Advanced Shipment Tracking for WooCommerce (AST) adds tracking number fields to orders and sends customers tracking information when their order ships. Without it, WooCommerce has no native way to communicate tracking numbers to customers – they have to contact your store to ask, which increases support volume and decreases satisfaction. AST solves this with a straightforward add-on to the standard WooCommerce order workflow.
The Core Problem It Solves
When you mark a WooCommerce order as “Shipped” (Completed), customers receive a generic “Your order is complete” email. They have no tracking number, no carrier link, and no way to know when their package arrives without contacting your support. Every day after dispatch that a customer does not have a tracking number is a potential support ticket asking “where is my order?” Advanced Shipment Tracking adds tracking information to the order and sends it to customers automatically, eliminating the most common post-purchase support request.
Step 1: Install and Configure Carriers
Install AST from WordPress.org (free version). Go to AST -> Settings -> Shipping Providers. The plugin includes a large library of carrier tracking URL templates – enter a tracking number and it generates the correct tracking link for that carrier. Verify your primary carriers are in the list (UPS, FedEx, USPS, Royal Mail, DHL, etc.) and their tracking URLs are current.
For carriers not in the default list, add custom carriers with their tracking URL template. Most carriers use a URL format like https://carrier.com/track?number=TRACKING_NUMBER where the placeholder is replaced by the actual tracking number. Add your carrier’s URL format in AST -> Settings -> Custom Shipping Providers.
Step 2: Add Tracking to Orders
Open any WooCommerce order. AST adds a “Shipment Tracking” section to the order detail page. Click “Add Tracking Number” to add:
- Shipping provider (selected from the carrier list)
- Tracking number
- Ship date
- Whether to notify the customer by email
When you save the tracking information with the customer notification enabled, AST sends an email to the customer containing the tracking number and a direct link to the carrier’s tracking page. The order status can also be automatically changed at this point.
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Step 3: Auto-Complete Orders on Tracking Entry
Configure AST to automatically change the order status to “Completed” when tracking information is added. Go to AST -> Settings -> General. Enable “Automatically Complete Orders”. This removes a manual step – adding tracking and separately marking the order as complete – into a single action. Note: only enable auto-complete if your fulfilment workflow means tracking entry happens after the item is genuinely shipped, not before.
Step 4: Customise the Tracking Email
Go to AST -> Settings -> Emails. The default tracking notification email includes the tracking number and a link. Customise the email content to match your brand voice and add relevant information like estimated delivery time, what to do if there are delivery issues, and a return policy reminder. The email template supports the standard WooCommerce email variables for order details alongside AST’s tracking variables.
Step 5: Customer Tracking Page
AST Pro adds a tracking page on your store where customers can look up their order status by order number or email address without logging in. This self-service tracking reduces the number of “where is my order” support contacts from customers who cannot find the tracking email or who shop as guests. Enable the tracking page in AST Pro settings and link to it from your site’s order status FAQ.