An Automation Rule can have one or more Actions. Each Action sets a Shipment attribute, such as the Shipping service that is fastest and least expensive. A Ship Action in an Automation Rule will process the Shipment. See Managing Automation Rules for step-by-step instructions on creating an Automation Rule.
The Actions in a rule are taken if the Order/Shipment matches the specified Filter(s). There are dozens of available Actions, such as:
Set the Shipment Weight, Package Dimensions, type of packaging, or Shipping Service
Compare the time in transit for multiple Services, adn choose the Service that delivers within x business days
Compare the time in transit for multiple Services, and choose the lowest-cost service that delivers within x business days
Rate shop multiple service, and choose the lowest cost option.
Please note the following:
The Order in which Actions are listed in the Automation Rule is important. For example, if an Action sets the Shipment Weight or Shipping Service, that Action should come before an Action that ships the order. Use the arrow button at left of the Action to move it up or down in the list.
Remember to set the needed values before the Action is executed. For example, some Shipping services have options that are specific to that Service. If a Rate or Ship Action is attempted without that value being set, then the Rate or Ship may fail. In some cases, such as a rate-shop, the fail may be silent (for example, one rate operation may fail, leaving the rate shop to choose among the remaining rates).
Before applying an Automation Rule to a large block of orders, test it on two or three test orders to confirm that it works as expected.
Selecting Ground Services in Relation to Actions
Ground services vary depending on whether the destination is residential. Obtaining the best results requires that address verification is enabled for the Carrier account(s). For example, Descartes ShipRush Web will automatically select FedEx Ground or FedEx Home Delivery, as appropriate, if these two conditions are true:
The FedEx account has address verification enabled in SETTINGS.
The Action in the Automation Rule attempts to use FedEx Ground as the default.
Note: Perfect results are not possible in an automated system because the address verification system is not exacting. A percentage of shipments (typically, less than 2%) are incorrectly not flagged as residential by the automated system and are thus billed as residential, later. This is generally the same result attained with manual shipping with address verification enabled.
Examples of Actions in relation to ground services:
Package - Set Package Weight: This Action can be used to set the package weight of all packages in the Shipment or a specific package in the Shipment.
Package - Add Package Weight: This Action can be used to add weight to the package and is only applicable to single parcel Shipments.
Shipment - Set Ship Date: This Action can be used to set the ship date for the future. The Shipment - Set Ship Date Action does not apply to UPS shipments.
Reference Field Merge Codes
In an Automation Rule, merge codes for Reference fields can be used when creating an Action. For example:
In the above graphic, the first column shows the three Set Reference options, which are listed in the dropdown under Package.
The values in the second column, beginning and ending with %, are merge codes. When the Automation Rule is run, the corresponding values are pulled from the Order and entered into the Reference fields. For example, %OrderNumber% would be replaced by the actual Order number.
Listed below are the available merge codes for Reference fields along with explanations, as appropriate.
%OrderNum% |
Order Number |
%OrderDateTime% |
Order placed at Date and Time |
%OrderDate% |
Order Date |
%Total% |
|
%ExternalNum% |
|
%AlternativeOrderNum% |
Varies by e-commerce system. For QuickBooks Desktop, this is the plain invoice or Sa les Order Number. |
%BuyerId% |
|
%ItemID% |
|
%ItemQuantity% |
|
%ItemSKU% |
The SKU value from eBay. If using eBay Selling Manager Pro, Blackthorne, or a similar tool, it populates the eBay SKU field. If not using eBay Selling Manager Pro, it is the Custom Label field. |
%ItemSKUS% |
All SKUs are listed in order. Up to 28 characters of SKUs will fit. If the data does not fit, then AND MORE will be displayed separated by a semicolon. For example: 07555; 18212; 234999; AND MORE |
%ItemSKUSNQTY% |
All SKUs are listed in order with their quantities. Up to 28 characters will fit. If the data does not fit, then AND MORE will be displayed separated by a semicolon. For example: 1x 07555; 3x 18212; AND MORE |
%ItemTitle% |
Item Title/Description |
%ItemTitleLast15% |
Last 15 characters of the item's Title/Description |
%ItemTitleLast1Word% |
Last word of the item's Title/Description |
%ItemTitleLast2Word% |
Last two words of the item's Title/Description |
%ItemTitleLast3Word% |
Last three words of the item's Title/Description |
%Notes% |
Contents of the Order Notes field |
Setting Address Validation
Actions like Ship use the Settings relevant to the Shipping account in use. Therefore, be sure that Address Validation is enabled for FedEx and UPS accounts, so Descartes ShipRush Web can best estimate residential/commercial rates. To enable Address Validation:
Display the UPS or FedEx Settings page (SETTINGS > ACCOUNT SETTINGS; select a UPS or FedEx account).
Under Address Validation, select Validate all USA addresses prior to shipment processing (see graphic, below).
Select additional options, as needed.