> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://cntillion.com/docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Shopify customer service automation: orders and returns

> What Shopify shoppers ask, which answers an AI agent can give from live store data, and where a person stays in charge. Set it up on your store.

GuideShopify customer service that answers orders, returns and product questions from live store data.

Shopify customer service automation works when the agent can see what the
shopper is asking about: the product, the cart, the order. This guide covers
the questions a store gets, how an AI agent answers them from live data, what
to keep for a person, and how to set it up with Centillion.

## What shoppers ask a store

Store support is narrow and repetitive, which is why it suits an agent. Most
messages fall into a handful of groups:

* **Before buying.** Does this come in another size, is it in stock, what is
  the difference between two products, how long does shipping take.
* **The cart.** Add this, remove that, change the quantity, where do I pay.
* **After buying.** Where is my order, what is the tracking number, has it
  shipped.
* **Returns and exchanges.** Can I send it back, can I get a different size,
  when do I get my money.
* **The account.** Change my email or phone, update my address, I cannot log
  in.

The first group is about your catalogue and policies. The other groups are
about one shopper's data, and that is where most support bots stop: they can
link the returns policy page but cannot tell the shopper whether their own
order qualifies.

## How an agent answers from live data

An agent becomes useful in a store when it has two kinds of input. The first
is knowledge: your shipping policy, your returns policy, your size guides. The
second is tools that read and change store data through the store's API.

An order question then runs like this. The shopper asks where their order is.
The agent asks for what it needs to find the order, looks it up, and replies
with the status and tracking it found. A return follows the same pattern with
more checks: was the item delivered, is it inside the return window, how many
units can still go back. When everything checks out, the agent asks the
shopper to confirm and processes the return.

The same applies before buying. Product search with live prices and stock
avoids the classic failure where a bot recommends something that sold out last
week.

## What to watch for

**Identity before order data.** An order number on its own is not proof that
the person asking placed the order. Require a second detail that only the
buyer has, such as the checkout email or phone, or a signed-in customer
account, before showing anything about an order.

**Confirmation before changes.** Any change to an order, a return, an address
or a profile should wait for an explicit yes from the shopper. This is where
a misread message turns into a real cost.

**Your return policy, written down.** An agent applies the rules you give it.
If your return window, your exchange rules and your exceptions live only in
someone's head, write them down first. Decide which cases the agent may settle
and which go to a person.

**Uncertain results.** Store APIs sometimes accept a change without confirming
it in time. A retry in that state can create a duplicate. Check the order
before trying again.

**Exceptions stay with people.** A damaged parcel, a gift that went to the
wrong address, a customer who wants an exception to your policy. Hand these to
your team with the conversation attached, so a person takes over from the
[helpdesk inbox](https://cntillion.com/docs/helpdesk.md) without asking the shopper to start again.

**Questions you can prevent.** Many "where is my order" messages come from
shoppers who never got a clear shipping update. Shipping notifications from
your store cut those at the source; the agent then handles the shoppers who
still have a question.

## Set it up with Centillion

[Centillion](https://cntillion.com/docs/introduction.md) connects one Shopify store to one agent. The agent
answers in a chat bubble on your storefront, searches products, updates the
shopper's cart, shows order status and tracking, and processes eligible
returns. The full reference is the [Shopify page](https://cntillion.com/docs/channels/shopify.md).

You need a workspace administrator, a plan with integrations (Hobby and up),
the store's original `myshopify.com` domain and permission to edit the theme.
Exchanges for a new order also need Helpdesk, which comes with Standard and
up.

**1. Open Shopify setup**

Open the agent's **Channels → Install → Shopify**. The same Install menu
is available in **Playground → Chat bubble**, and the Shopify card on
**Channels** also opens setup.

![Install menu on Channels with the Shopify entry reading Add the chat bubble to your Shopify storefront](https://mintcdn.com/centillion/WLpDA0mJ1ryQ1IZ5/images/channels/shopify-01-deploy-menu.webp?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=WLpDA0mJ1ryQ1IZ5\&q=85\&s=877cf939ff28a8ee02fcb48726775fce)

Channels, Install: the Shopify entry adds the chat bubble to your storefront.

