Connect ShipBob to WhatsApp, Instagram, TikTok and AI Chat
Yes. AeroChat works directly with ShipBob. It reads order status, tracking and stock from ShipBob and writes address changes, cancellations and returns into ShipBob through ShipBob’s API, on WhatsApp, Instagram, web chat and every other channel your customers use.
ShipBob stores your stock in its fulfilment centres, packs your orders and ships them with many carriers. If ShipBob fulfils your orders, AeroChat can answer customers on WhatsApp, Instagram, Messenger, TikTok, Telegram, web chat or email from the order record ShipBob keeps. It connects through ShipBob’s public API. You describe the workflow in your own words, AeroChat builds it, and ShipBob stays the place your team checks.
What you can do with ShipBob and AeroChat
- Answer “has my order shipped?” on WhatsApp. The customer gives their order number, AeroChat finds the order in ShipBob and replies with where it stands: being picked and packed, shipped or delivered.
- Answer “where is my parcel?”. Once the order has shipped, AeroChat reads the carrier, tracking number and tracking link from the ShipBob shipment and sends them in the chat.
- Change the delivery address before it ships. AeroChat collects the new address and updates it on the ShipBob shipment while the order has not left the fulfilment centre.
- Cancel an order before it ships. When the customer changes their mind, AeroChat cancels the order in ShipBob if it is still in a state ShipBob can cancel, and tells the customer straight away.
- Check stock before promising. AeroChat reads your ShipBob inventory levels, so it only tells a customer an item is ready to ship when ShipBob has it on hand.
- Start a return. AeroChat asks which items are coming back and creates a return order in ShipBob linked to the original shipment, so the fulfilment centre knows to expect it.
- Send a chat order to ShipBob to ship. For orders you take and get paid for in chat, AeroChat creates the order in ShipBob with the items and the delivery address, so it is packed and shipped like any other.
What it looks like on WhatsApp
Customer: Hi, has order 30418 shipped yet? (example)
AeroChat: It is being packed at the fulfilment centre now and is due to ship today. Message me here once it has shipped and I’ll send you the tracking link.
In ShipBob: nothing changes. AeroChat read the order and its shipment status and estimated fulfilment date.
Customer: I just moved. Can you send order 30418 to 21 Example Street instead? (example)
AeroChat: Yes, it has not shipped yet. Your order will now go to 21 Example Street, #04-12, Singapore 123456 (example).
In ShipBob: the shipment address on order 30418 is updated before it leaves the fulfilment centre.
Customer: Where is my parcel? Order 30418. (example)
AeroChat: It shipped yesterday with UPS, tracking number 1Z999AA10123456784 (example). You can follow it here: https://www.example.com/tracking/1Z999AA10123456784 (example)
In ShipBob: nothing changes. AeroChat read the carrier, tracking number and tracking link from the shipment.
Works on every chat channel
Your customers message you wherever they already are. The same ShipBob connection and the same workflows run on every channel AeroChat supports, and ShipBob stays the record whichever one they use.
| Channel | What your customers can do |
|---|---|
| Message your WhatsApp Business number to ask if their order has shipped, get tracking, change the address, cancel or start a return. Voice notes are transcribed, so a spoken request works too. | |
| Send the same requests by direct message. A comment on your post can get an automatic reply that moves the conversation to a DM. | |
| Facebook Messenger | Send the same requests to your Facebook Page. Comments on your Page posts can get an automatic reply too. |
| TikTok | Send the same requests by TikTok direct message or TikTok Shop buyer chat. Both arrive in the same TikTok inbox. |
| Telegram | Send the same requests to your business on Telegram. |
| Web chat | Do the same from the chat on your website, without leaving the page. |
| Write to your Gmail or Office 365 address and get the same answer the chat gives. |
How the connection works
AeroChat connects through ShipBob’s public API, documented at developer.shipbob.com. Through it, AeroChat finds orders by your store’s order number, reads their shipments, tracking and inventory, and updates addresses, cancels orders, creates return orders and creates new orders.
- What AeroChat reads from ShipBob: orders and their shipments, shipment status and estimated fulfilment date, carrier, tracking number and tracking link, delivery date, inventory levels and return orders.
- What AeroChat writes to ShipBob: updated shipment addresses, cancelled orders, new return orders linked to the original shipment, and new orders for fulfilment.
To connect, sign in to ShipBob as the account’s main user, go to Integrations, then API Tokens, and choose Generate New Token. ShipBob gives every merchant account a personal access token this way. ShipBob can also send shipment events, such as shipped, delivered or an exception, to a webhook. Where you set that up, AeroChat can pass a status change on to the customer in the conversation they started.
ShipBob picks, packs and ships with the carriers it works with. Fulfilment and shipping stay billed to your own ShipBob account, never to AeroChat. POS Malaysia delivery is built into AeroChat. This page is for businesses whose orders ShipBob already fulfils.
