but I also have questions.

I have shopify account, and I am using apliiq.com to fulfill potential orders.

I have received one order, but the customer has NOT received the items.

Do I have to order the items myself throught apliiq (I'm using dropship option)?

Then give the customer's address for delivery?

It was my understanding that listing apliiq as the vendor in my store, the orders would be automatically sent to aplliq, who would then

mail the items out to the customer?

I now realise I was wrong!

Can anyone show me exactly HOW to set up my Shopify account to be fulfilled via apliiq?

IF that is even an option!

Cheers.