Make the Shipping Process Error-Free and Speedier With Automation Rules

The shipping process always consumes a lot of time, as every small detail needs to be verified properly. Overlooking this could ruin the post-purchase experience of customers and result in order returns.

With AfterShip Shipping, you can set automation rules to speed up the shipping process and prevent manual errors.

How to set automation rules in AfterShip Shipping?

It’s very simple!

Note: You can set a maximum of up to 10 rules at the non-Enterprise plan.
Just follow these steps to activate automation rules with no hassle:

Access the Settings of your AfterShip Shipping account
Look for the ‘Automation rules’ option and click on it
After that, tap on the ‘Add rule’ button


Now give your rule a name and choose any of the following options as per your needs:

Apply actions to every order that is imported
Apply actions to orders that meet certain criteria

Scenario 1: When you choose the first option

In this case, you will see ‘Action’ section in which you get different action options like 'Add additional package weight,' 'Select carrier / service / package,' 'Set package size,' 'Set total package weight,' and 'Set ship from location.'

You will see different fields, depending on which action option you've chosen. For eg:


Note: If you select multiple action options, the automation rule will work when all of them are met.

Scenario 2: When you opt for the second option

In this case, you have to take care of two things:

Define the conditions in the second field according to your requirements. Available conditions are:


Note: If you select 'Meet all conditions' option, the automation rule will work when all the defined conditions are met. In the case of 'Meet any condition' option, your automation rule will be triggered as soon as at least 1 condition is met.

Set your preferred actions in the third field to ensure your automation rule produces expected results. Available actions are:


Now click on the ‘Save’ button to finish the procedure.

How will automation rules work?

Go to your Shopify store’s settings
Click on the Shipping and delivery > Manage rates and choose Shipping (Rates provided by app) in the ‘Carrier and app rates’ field

In case you haven’t set your shipping options or don’t know how to do that, make use of this help article.


Hit the ‘Save’ button to finish the process.

Now, whenever a customer chooses your shipping method, details related to Weight, Service, Package, Length, Height, Ship from, etc. will be updated automatically according to your predefined rules.


It will save you precious time and make your life easier.

What would happen in the case of multiple rules with contradicting conditions?

All rules are prioritized based on their ranking. It means if two or more rules contradict each other, the rule present at the top of your list will be applied.

Therefore, please arrange your rules properly and make sure that your defined conditions for them are totally different.

Conditions

All conditions are case insensitive. We now support Rule-based API, please refer to this article for more details.

Conditions available for order import

Condition	How to fill	How to use
Ship to address - city	Input the city in the text box, each on a new line. You can set "is" or "is not"	Apply to the orders that shipping address city matches the value.
Ship to address - country/region	Select the country/region from the list. You can set "is" or "is not"	Apply to the orders that shipping address country/region matches the value.
Ship to address - postal code	Input the postal code in the text box, each on a new line. You can set "is" or "is not"	Apply to the orders that shipping address postal code matches the value.
Store	Shopify stores only. Please find the store URL from the store connection and without ".myshopify.com"	Apply to the orders imported from the specific shopify store.
Requested service type	Shopify stores only. Must be the same value during checkout page of Shipping method, e.g. "Standard", "Expedited". If you're using AfterShip Shipping checkout shipping options, it should be the "Shipping option title" value.	Apply to the orders that matches the checkout shipping method.
No. of items	Input the positive integer.	Apply to the orders that total number meets the condition.
Order item SKU	Input the item SKU, must be the same value of product SKU in eCommerce platform.	If the operator is "is", apply to the orders that include any item that SKU matches; if the operator is "is not", apply to the orders that all item SKU doesn't match.
Order total	Input the positive number.	Apply to the orders that order total amounts meet the condition. If the order currency is different from the condition currency, will always treat don't match the condition.
Package weight	Input the positive number.	Apply to the orders that order package weight meets the condition. If the package weight unit is different from the condition weight unit, AfterShip Shipping will do the auto conversion and check if the condition matches.
Shipping paid	Input the positive number.	Apply to the orders that paid shipping fee meets the condition. If the order currency is different from the condition currency, will always treat don't match the condition.
Custom fields	Input the "Custom field key" and "Custom field value"	Apply to the orders that custom fields key and value pairs matches. Only applicable to orders imported from Commerce API. Only applicable to enterprise plan.

Actions

Actions available for order import

Action	How to fill	How to use
Set carrier/service	Choose type as "Set carrier account and service"	Orders will be auto updated to the selected carrier account and service.
Set package	Set the package type for shipping. It's recommended to always set the package type to speed up the shipping process.	Orders will be auto updated to the selected package type.
Set package size	Set the package size for shipping. It's recommended to setup different package size according to SKU conditions. Alternatively, you can skip this action and set the default package size for all shipments in Settings - Shipping.	Orders will be auto updated to the pre-set package size.
Set package weight	Set the package size for shipping. If not set, the package weight will be auto calculated as the total weight of all items. Alternatively, you can skip this action and set the default package size for all shipments in Settings - Shipping.	Orders will be auto updated to the pre-set package weight.
Add additional package weight	Add the additional package weight for shipping.	Orders will be auto updated to add the additional weight. Note that if you Set package weight = 1lb and Add additional package weight = 0.5lb, the package weight result will be 1.5lb; but if you Add additional package weight = 0.5lb and Set package weight = 1lb, the package weight result will be 1lb.
Set ship from location	Set the ship from location for shipping. If not set, will use the default shipping location.	Orders will be auto updated to the pre-set ship from location.

In case you have any more questions, our chat support team is just a message away.

Updated on: 24/11/2023