A customer comes back to ask about their order
Three weeks ago a customer asked you to order in a book for their daughter's birthday. It was written in the orders notebook with their phone number. The book arrived last week in a box with other stock, went onto the shelf, and sold to someone else on Saturday. The customer comes in on Tuesday to ask whether it has arrived.
The notebook has entries in four different handwritings, some crossed out, some with ticks, and a few that nobody can remember the outcome of.
The request, the order and the delivery are not joined up
A customer order is three separate events: the request at the counter, the order to the supplier or wholesaler, and the delivery. In most shops, each happens in a different place, and nothing connects them.
- Requests are taken by whoever is on the counter and written in a book.
- The supplier order is placed later, sometimes combined with shop stock.
- Deliveries arrive mixed with regular stock and are shelved by habit.
- Customers are called only if someone checks the book against the delivery.
- Deposits taken at the counter are recorded on the till but not linked to the order.
What forgotten customer orders cost
A customer who is let down on a special order, especially for a gift, is unlikely to trust you with the next one. Special orders are often exactly the service that brings people to an independent shop instead of ordering online, so losing that trust costs more than one sale.
Staff time goes on searching the notebook, the stockroom and the supplier emails to work out what happened to an order.
How we build a customer order list
- At the counter, staff enter the request on a tablet or the till screen: customer name, contact details, the item, supplier and any deposit taken.
- Requests waiting to be ordered are listed, so they can be added to the next supplier or wholesaler order, and each is marked as ordered with the date.
- When a delivery is booked in, items that match open customer orders are flagged, so staff put them aside instead of on the shelf.
- The customer is sent a text or email that their item is ready, with your opening hours.
- Orders not collected after a period you set trigger a reminder, and then a note for you to decide.
- Items the supplier cannot provide are flagged, so the customer can be told early and offered an alternative.
| Stage | Notebook | Customer order list |
|---|---|---|
| Request taken | Written by hand | Entered with contact details and deposit |
| Ordered from supplier | Sometimes ticked | Marked with date and supplier |
| Delivery arrives | Shelved with stock | Flagged to put aside |
| Customer told | If someone notices | Text or email sent |
Where your till or wholesaler system already handles customer orders, such as some book trade systems, we connect to it rather than build a second list.
Customer orders afterwards
Every request is visible to everyone on the counter. When the delivery arrives, the right items are put aside with the customer's name, and the customer knows within the hour. When they come in, the item is ready and the deposit is shown.
The notebook is retired, and nobody needs to remember who took which order.
You also see which requests come up again and again. When several customers ask for the same title, toy or range, that is a strong hint to stock it on the shelf, and the list shows it without anyone having to notice the pattern.
Signs your customer orders need this
- Customer orders are written in a notebook by the till.
- Ordered items have been sold to someone else by mistake.
- Customers have come back to ask before you told them.
- Deposits are hard to match to orders.
- You are not sure how many customer orders are open right now.