How do you handle the gap before the first carrier update?

Ask & Offer
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Hi everyone, Ann from the BestTrack team here.

Quick question for merchants with made-to-order products, personalized items, dropshipping, or longer fulfillment times:

What do your customers see before the carrier has the first real tracking update?

I’m asking because this gap can be awkward. The order is being handled, but the tracking page may still look empty. Then customers start asking:

“Has it shipped yet?”

“Why is there no update?”

“Should I cancel?”

Do you usually explain the timeline upfront, send an email, or show some kind of progress note before the first carrier scan?

We recently added custom checkpoints in BestTrack for this situation. The idea is simple: help merchants show real order progress before official carrier updates appear.

I’d love to hear how other stores handle this. Is this a feature you’d actually use, or do you solve it another way?

If you want to try it, you can search “BestTrack” in the Shopify App Store. Feedback is very welcome.

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HI @Ann-Chan

For stores with longer fulfillment times, I’ve found that setting expectations early makes the biggest difference.

A clear order confirmation email explaining the expected processing time, followed by proactive updates like "Order received," "In production," “Quality check,” or “Preparing for shipment,” helps reassure customers that their order is progressing even before the carrier’s first scan. That can significantly reduce “Where is my order?” inquiries.

The idea of custom checkpoints makes sense, especially for made-to-order, personalized, or dropshipped products where there’s often a gap before tracking becomes active. As long as the updates reflect real milestones rather than placeholder statuses, I think many merchants would find that useful.