Nobody starts an online store to answer the same question about shipping times for the fortieth time. Yet that is where the day goes: a helpdesk that fills faster than it empties, listings with missing attributes, returns waiting for a decision, a supplier who has not replied, and a promotion that was meant to go out on Monday. None of it needs the owner. All of it lands on the owner. Here is how a store hands the admin to one point of contact, inside the platforms it already sells on.
The inbox first
Customer messages are the most visible admin and the first to hand over. Your assistant answers emails, chats and marketplace enquiries in Gorgias, Zendesk or Shopify Inbox using your reply templates and your tone, tags and logs each ticket, and flags complaints and unusual cases to you rather than guessing at an answer. Questions about an order are answered from the order itself, with a note left for whoever picks it up next.
Orders, tracking and returns
Once the inbox has a rhythm, the order admin follows. Tracking updates go out, returns are recorded in the store admin, refunds are processed to the rules you set, and anything outside those rules is passed to you with the details already gathered.
- Tracking numbers and delivery updates sent from your store
- Returns logged and refunds processed to your rules
- Address changes and cancellations handled before dispatch
- Chargebacks and disputes prepared with the evidence attached
Listings that are actually finished
A listing with a missing size chart or an empty attribute field costs sales quietly. Your assistant builds and tidies product listings on Shopify, Amazon Seller Central, Etsy or eBay from your product data and photos, keeps titles, descriptions and attributes consistent across channels, and updates stock and pricing when you change them.
Suppliers, 3PLs and the stock sheet
Stock that is wrong online creates cancelled orders and unhappy customers. Your assistant keeps the inventory sheet current, chases suppliers and the 3PL on purchase orders and shipments, and flags the products running low before they run out. You still decide what to reorder; you just stop being the one who notices.
Refunds, returns and promotions run inside your store to the rules you set. We never ask for bank, card or payment processor logins.
Reviews, email and promotions
Review requests go out after delivery, replies are posted in your voice, and the email and SMS campaigns you plan are built and scheduled in Klaviyo or Mailchimp. Discount codes, bundles and sale prices you decide on are set up in the store, banners and collection pages are updated for each promotion, and a short weekly sales summary lands in your inbox.
What to hand over first
Stores that get the most from support hand things over in this order, so each step frees time before the next one starts:
- Customer messages and returns
- Order tracking and delivery updates
- Listing clean-up and new product uploads
- Supplier and 3PL follow-up
- Review replies, email campaigns and promotions
An NDA is signed before any access is shared, you choose the staff permissions in Shopify and your helpdesk, and your point of contact learns your reply templates and refund rules during onboarding. Customer details stay inside your store and helpdesk and are not copied anywhere else.
See e-commerce and retail support
It starts with a free 30-minute call where we go through how your store runs and agree the tasks and the hours. No setup fees, and the hours flex with your season.
Get back to the products
Walk us through how your store runs today and we will suggest what to hand over first, from the inbox to the listings. Request a free call.
