Automate Cash on Delivery Confirmation in Chat
Ask every cash on delivery customer to confirm the order in chat before you pack it. AeroChat sends the confirmation with the items, total and address, reads the customer’s answer, and tags or cancels the order in your store. Customers can also fix the address in the same reply. Only confirmed orders go to packing. It works on WhatsApp and every other channel your customers use.
What the customer asks
Cash on delivery orders come in with no payment behind them. Some have a typo in the address, some are second thoughts, and some are fake. Customers who get a confirmation message reply with things like these.
- “Yes, confirmed.”
- “Please cancel, I ordered twice.”
- “Can you deliver to my office instead?”
- “How much do I pay the courier?”
- “Can I pay online instead?”
Refused parcels cost shipping both ways. See cash on delivery for online sellers and return to origin (RTO).
What AeroChat does, step by step
- A cash on delivery order is created. Your store sends it to AeroChat.
- If the customer opted in to WhatsApp order messages, AeroChat sends your approved template with the items, total, delivery address and two buttons, Confirm and Cancel. On other channels it asks in the open conversation.
- If the customer confirms, AeroChat tags the order “COD confirmed” so it moves to packing.
- If they cancel, it cancels the order and asks one short question about why.
- If they want to change the address, it updates it before packing and reads it back.
- If they would rather pay now, it sends a payment link. When the payment is confirmed, the order is marked paid.
- Orders with no answer stay on hold with a tag your team filters on, so nothing ships unconfirmed.
The systems it uses
- Your store platform. Built in. Shopify, WooCommerce and Wix connect in the AeroChat dashboard. AeroChat reads the order, tags it, updates the address or cancels it.
- Google Sheets for sellers who log orders in a sheet. The status column records the answer.
- Payment, if money changes hands. Airwallex is built in for payment links in the chat, confirmed automatically when the customer pays. No Airwallex account yet? Open one here.
- WhatsApp templates. A message your business starts outside the 24-hour customer service window needs the customer’s opt-in and an approved template. See WhatsApp message templates.
Using a different system? If it has a public API, it connects to AeroChat the same way: describe what you want, paste in its key, and it runs.
Can’t find your tool? Message us in the chat on this page and we’ll tell you how it connects.
What it looks like on WhatsApp
AeroChat: Hi Maya, please confirm your cash on delivery order #3381: 2 cotton tees, total US$32, to 88 Pine Road (example). [Confirm] [Cancel]
Customer: Confirm. But can it go to 90 Pine Road? I typed it wrong.
AeroChat: Thanks, Maya. To confirm: 90 Pine Road, same city and postcode. Is that right?
Customer: Yes.
AeroChat: Done. Your order is confirmed and will go to 90 Pine Road. Please have US$32 ready for the courier.
In your store: order #3381 is tagged “COD confirmed” and the shipping address is updated, with a note of the change.
The recipe
Copy this into AeroChat
When a new cash on delivery order is created, follow these steps.
- If the customer did not opt in to WhatsApp order messages and has no open chat, tag the order “COD call needed” (example) and stop.
- Send our approved template cod_confirm (example) with the order number, items, total and address, and the buttons Confirm and Cancel.
- If they confirm, tag the order “COD confirmed” (example) and tell them the amount to pay the courier.
- If they cancel, cancel the order, ask if they want to tell us why, and add their answer as a note.
- If they ask to change the address before packing, update it and read it back.
- If they want to pay online, send a payment link and mark the order paid once the payment is confirmed.
- If they ask to change items or quantities, hand the conversation to our orders team with the order number.
Never mark an order confirmed unless the customer confirmed it. Reply in the customer’s language.
Use the tag names your packing team already filters on.
Where it runs
This workflow runs the same way on WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook Messenger, TikTok Shop buyer chat, Shopee and Lazada chat, Telegram, your web chat and email. It uses the same store connection and the same rules on every channel, so a customer gets the same answer wherever they ask.
Channel versions: COD confirmation on WhatsApp, and the ready-to-copy WhatsApp COD confirmation templates.
For your store platform: Shopify and WooCommerce.
Related: cash on delivery confirmation in Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines, and reducing failed cash on delivery orders.
Questions
Can I send the confirmation without the customer opting in?
Not on WhatsApp. A message your business starts needs the customer’s opt-in and an approved template. Add a WhatsApp opt-in at checkout and flag the rest for a phone call.
What happens if the customer never replies?
The order stays on hold with the tag you chose, so your team can call or cancel it. AeroChat does not ship or cancel unanswered orders on its own.
Can customers switch to paying online?
Yes. AeroChat sends a payment link in the same chat. When the payment is confirmed, the order is marked paid and no cash is collected at the door.
Which plan do I need?
Workflows via Skills are on every plan, with a 7-day free trial. Plans differ by AI response volume and seats. Payment links and WhatsApp broadcasts are on Growth and above. See plans.
Ship only the orders customers confirm
Start the trial, connect your store and paste the COD recipe. Then place a cash on delivery order of your own and confirm it in chat.
Start your 7-day free trial. No credit card needed.
Sign up for an annual plan on Growth or above and we’ll set up your workflows and connect your store for you, free. See plans.
On Shopify? Install AeroChat from the Shopify App Store.