A saved reply can help you answer another “When will my order ship?” message. But the customer may be asking about an older purchase, while the reply pulls details from their latest one.
Gorgias macros let you reuse prepared responses. This guide focuses on an agent choosing a macro, checking it and sending the reply. Reuse the wording; check the order, the completed message and the actions each time.
The official documentation was checked on September 12, 2026. The replies and test cases below are fictional examples created by EC AI Lab, not customer records or results from a live store.
Separate the reply, variables and actions
Our Gorgias tags and rules guide covers finding the right conversations. Here, the job starts after an agent opens a ticket.
- Reply textWhat the customer will read. Adjust it to the actual question.
- VariablesThe inserted details. Check their values and any gaps.
- ActionsOperations attached to the reply. Review their targets separately.
Writing “Here's your shipping update” and changing a tag or an order are different jobs. Macros can include operations as well as text. Keep the first one focused on the reply so there's less to inspect. How macros work
Prepare three replies for different order states
The bracketed fields below are manual editing prompts, not Gorgias variables. Replace them with checked information and adapt the wording to your store.
| Reply | Use it when | Check each time |
|---|---|---|
| Shipped | You have verified dispatch and tracking for the item in question | The customer's order reference, item and tracking destination |
| Not shipped | The item is unshipped, its preparation status is known and someone will check the dispatch estimate | The right order, current status and person taking the follow-up |
| Order not identified | The conversation and available order details don't establish which purchase they mean | Information already supplied and what you need next |
Shipped: provide the checked tracking destination
We've confirmed that [item] from order [checked order reference] has shipped. You can follow this shipment here: [tracking destination for this shipment].
Name the item if only part of the order has shipped. If you can't establish the tracking destination, check with the dispatch team before using this version.
Not shipped: state what you know and what you'll check
[Item] from order [checked order reference] hasn't shipped yet. Its current status is [verified preparation status]. I'll check the expected dispatch date with our team.
There's no need to add an unconfirmed arrival promise. Record who will take that follow-up. If preparation status is also unknown, revise the message to match the information you actually have.
Order not identified: ask for the next useful detail
I haven't been able to identify the order you're asking about. Could you share the order number from your confirmation email?
If the customer has already supplied it, investigate rather than asking again. Failing to find an order isn't evidence that no order exists.
Gorgias's template collection also separates shipped, unshipped and order-not-found questions. The wording and checking criteria here are our own examples.
Build the first macro for a manual reply
Owners, Admins and Leads can manage macros. Lite and higher roles can reply to customers. Observers cannot reply; the permissions page allows them to apply macros only when those macros don't send a customer response. User permissions
Store variables need a connected store. If you're starting a new helpdesk, use the official setup guide and decide who will configure it and who will answer tickets.
- Open Workflows → Tools → Macros, then Create macro.
- Give it a clear name, such as “Shipping / Shipped.”
- Add the wording under Response text. Leave tags and order actions out of this first example.
- Select Create macro to save.
See the creation guide for these steps. Use the selectors below the reply box to add variables; {{ticket.customer.firstname}} inserts the customer's first name. Missing source data becomes a blank. Variable reference
Once that reply is checked, prepare the other two with the same naming pattern. Ask a teammate to choose a reply for a sample question before adding more variants.
Before sending: order, message, actions
1. Confirm which order the customer means
For Shopify variables, orders[0] is the latest order and orders[1] the previous one. The documented {{ticket.customer.integrations.shopify.orders[0].id}} is an order ID; don't substitute it for a customer-facing order number. Order variables
When the question is about last month's bag, match the conversation to that purchase. Changing the index alone doesn't establish a match: compare the date and item too.
2. Read the populated message
Look for an empty greeting, missing tracking information, the wrong item or an unedited bracketed prompt. A missing name may only require a natural greeting without a name. Missing shipping information needs checking, rather than a smoother sentence that implies you know it.
3. Inspect what will happen on send
For a reply macro with actions, sending executes those actions. Review Actions performed on send and remove or adjust anything inappropriate. An action-only macro can operate without sending a customer message. Macro actions
Our starter macro contains reply text only. When reusing an existing macro, inspect its actions as well as its wording, including any order cancellation or refund operation.
Test four cases and keep a team note
Prepare test conversations and order information you control. Decide what you expect to check before trying them. This is a test plan; the result cells are intentionally empty.
| Fictional case | Reply and check | Who handles uncertainty? | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tracking for the latest order | Shipped. Match the order, item and tracking destination; confirm no send actions | Dispatch teammate | |
| An older unshipped order; the latest one has shipped | Not shipped. Replace latest-order details with the status and wording for the requested order | Order-checking teammate | |
| Known order, but name or tracking data is missing | Inspect the shipped reply. Fix the greeting; hold an unverified tracking response | Shipping-information owner | |
| The order can't be identified | Order not identified. Read existing details and ask only for the next useful information | Order-checking teammate |
Record what you changed and who took any unresolved check. Inspect send actions in all four cases, even when the order data is right.
A one-page team note can contain five fields: macro name, when to use it, what to edit, who handles uncertainty and who maintains the wording. Agree on those before expanding the library.
Bring your three shipping cases to a demo
If several people share shipping questions and need to review orders alongside their replies, bring three examples with personal details removed to a Gorgias demo. Ask to see how an agent checks an older order, spots missing information and reviews send actions.
For budgeting, our Gorgias pricing guide explains the billing units to examine. First establish whether the workflow fits the checks your team needs to make.
See whether Gorgias fits your businessBook a demoA free trial is availableAsk about the trial length and included features during your demoRequest a Gorgias demo
