How to Reduce WISMO & Boost Revenue?

Imagine waking up to three missed calls and lots of emails with the same question: “Where’s my order?”

Feels like a scene from a horror movie, but it happens. Nearly 90% of consumers say they want to track their orders, and half blame the brand (not the courier) when things go wrong.

So, if you fail to update your customers properly, WISMO tickets can pile up. And it can affect your present and future business.

The good news? Reducing these queries and boosting revenue is easy. You just need a few tips and a simple piece of software, and you’re ready to go.

We’ll share those here in detail. Plus, we’ll discuss how much WISMO costs your business and why it happens in the first place. 

What Does WISMO Mean? 

WISMO is a shortened term for “Where Is My Order?” It refers to customer inquiries you hear (or receive) about their product delivery status.  

These queries show up in your customer support’s (CS) inboxes as: 

• When will my package arrive? 
• When can I expect my order? 
• Was my order successful? 
• Is my order delayed?
• Any updates on the status of my order?

There are many variations. But it all comes down to your customer wanting reassurance that the product is on the way. 

When you meet that need with a clear and efficient process, you cut down the number of WISMO inquiries and free up your customer service resources.

Why Is WISMO So Expensive? 

WISMO is expensive because it consumes your budget, drains customer service agents’ time, and prevents you from focusing on genuine customer issues.

Let me explain it better with some stats and a little math (promise, I’ll make it easy!)

The (Real) Costs of WISMO On Ecommerce Businesses 

On a typical month, WISMO makes up about 21% of all support tickets. 

Now, imagine an ecommerce store making $50,000/month in revenue. Based on industry data, they’ll receive around 550 support tickets per month. And about 115 WISMO tickets out of that (if we follow the stats above).

But how much do they cost? A 2020 report claims that customer service calls can cost around $5 per interaction.

If we apply that to WISMO, the cost is $575 per month to confirm shipping updates. That’s nearly $7,000 spent a year answering the same question.

We’re only talking about the direct costs here. We didn’t include the hours your team loses and how it affects ecommerce’s bread and butter: customers. 

Example of How WISMO Works

Abigail ordered a watch from your online store as a birthday gift. She’s turning 18 and wants to wear it on her special day, so she placed the order a week in advance. 

You provided a confirmation email (great!), but there’s no tracking link (uh-oh). A few days passed, and she hasn’t gotten any updates from your side.

Abigail finally dared to call your support team to ask about the status of her order. And your team promptly attended to her request.

While that’s great on your part, it won’t erase the days she spent wondering. And that’s enough to make her think that buying from you again isn’t a smart move.

The Statistics Behind Delivery and Post-Purchase Experience

There are many customers like Abigail. 62% of younger shoppers say they’ll switch to a different brand if you don’t meet their delivery expectations. That’s a lot, knowing Gen Zers are the biggest online spenders.  

If you don’t show up in the post-purchase experience, they feel ignored. And when that happens, you risk losing happy customers. 

The same report also mentions that people care more about delivery than pre-purchase experience. Real-time and proactive updates win over product recommendations. 

So, if you’re still sending customers to a generic carrier page while your competitor provides a branded one and keeps them informed, who’s going to secure that second sale? 

(Image from Auctane, 2025)

Common Causes of WISMO Calls 

Ecommerce brands often receive WISMO phone calls due to issues such as vague delivery times, lack of real-time updates, or missing packages. Any time this happens, customers reach out because they feel iffy about the status of their order.

Let’s break down the post-purchase communication gaps and name the common reasons:

• No real-time updates: No messages after the purchase? That’s a red flag for your customer. If they don’t hear anything from you, such as a shipping notice and “out for delivery” update, they might assume something went wrong. 
• Vague delivery timelines: Delivery timelines are a “waiting cushion” for your customers. If you don’t provide them with one, they’ll become nervous (and may have trouble sleeping). 
• Shipping delays: The package didn’t arrive on your promised date. Stuff like bad weather, high order volume, carrier issues, etc., can cause some hiccups. And that’s okay. What’s not is leaving your customers in the dark and not telling them what’s going on.
• Split shipments: Did your customer order multiple products? If only one item arrives and you didn’t inform them that the rest would come in separate packages, don’t be surprised by a follow-up message. 
• Lost packages: Sometimes, it’s an error; other times, it’s theft. In the U.S. alone, package theft affected around 58 million people last year. But whether you know the reason or not, you’ll get a WISMO message if your customer doesn’t receive their order. 

Now that you know how expensive WISMO customer inquiries are and why they happen, let’s talk about reducing WISMO calls and chats.

12 Actionable Tips to Reduce WISMO and Boost Revenue 

1. Offer delivery time estimates

Will your product arrive on June 16? Or will it take five days to reach your customers’ porch? 

