Documentation: Order Distribution for Woo

Welcome to the official documentation for Order Distribution for Woo. This guide will walk you through the setup, configuration, and daily usage of the plugin so you can streamline your order fulfillment process.

1. Installation and Activation

  1. Download the plugin ZIP file.
  2. Log in to your WordPress Admin dashboard.
  3. Navigate to Plugins > Add New and click Upload Plugin.
  4. Choose the downloaded ZIP file and click Install Now.
  5. Once installed, click Activate. (Note: WooCommerce must be installed and active on your site for this plugin to work.)

2. Configuring Plugin Settings

After activation, a new settings tab is added to your WooCommerce settings. Go to WooCommerce > Settings and click on the Order Distribution tab.

  • Enable Distribution: Check this box to turn on the plugin’s core features.
  • Default Status: Choose the status an order should receive when a distributor accepts it (default is Assigned).
  • Email Notifications: Choose whether all distributors should receive an email automatically when a new order is placed. You can also specify an additional custom notification email.
  • Minimum Pickup Days: Set the minimum number of lead days you need to fulfill an order. Customers will not be able to pick a delivery date sooner than this buffer.
  • Pickup Points: Use the repeater field to list all your physical store addresses or distribution hubs. Customers will see these as options during checkout.

Click Save Changes.

3. The Customer Checkout Experience

Once configured, the plugin automatically adds new fields to your checkout page:

  • Preferred Delivery Date: A date picker that respects your “Minimum Pickup Days” setting.
  • Preferred Pickup Point: A dropdown letting the customer select where they want to pick up their order (or choose ‘No Pickup Point’ for standard delivery).

These details are saved with the order and displayed on the Thank You page, the admin order screen, and the customer’s emails.

4. Managing Distributors

The plugin automatically creates a new user role called Order Distributor. To assign this role to your staff:

  1. Go to Users > All Users in the WordPress admin.
  2. Edit a user (or add a new one).
  3. Change their role to Order Distributor and save.

5. Assigning Orders

When an order comes in, you can manually route it to your team:

  1. Open the order from WooCommerce > Orders.
  2. Look for the Assign Order Distributor meta box on the right sidebar.
  3. Select a specific team member from the dropdown, or choose All Distributors to let the first available person claim it.
  4. You can also modify the customer’s requested Delivery Date from this box if needed.
  5. Click Update to save the order.

6. The Distributor Dashboard

Your team members do not need to access the complex WordPress backend! Have your distributors log into their standard WooCommerce My Account page on the front end of your site.

  • They will see a new tab called My Distributed Orders.
  • Here, they can view all orders assigned specifically to them, or orders broadcasted to everyone.
  • They can click View to see order details, Accept an order (which changes the status to Assigned), Reject an order (which places it On Hold), or mark an order as Completed once the delivery or pickup is finished.