You describe the workflow in your own words, for example “when a customer asks about their order, find it in ShipBob by order number and tell them if it has shipped, with the tracking link if it has”. AeroChat builds the workflow as a draft and asks for the ShipBob token by name. You enter it in the AeroChat dashboard. It never passes through the conversation.
Workflows to copy
Seven ready-made workflows for ShipBob. Copy one into AeroChat, add your ShipBob token, and it runs on every channel.
1. Answer “has my order shipped?”
Copy this into AeroChat
When a customer asks about their order, ask for their order number if you do not have it. Find the order in ShipBob by that order number and read its shipment status. If it is still being processed, say it is being picked and packed and give the expected ship date from ShipBob. If it has shipped, give the carrier and the tracking link. If it is on hold or has an exception, apologise and hand the conversation to our team. Reply in the customer’s language.
2. Answer “where is my parcel?”
Copy this into AeroChat
When a customer asks where their parcel is, find the order in ShipBob by their order number and read its shipments. For each shipment that has shipped, give the carrier, the tracking number and the tracking link in one line. If it shows as delivered, give the delivery date. If the order has not shipped yet, say so and give the expected ship date. Never share another customer’s details.
3. Change the delivery address before it ships
Copy this into AeroChat
When a customer asks to change their delivery address, find the order in ShipBob by order number and check that the shipment has not shipped. Ask for the full new address, including unit number and postal code, and read it back to them to confirm. Then update the shipment address in ShipBob and confirm the change. If the order has already shipped, say so and hand the conversation to our team.
4. Cancel an order before it ships
Copy this into AeroChat
When a customer asks to cancel an order, find it in ShipBob by order number and confirm which order and items they mean. Ask for a short reason. If the order has not shipped, cancel it in ShipBob and tell them the order is cancelled and that our team will process the refund. If ShipBob cannot cancel it because it is already packed or shipped, explain that and offer to start a return once it arrives.
5. Check stock before promising
Copy this into AeroChat
When a customer asks whether an item is in stock or how soon it can ship, check the inventory level for that product in ShipBob. If ShipBob has it on hand, say it is in stock and ready to ship. If it shows zero, say it is out of stock right now and offer to tell our team they are waiting for it. Never give exact stock numbers.
6. Start a return
Copy this into AeroChat
When a customer asks to return something, ask for their order number, which items they want to return and why. Check our return policy in the knowledge base first: if it is outside the 30-day window (example), explain the policy and hand over to the team. Otherwise find the original shipment in ShipBob and create a return order for those items, with our order number as the reference. Give the customer the return details and tell them how to send it back. Say the refund is processed once the return arrives at the fulfilment centre.
7. Send a chat order to ShipBob to ship
Copy this into AeroChat
When a customer orders in chat and the payment is confirmed, create the order in ShipBob with their name, phone number, delivery address, the products and quantities, and our standard shipping method (example). Use our chat order number as the reference. Confirm the order to the customer and tell them they can ask here for tracking once it ships.
Who uses it
Ecommerce brands that hand storage, packing and shipping to ShipBob use it, from apparel and beauty to supplements and subscription boxes. These recipes cover the order and delivery questions they get in chat:
- Fashion stores: order tracking and returns and exchanges.
- Beauty stores: order tracking and restock and subscription questions.
What stays in ShipBob
AeroChat handles the conversation. ShipBob stays the record: your inventory, orders, shipments, carrier labels, receiving and returns processing. Every change AeroChat makes appears in ShipBob like any other, and ShipBob carries out the picking, packing and shipping. Refunds stay with your store and your team.
WhatsApp workflows that use ShipBob
These end-to-end WhatsApp workflows run with ShipBob behind them. See them all in the WhatsApp workflows library.
Questions
Does AeroChat work with ShipBob?
Yes. It connects through ShipBob’s public API with a personal access token you generate in your own ShipBob account. It is not a ShipBob product or listing.
Can customers check their ShipBob order on WhatsApp?
Yes. Customers ask on WhatsApp, Instagram or Messenger and AeroChat replies with the order status, carrier and tracking link from ShipBob.
Do I need a developer?
No. You describe the workflow, AeroChat builds it, and you generate a token in ShipBob and enter it in the dashboard.
Which plan do I need?
On the ShipBob side, every merchant account can generate an API token. On the AeroChat side, workflows via Skills are on every plan. Choose the plan by how many messages you get: Starter covers 500 AI responses a month, Growth 2,000 and Advanced 5,000.
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.
Connect ShipBob to your chat
Paste the order recipe, add your ShipBob token, and message your own number asking whether a recent order has shipped.
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Sign up for an annual plan on Growth or above and we’ll set up your workflows and connect ShipBob for you, free. See plans.
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