**2. Connect the store**

Enter the store's original `myshopify.com` domain, choose **Connect
Shopify**, authorise the Centillion Labs app, and return to the dashboard.
Turn on **Shopify enabled**.

**3. Enable the app embed**

Choose **Open theme editor**, enable **Centillion chat** in **App embeds**
and save the theme. There is no theme code to edit.

**4. Enable the tools you want**

Open **Tools → Add tool → New tool → Integration**, select **Shopify**, and enable the
tools one by one: product search, cart, orders, returns and exchanges,
profile and address. For each, say when the agent should use it and on
which channels. Each enabled tool counts toward your plan's limit per
agent: five on Hobby, eight on Standard and twelve on Pro.

**5. Give it your policies**

Add your shipping and returns pages under **Knowledge base → Data
sources**. Use the store's sitemap to avoid importing duplicate navigation
and collection pages.

**6. Test on the live storefront**

Ask about a product, add it to the cart from the chat, and check the
store's cart page. Sign in to a customer account to test profile, address
and order-tag changes; the Playground does not have that store session.

What the agent does once it is live:

* **Order status.** A guest gives the exact order number and the checkout
  email or phone. A signed-in customer sees their own recent orders, inside
  Shopify's standard recent-order window of 60 days.
* **Returns.** The same-order return checks delivered items and the return
  window you configure, then processes an eligible return against the original
  payment.
* **Exchanges for a new order.** These open a Helpdesk request, and an
  administrator approves or rejects each one under **Channels**, **Shopify**.
* **Confirmation.** The agent asks the shopper to confirm before any order,
  return, exchange, profile or address change.
* **Uncertain results.** An uncertain result means Shopify may have accepted
  the change. Check the record and the actual order or cart before retrying,
  to avoid a duplicate.

## Questions

### Can the agent tell a guest where their order is?

Yes, when the guest gives the exact order number and the checkout email or
phone. Signed-in customers can see their own recent orders without that step.

### Can the agent issue refunds?

The same-order return tool checks delivery, the return window and the
returnable quantities, then processes an eligible return against the original
payment. Exchanges for a new order wait for an administrator's approval.

### Does the agent know my products?

Product search reads your published products with live prices and
availability, and shows product cards with variant choices. Search is text
only; image search is not available.

### Do I need to edit my theme code?

No. You enable **Centillion chat** in the theme editor's **App embeds** and
save the theme.

### Can I answer Shopify questions on WhatsApp or email too?

The same agent answers on your other channels with the same knowledge. On
WhatsApp, Instagram, Messenger, SMS, email and Slack, procedures that use
Shopify tools are skipped, so test what you need on each channel.

## Try it

Connect your store, enable the app embed and two or three tools, and ask the
chat about a recent test order. Then try a return on an order that is outside
your window and check that the agent declines it.

> [card] [Start free](https://app.cntillion.com/sign-up?utm_source=docs\&utm_medium=article\&utm_campaign=guides-shopify-ai-support)
>
> Connecting Shopify needs Hobby or above. Take a seven-day trial of a paid plan to try it on your store.

> [card] [Book a demo](https://cal.com/patrick-turricelli-smgfks/15min?utm_source=docs\&utm_medium=article\&utm_campaign=guides-shopify-ai-support)
>
> Fifteen minutes with the team, on your own use case.

Or ask the assistant on this page.

## Related

> [card] [Shopify](https://cntillion.com/docs/channels/shopify.md)
>
> Connect the store, enable the app embed, and every Shopify tool.

> [card] [Chatbot vs AI agent](https://cntillion.com/docs/guides/chatbot-vs-ai-agent.md)
>
> Why an agent that acts needs written rules and a way out.

> [card] [Custom tools](https://cntillion.com/docs/agents/custom-actions.md)
>
> Connect your own systems, such as a returns portal or a carrier API.


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