If you give accurate and clear delivery time estimates, they won’t have to guess or ask. It’s one small detail that can prevent a WISMO ticket.

Imagine you have a customer named Agnes. She ordered a few skincare items (sunscreen, moisturizer, and cleanser) for her beach trip. Agnes is wondering whether her package will arrive on time. 

She checked her email and saw “arrives by June 14.” Now, she doesn’t have to follow it up and can start packing peacefully. 

Here’s what you can do to provide better delivery time estimates and increase customer satisfaction: 

• Use specific dates (“Expected delivery: July 12”) or date ranges (Arrives in 3-5 business days).
• Display estimates on the product page, cart, checkout, and confirmation email.
• Consider the shipping location and include a small buffer for potential delays. 

2. Build a branded tracking page

Sending your customers to a branded real-time tracking page can provide immediate updates, plus extras like customer data protection and product suggestions.

Of course, you can use free and ready-to-use third-party carrier sites. But they’re plain and boring. There’s no way to inject “your brand” into the customer experience.

If you want to manage customer expectations better, a branded tracking page is the way to go. It allows you to be flexible and keep your customers engaged.

Plus, here are some benefits it offers: 

• Offers a personal touch. A Klaviyo study found that 74% of shoppers expect brands to deliver more personalized experiences. A UPS page won’t win you hearts. But your own tracking page can. 
• Fewer “Where’s my order?” messages. Parcel Panel mentioned that merchants using branded tracking saw a drop of up to 75% in WISMO tickets. Your support team can focus more on higher-value work.

If you’re familiar with HTML and CSS, you can build your own. But you can use a Shopify-friendly app like Parcel Panel to set up your tracking page in less than an hour.

3. Use multiple communication channels

Nowadays, customer preferences vary on where they want to connect with you. And having multi-channel support can give you the upper hand. 

Let’s say you have customers like Ann, Bob, and Cathy. 

• Ann is usually busy (and a bit impatient), so she wants to get answers right away. Phone support works well for customers like her.
• Cathy is an introvert. She doesn’t like talking to anyone, but she wants to know where her package is as soon as possible. Having a tracking page, live chat, or social media support fits her well. 
• Bob is much older and isn’t familiar with social media and chatbots. But he checks and uses his email regularly and knows how to follow up there when he needs something. 

Providing multi-channel communication support through phone, email, live chat, website, and social media allows you to meet where they’re most comfortable. 

4. Monitor carrier performance over time

Your carrier is part of your team. If it is consistently late or fails to update tracking information, it results in WISMO messages (and additional work).

So, how do you catch those patterns before they cost you? The best way is to look at the numbers and performance. 

These are some metrics of the shipping process that you should track: 

• Order Management: Check how long it takes to ship out an order. Are you consistently meeting that window? Also, pay attention to the accuracy of your order.
• Supply: You should also monitor the lead time (the time it takes for the carrier to start moving your shipment). If it’s taking too long, your customers will feel that delay. 
• Inventory: Late shipments can disrupt your inventory tracking, lead to backorders, or cause confusion about what’s available versus what’s still in transit. Keep an eye on how it performs in terms of inventory accuracy and backorder rates.

Pro-tip: Diversify your carrier mix. Working with multiple carriers (instead of one) gives you room to adjust.

UPS isn’t performing well in Canada lately? No problem. You can shift to DHL or Canada Post. FedEx shipping fee too expensive in Europe? Evri can provide more affordable options. 

5. Update your shipping policy

It might not look much, but your shipping policy could lessen WISMO requests. A well-written and transparent shipping policy equals fewer customer service operations and less customer confusion. 

But what does a good one look like? It covers important details like: 

• Delivery timelines
• Processing times
• Shipping costs and options
• Possible delivery delays
• Shipping protection
• Returns and exchange policies

For example, one of our clients has these detailed shipping policies on their order tracking page. So, while waiting, their customers can read and find answers here.

Another thing you have to prepare is updates in case of extreme weather, natural disasters, or strikes. Add a line in your policy that communicates this possible delay. Something like: 

“Due to severe weather near our East Coast hub, some shipments may be delayed by 2–3 business days. We’ll send updates as soon as your package ships.” 

6. Answer WISMO in your FAQ

Your FAQ section can also be useful for the post-purchase experience.

About 69% of buyers say they’d rather solve issues on their own. And more than half search the company’s help page before reaching out to customer service teams. That’s nearly seven out of ten online shoppers.

Imagine how much time your team can save (and how smoother the customer journey would feel) if your FAQ page answers their most common WISMO questions.

Here’s what you need to cover in your FAQ section to keep customers informed.

• When will my order arrive?
• How can I track my package?
• What if my package is delayed or lost?

