Every recipient on tomorrow's delivery routes gets a WhatsApp message at 6 PM with a 2-hour window and buttons to confirm, reschedule or add access notes. Replies update the route sheet, and drivers start the day with confirmed stops and instructions.
Typical results
≈85%
Recipients who reply before the route starts
≈6 hrs/wk
Dispatcher time no longer spent on confirmation calls
6 PM
Window messages sent the evening before
Figures reflect typical results for this kind of automation.
The challenge
Furniture and appliance deliveries need someone at home, and recipients often forget the day or are out when the truck arrives. Dispatchers spend the afternoon calling tomorrow's recipients, reach only some of them, and gate codes or floor details sit in scattered notes. About one stop in ten ends as a failed attempt and a second trip.
Before and after
Failed delivery attempts (% of stops)
−30%Dispatcher hours on confirmation calls per week
−75%Stops with access notes before departure
3.5×The automation
At 6 PM the automation reads tomorrow's stops from the route planning sheet and sends each recipient a WhatsApp message with the 2-hour window and three buttons: confirm, pick another day, or add instructions. Replies update the stop, and rescheduled stops move to the chosen day. Recipients who stay silent get a reminder at 8 AM and then land on the dispatcher's call list with their window and phone number.
How it works
- 01
Tomorrow's stops pulled
At 6 PM the automation reads tomorrow's stops from the route planning sheet, each with a 2-hour delivery window.
- 02
Window sent on WhatsApp
Each recipient gets the window and three buttons: confirm, pick another day, or add instructions such as a gate code or floor.
- 03
Replies update the stop
Confirmations and notes are written on the stop, and rescheduled stops move to the chosen day in the sheet.
- 04
8 AM reminder, then a call
Recipients who have not answered get a reminder at 8 AM, then appear on the dispatcher's call list with their window and phone.
- 05
Drivers start with confirmed stops
Each driver's route shows which stops are confirmed and the notes attached, so less time is lost at closed gates.
Starts from
- Tomorrow's route sheet
- Recipient replies
Delivers
- Confirmed stops with notes
- Rescheduled deliveries
- Dispatcher call list
The impact
Failed delivery attempts fall by about 30% because most recipients confirm or reschedule before the truck leaves. Dispatchers save around 6 hours a week of confirmation calls and phone only the few who never reply, and drivers arrive with gate codes and floor details already on the stop.
Questions about this automation
How are the 2-hour windows calculated?
The windows come from the route planning sheet the dispatcher already uses. Once tomorrow's routes are set, each stop's planned arrival time is rounded into a 2-hour window. If the dispatcher changes a route after the messages go out, the affected recipients receive an updated window.
What happens when a recipient picks another day?
The recipient sees the next available delivery days for their area, based on capacity limits set in the sheet. The chosen day is written to the stop, the stop leaves tomorrow's route, and the change is flagged for the dispatcher so the route can be re-sequenced before drivers load.
Which systems does it need?
The route planning sheet in Google Sheets or an export from the routing tool, a column with each recipient's phone number and a WhatsApp Business number. The flow runs in Make. With replies, rescheduling and a second reminder, this is a multi-step build, usually rolled out in stages, starting with one depot.