Unlocking SMS magic: Klaviyo's game-changing feature for Shopify Order Updates

Klaviyo recently released the option for Shopify stores to send SMS Order Updates. You might think you're already covered via Shopify notifications or your current SMS flows, but… you're not. 

You used to have the option to set up SMS Transactional messages in Shopify alongside the email messages (Eg. Shipping Confirmation). Now, you only have that option for Order Confirmations, which isn’t as useful as you might think.

This SMS will only trigger if your customer placed their order with their phone number and NO email. In other words, a large majority of your customers will not receive an SMS Order Confirmation message from Shopify even if you have their number.

In order to send SMS updates about customers' orders, you'll need to do it via a third party. We recommend Klaviyo for many reasons, but today, we'll dive into one in particular: the new ability to send order updates EVEN to customers who don't consent to SMS marketing.

This is a huge improvement on Shopify's setup and all other options that require customers to consent to Marketing in order to receive Order and Shipping updates by phone. It's easy to see why some customers might hesitate to opt-in to SMS marketing, yet they might still want essential updates. 

Now that's possible via Klaviyo! (Here’s documentation on how to set this up.)

However, I'm going to walk you through this in two videos to make it as easy as possible. I'll also share a few personal recommendations on how to do this best.

Setting up Order Updates in Klaviyo

First, I want to start by showing you how to set up the SMS Flows in Klaviyo. You'll want to get these ready before you make any updates in Shopify. 

Let me walk you through how to do this.

Setting up Order Updates capture in Shopify 

Now that you’ve set up your SMS flows, let’s talk about how to tweak your Shopify settings to start sending these notifications to customers correctly and legally. 

I walk through it in this short video: 

A few things to note about Order Update SMS: 

• If a customer entered their phone number at checkout for their first order. That order will trigger the Order Update SMS. If they don't input their phone number while placing their next order, they will NOT receive Order Updates. So it's order specific.
• You have the option to set up 8 different Order Updates. One for each of the 8 different Shopify events listed below. But I recommend starting with the three highlighted. Mostly to save on Klaviyo credits (see next bullet), but also so you start small and build from there:
• Placed Order
• Fulfilled Order
• Partially Fulfilled Order
• Refunded Order
• Canceled Order
• Confirmed Shipment
• Delivered Shipment
• Marked Out for Delivery

• These are very important messages. However, they are less about immediate revenue and more about nurturing long-term relationships with your customers. So keep in mind that after launching these notifications your use of Klaviyo SMS credits will go up. 

I hope I've made this sweet and simple for you to set up.

There's still a lot of room for creativity both in your copywriting and in your flow strategies. So if you'd like help taking this up a notch, contact us to chat with a Retention Expert. 


This article was written by Lisa Oberst, Director of Retention at Fuel Made.