Guide
How to track custom orders in a small shop
To track custom orders in a small shop, keep one list of every active order with the same few stages, a due date on each, and the date it last moved. Sort it by due date, look at it every morning, and tell customers the stage in the same words you use in the list. Late jobs and stuck approvals then show up before the customer calls.
Why one list
Custom orders get lost in the gaps between tools: the order is in an email, the proof is in a text thread, the due date is on a sticky note. One list with every job is the only place where you can see all of them at once and ask "what is late?" and "what is waiting for the customer?"
The steps
- Pick your stages. Use the steps that change what the customer can expect: received, preparation, approval if there is one, production, ready, delivered. Five to eight stages are easier to keep current than fifteen.
- Add every active job. Customer, what is being made, its stage and its due date. A job without a due date is the one that slips.
- Move jobs when they change stage, not at the end of the week. Write the date it moved.
- Sort by due date and look at the top every morning. A job is overdue when its date has passed and it is not finished.
- Look for jobs that have not moved. A job stuck at approval for days needs a nudge to the customer, not more waiting.
- Tell customers the stage in the same words as the list, so "it's in quality check" means the same thing to everyone.
Example
The job tracking template works this way. Its Load example button fills it with the eight print shop jobs below.
| Job | Customer | Stage | Due |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yard signs (25) | Maple Realty | Completed | March 7, 2027 |
| Wedding programs (80) | Lane Family | Awaiting artwork approval | March 8, 2027 (overdue) |
| Team jerseys (18) | Northside Soccer | Ready | March 10, 2027 |
| Appointment cards (1,000) | Oak Street Dental | Quality check | March 11, 2027 |
| Race day T-shirts (120) | Riverside Run Club | Printing | March 14, 2027 |
| Menu boards, set of 3 | Sample Bakery | Awaiting artwork approval | March 16, 2027 |
| Event banners (4) | Harbor Book Fair | Artwork preparation | March 22, 2027 |
| Window decals | Green Leaf Cafe | Order received | — |
This is invented sample data. The businesses and orders do not exist.
On that day one job is overdue: the wedding programs, still waiting for the couple's approval two days after their due date. That is the job to act on first.
Common mistakes
- Too many stages. If a stage rarely changes anything for the customer, merge it with the next one.
- Updating the list once a week. By then it no longer answers the question it exists for.
- Finished jobs left in the list forever. Keep the last stage meaning "done", and remove jobs once they are delivered and paid.
- Different words for the same stage. Pick one name per stage and use it everywhere.
Limits
A sheet like this is for the shop. Customers still have to ask, unless you tell them at each change. A tracking page the customer can open themselves solves that; OrderFlow is building one, and the order tracking demo shows what it looks like.
Use the template
Start your sheet with the job tracking template.
Common questions
How can a small shop let customers check order status?
Keep one list of every order with its current stage and due date, update it when a job moves, and tell the customer the stage in the same words each time. A shared tracking page does this without calls; until you have one, a short message at each stage change works.
What stages should a custom order go through?
The steps that change what the customer can expect: received, design or preparation, approval if there is one, production, ready and delivered. Fewer, clearer stages are easier to keep up to date than many small ones.
How do I keep track of due dates for custom orders?
Write a due date on every order when you take it, sort the list by it, and look each morning at anything due this week or already late. A job is late when its date has passed and it is not finished.