Order status hotline for retail and ecommerce
Callers asking where their order is get a live answer pulled from your order system mid-call, around the clock. Frontdesk runs it for shoppers.
Trigger
A caller asks about an order, by phone or text.
Built from
Why teams set this up
Where-is-my-order is the most repetitive call your team answers, and the answer is sitting in a system the caller cannot see.
Status calls deflected around the clock
Problem orders caught during the call
Tracking links delivered straight to the phone
How the automation runs
A customer calls Sunday night about a custom order. The AI checks the order system mid-call, reports it shipped Friday with Tuesday delivery, and texts the tracking link. Monday morning, support opens to zero new where-is-it tickets from the weekend.
- 1AI receptionist
The AI matches the caller to their order
- 2API step
A during-call API queries your order system live
- 3AI receptionist
Status, tracking, and the delivery window read back in plain language
- 4Conditional branch
Lost or damaged orders open a ticket on the spot
- 5Outbound SMS
The tracking link follows by text
How retail and ecommerce teams run it
Where-is-my-order calls get live answers from your order system at any hour, with tracking texted.
Synced with your systems
Built from standard Frontdesk blocks
No custom development. Each step is a building block you can rearrange, retime, or extend, so this workflow can grow into the next one.
Retention journeys that include this workflow
This workflow is one step inside larger retention journeys that run the full customer lifecycle.
Customer retention
Combine behavior, sentiment, service history, and conversation data into proactive retention workflows.
See the journey →Churn risk intervention
Route each at-risk customer into a playbook based on value, issue, urgency, and preferred channel.
See the journey →Renewal journey automation
Coordinate education, value review, objections, approvals, offers, and signatures before the deadline.
See the journey →Common questions
How does the order status hotline workflow start?
A caller asks about an order, by phone or text.
Which channels does this use?
This workflow runs over inbound voice, sms. Each step can use the channel that fits the customer and the urgency.
Can my team stay in control of when it fires?
Yes. The trigger can be a field a person flips on a ticket or contact, so a human makes the decision and Frontdesk does the follow-through. Any step can also route to a teammate with the transcript and collected data.
Does it keep our records up to date?
Every call, text, and email in the workflow is logged against the contact and ticket, with transcripts attached. Frontdesk can also sync contacts and fields to your CRM.
What happens when a customer needs a human?
The workflow hands off with context: the right teammate gets the full history, the transcript, and the collected answers, so the customer never repeats themselves.
Which systems does this work with for retail and ecommerce businesses?
Frontdesk can work with HubSpot, Salesforce, Pipedrive, Google Calendar, Outlook, Webhooks, plus API and webhook connections for custom systems, so every conversation lands on the right record.
Thinking bigger than one workflow?
The customer journey library maps full lifecycle automations across activation, onboarding, retention, and growth.
Explore customer journeys →This workflow also runs for any industry.
See the all-industry version →More from orders and deliveries
Status questions answered around the clock and delays announced before customers ask.
Shipping delay notifications
When an order slips, every affected customer hears it from you first, by text, with the new date and an honest apology.
Return authorization automation
An RMA approved field that, once flipped, sends the label, the instructions, and the refund timeline, then chases the package until it ships back.
Back-in-stock callbacks
Out-of-stock disappointment becomes a list, and restocking flips a field that calls everyone on it, in order.