Enable the COD confirmation stage

Before you start

• WhatsApp is connected.
• You have at least one approved WhatsApp template (category: Utility) with a URL button for the confirmation link. See create your first template.

Turn on the stage

1. Open Lifecycle Stages

   In the OrderPing admin sidebar, click Lifecycle. You’ll see a list of stages with toggles.

2. Find cod_confirmation

   This is the stage that controls the COD flow. It’s separate from the one-way notification stages (shipped, delivered, and so on).

3. Pick your approved template

   Choose the template you approved in Meta. OrderPing will fetch its component structure so you can preview the message with real order data.

4. Map variables

   For each {{1}}, {{2}}, etc. in the template body, map it to an OrderPing field — customer_name, order_number, and so on. See the full variables reference.

5. Configure timeouts

   Set Reminder after hours (default 12) and Confirmation timeout hours (default 24). If the customer hasn’t responded after the timeout, the order is marked expired and tagged COD-Unconfirmed.

6. (Optional) Turn on auto-cancel

   When Auto-cancel is enabled, OrderPing cancels the order in Shopify once the timeout expires. Off by default — many merchants prefer manual review on expired orders.

7. (Optional) Minimum order amount

   Skip the confirmation flow for small orders. Useful if the cost of a WhatsApp conversation isn’t worth it for low-ticket items.

8. Enable

   Flip the stage toggle to On and save. New COD orders will start getting confirmations immediately.

What happens next

When a new COD order comes in (detected via the Shopify orders/create webhook), OrderPing:

1. Checks the payment gateway name to confirm it’s COD. See COD orders not triggering if this fails.
2. Creates an order record with a unique confirmation token.
3. Sends the WhatsApp template with the confirmation URL button wired to that token.
4. Schedules a reminder at reminderAfterHours and a timeout check at confirmationTimeoutHours.
5. Tags the order COD-Confirmed, COD-Cancelled, or COD-Unconfirmed depending on the outcome.