The owner’s decision
An online shop owner wants to automate delivery confirmations so staff can stop checking every order. The storefront’s “complete” label looks like permission to stop following up. If it merely reflects supplier dispatch, customers can receive a reassuring message while their goods are still travelling.
A dispatch becomes a false finish
In this hypothetical example, all figures are assumptions. Before an update, supplier_status is “pending” and delivery_received_at is blank, The supplier changes its status to “dispatched”; a rule marks the website order “complete.” The receipt field stays blank. The rule has substituted a departure event for an arrival event. The order leaves the follow-up queue while arrival remains unverified.
Price two ways to verify arrival
For an eight-week period, assume 40 orders weekly, labour at $24 per hour and a $600 workflow budget.
Full review means checking each order against its delivery receipt: 40 × 5 minutes = 200 minutes weekly. At $24 per hour, that costs $80 weekly, or $640 over eight weeks.
Alternatively, configure receipt-based confirmation for a $240 setup fee paid upfront, plus $20 weekly. Assume five exceptions weekly, each taking four minutes: 20 minutes costs $8. Total cost is $240 + 8 × ($20 + $8) = $464. Choose this option if the receipt rule passes the check below. It fits the budget; full review exceeds it. These are workflow costs, with sales revenue unchanged.
Make an undelivered order stay open
In a test order, leave delivery_received_at blank and apply “dispatched.” Inspect the message and staff queue: no delivery confirmation should be sent, and the order must remain in follow-up. Then supply a receipt matching that order, confirmation should follow. If either check fails, repair the rule before rollout. Treat the status as a claim needing proof; keep missing receipts visible for human follow-up. Retest when the supplier changes its status definitions.
When checking everything still wins
Change the example to ten orders weekly. Full review costs 10 × 5 ÷ 60 × $24 × 8 = $160. Automation costs at least $240 + 8 × $20 = $400 before exceptions. Keep manual review at that volume.