Up to 15% of orders were cancelled before shipment but still moved into logistics
How an overlooked stage of the customer journey was identified, cancellation reasons were captured, and the process was redesigned to make losses visible and manageable.
Context
Analysis of low order completion rates revealed an overlooked stage of the customer journey.
Some customers were cancelling their orders before shipment, but these cancellations were not treated as a separate process and were not properly reflected in the analysis.
As a result, some cancelled orders were still being passed into logistics, creating unnecessary costs and distorting order completion metrics.
Some customers were cancelling their orders before shipment, but these cancellations were not treated as a separate process and were not properly reflected in the analysis.
As a result, some cancelled orders were still being passed into logistics, creating unnecessary costs and distorting order completion metrics.
What was done
Separated pre-shipment cancellations into a distinct stage of the customer journey
Redesigned how these cancellations were recorded in CRM
Introduced centralized tracking of cancellation reasons
Added a dedicated cancellation hotline number to customer SMS messages
Redesigned the handoff process to stop cancelled orders before logistics
Created a mechanism for recovering selected orders and bringing customers back into the sales process
How the new system worked
Pre-shipment cancellations became a separate operational flow: customers received a clear way to cancel, the cancellation and its reason were recorded in CRM, and the order could be stopped before entering logistics.
- A dedicated cancellation hotline was introducedThe SMS communication included a dedicated number customers could use to cancel an order before shipment.1
- Cancellations became a separate CRM statusPre-shipment cancellations were no longer buried within the general flow of customer interactions and became visible as a distinct process stage.2
- Cancellation reasons were capturedOperators recorded not only the cancellation itself, but also the underlying reason. The data was collected centrally for further analysis.3
- Cancelled orders could be stopped before logisticsOnce a cancellation was recorded, the order could be removed from the downstream process instead of continuing automatically into fulfilment and delivery.4
- Cancellation analytics became availableThe business gained visibility not only into the volume of pre-shipment cancellations, but also into the reasons behind them.5
- Selected orders could be recoveredWhen the reason for cancellation could be resolved, the team had a mechanism to re-engage the customer and bring the order back into the sales process.6
What changed in the system
A previously invisible stage of the customer journey became a managed process with a clear cancellation channel, CRM tracking, centralized cancellation reasons, and the ability to stop orders before they reached logistics.
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VisibilityPre-shipment cancellations became visible as a separate stage instead of disappearing inside the broader order flow. -
ControlA dedicated CRM status, structured cancellation reasons, and a consistent handling process made the issue operationally manageable. -
Lower avoidable lossesCancelled orders could be stopped before logistics, while selected customers could be re-engaged and some orders recovered.
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