In this article, we will discuss Packing Rules and Routing Rules, as well as how to Adjust Rules.

Rule Priority

Rules perform actions in an order based on your desired criteria. There are two types of Rules that customers can set up on their accounts: Packing and Routing Rules.

• Packaging Rules will simply make a suggestion at the packing stage.
• Routing Rules fire upon order creation and will supersede any preceding order characteristic that it may be in conflict with. For instance, a Shipping Method is mapped, but a rule fires calling another Shipping Method. The rule-based Ship Method will take precedence.

Accessing Your Rules

Navigate to your Customer drop-down located in the upper right-hand corner of your screen, directly under your username. Select "Rules" on the drop-down tab:

The example screen below shows an overview of the rules set up on your account. From this page, you can Create New Rules, toggle between the Packing and Routing Rules, or Edit, Delete, Deactivate, Reactivate or find Matching Orders for existing rules on your account.

Packing Rules

Packing rules fire during the packing phase of an order. These appear as recommendations and can be dismissed by warehouse operators. Packing Rules allow you to add promotional or packaging items to an order. This is not designed to add additional merchandise items. If you select, "While Supplies Last", the rule will not be suggested unless there is sufficient inventory available.  

Note: If your item is not designated as a promo or packaging item, you will not be able to add this to a rule. You can check this in the Details tab of your item to designate the item as packaging or promo.

The following is an example of a Packing Rule.

The Packing Rule below is prompting our team to add a promotional wine card to all orders that have an end recipient address within the US. 

Routing Rules

Rules are executed when the order is created or when items are added to or removed from an order based on the prepacked product weight. These rules will only fire successfully once. 

For example, an order with a Rule to Cancel when the Shipping Country is Canada will cancel qualifying orders immediately.  Subsequently, un-canceling will not affect the Rule.  Similarly, an order that is placed with a Shipping Country of the US will not Cancel if the country is later manually changed to Canada.

An example of a Routing Rule would be Pausing any orders that are in Processing with a specific SKU and shipping method.

For instance- Pause any orders in Processing with this SKU: HOODIE-SLEEVE-XXL that are shipping via USPS Priority Mail International.

The rule would look like this:

Adjusting Rules

There may come a time when you need to adjust the rules on your account. We have made these adjustments easy with the following options:

• Edit - Edit the existing criteria.
• Delete - Delete the rule completely.
• De-Activate - Temporarily deactivate the rule.
• Re-Activate - Reactivate any deactivated rules.
• View Matching Orders - View all orders in the system that have been affected by the existing rule.  You can download a CSV of this information if needed.
• Move to Top - Move a rule to the front of your list of rules.
• Move to Bottom - Move the rule to the end of your list of rules.

Note: Rules fire in the order that they appear. If you Move a Rule to the Top or Bottom the system will adjust the priority of other rules accordingly.

Deactivating Vs Deleting Rules

A Deleted Rule is permanently deleted and would require setting the rule up again. If you do not wish to permanently remove a rule, you can Deactivate a rule until it is needed again. The important caveat to note about a Deactivated Rule, is that it needs to be Reactivated Prior to getting orders into the system to allow the rule to function correctly. 

Note: You can see a Deactivated Rule on your account as a greyed-out rule marked as "Inactive"

Filter Nuances

• Important: Rules are exceptions to the standard order flow and could conflict with one another. It is important to monitor your rules to ensure they work properly. Should a rule misfire or cause an unintended result, you should take action immediately to prevent further issues.
• Status is not a recommended filter for most Rules. Since Rules always fire at the same time, Status can prevent Rules from working without adding any benefit.
• Ship Notes filters are looking for exact strings and do not accept comma-separated values.

Related Questions:

What do Rules do?

What are Packaging Rules?

What are Routing Rules?

How do I find what Rules are active in my account?

How do I create a Rule?

How do I adjust a Rule?

How do I deactivate or delete a Rule?