Lastly, here are some pro tips when creating an FAQ for WISMO questions: 

• Keep the FAQ section easily accessible. Add it to your order tracking page and link it to your email confirmation and updates, as well as your site menu and footer.
• Use friendly and casual language. Jargon is a big no. Keep it as simple as possible so that your customers (of any age) can understand. 
• Update it often. Shipping times, carrier partners, and your policy can change, so make sure your FAQ keeps up. 

7. Auto-reply to WISMO via live chat

With auto-replies, you don’t need a human to answer every single WISMO question.

You can set them up in your live chat, which triggers when someone types “order,” “tracking,” or “delivery.” These auto-responses can link directly to your tracking page.

For example, a customer types “order status” into the chat. Your automated reply can be:

“Hi there! You can track your package here: [tracking link]. Still have questions? Reply “chat with agent,” and we’ll connect you to our support team.”

If you get 150 WISMO chats a month and your team spends two minutes each responding, that’s already a total of five hours.

If you’re paying $18/hour, that’s $90/month for one customer support only. Auto-replies are more affordable. Plus, you can set them up once and use them for about a year with a few adjustments. 

8. Ensure inventory accuracy

Overselling creates serious problems beyond customer service representatives. It forces expensive rush orders from suppliers, breaks your delivery promises, and turns excited customers into frustrated ones who are less likely to return. 

We’ve seen this happen with brands we work with. One DTC skincare brand came to us after their Black Friday promotion went sideways. They oversold by 115 units during their biggest sales weekend. Within two days, their support inbox was packed with WISMO inquiries.

The best solution is to use tools like Shopify’s built-in inventory tracking. It syncs stock levels across locations and sales channels in real time. So, the number that your customer sees is what’s really available. 

9. Simplify return tracking

When online customers can check their return status themselves, they feel in control and stop bothering your support team. (It’s like giving them a window into your warehouse without the actual tour.)

We worked with a home goods brand that was drowning in return-related WISMO emails. The brand was spending 3-4 hours daily just responding to return status inquiries. After implementing a self-serve return portal, the number of emails dropped by 78% in the first month.

10. Use post-purchase emails for upselling

Post-purchase emails are more effective than most people think. And they get opened by about 40% of customers and convert at nearly 1%. (Way better than common marketing emails.)

Some brands use generic “You might also like” emails, but smart ecommerce stores send recommendations based on actual purchase history. That’s what you’d want to do.

If someone buys running shoes, consider sending them athletic socks or a fitness tracker. If they ordered skincare products, recommend complementary items from the same routine. Targeted approaches like this convert better than random product suggestions.

Plus, add time-limited discounts for that chef’s kiss effect. A simple offer, such as “15% off your next order if you purchase within 7 days,” works because it gives customers a reason to act now.

11. Proactively address delivery delays

Most brands wait for customers to complain, then scramble to explain what went wrong. Smart ecommerce stores flip this approach and send delay notifications first. (So much better than playing defense.)

Order tracking software automatically detects delayed shipments by monitoring carrier updates and delivery windows. When a package remains at a location for too long or misses expected delivery dates, good tracking tools flag the issue and send notifications to customers. 

Here’s a pro tip: Use delays to provide discount codes and turn dissatisfied customers into repeat buyers. Something like “Sorry for the wait – here’s 10% off your next order” works well.

12. Incentivize the next purchase post-delivery

Following up after a delivery is one of those low-effort things that can lead to more sales. And we’ve seen it happen firsthand. 

One of our clients, Myvpro, added small incentives after every successful delivery, like review points and loyalty perks. That simple move helped generate over 47,000 new sales and added $35,000+ in retention revenue (all from people who had already purchased once).

If you’re wondering what kinds of post-delivery incentives work, here are a couple of proven ones used by well-known DTC brands:

• Offer a discount code. Glossier sends the code a few days after delivery, typically offering a modest 10-15% discount.
• Give customer loyalty points to build brand loyalty. Sephora uses its Beauty Insider program to reward shoppers with points for every dollar they spend.

ParcelPanel, Your Best WISMO Solution  

If you made it this far, congrats! You already know how WISMO affects your business negatively and also how to reduce it.

The next step is to apply what you’ve learned. You can start with three easy wins:

• Add estimated delivery dates at checkout
• Set up a branded tracking page
• Update your shipping policy

Make it simpler for you with tools like ParcelPanel. We built it to help DTC brands improve their post-purchase experience, minus the stress.

ParcelPanel helps you by providing customers with clear delivery estimates, real-time shipping notifications, and a branded tracking page (100% yours).

You can even integrate it with live chat tools like Gorgias, Willdesk, Zendesk, or Intercom, so your support team doesn’t have to battle WISMO alone.

Try ParcelPanel for free for a better customer experience and a lighter workload for your team.