The Manual Shipping Nightmare
If you've ever managed an influencer gifting campaign, you know the pain:
- DM the influencer asking for their address
- Wait 3 days for a reply
- Copy the address into a spreadsheet
- Ask for their size/color preference
- Wait another 2 days
- Manually create a $0 order in Shopify
- Paste the address into the order
- Mark as fulfilled when shipped
- DM the tracking number to the influencer
- Set a calendar reminder to follow up in 7 days
Time spent per influencer: 15-20 minutes. Multiply that by 50 influencers, and you've lost an entire work week on data entry.
The Automated Workflow
Here's how modern seeding tools compress this into 2 minutes per influencer:
Step 1: Generate a Claim Link
Instead of asking for an address, send the influencer a personalized link. When they click it, they see a branded landing page where they can:
- Enter their shipping address (with Google autocomplete)
- Select product variants (size, color)
- Agree to posting expectations
Result: No more back-and-forth DMs about addresses.
Step 2: Automatic Order Creation
When the influencer submits the form, a $0 draft order is created directly in your Shopify admin. The order includes:
- Correct product variant
- Influencer's shipping address
- Tags like "Seeding" and the campaign name
Your fulfillment team sees it in their normal order queue — no special process needed.
Step 3: Sync Tracking Numbers
Once shipped, the tracking number syncs back from Shopify. The system can automatically email the influencer with their tracking info — no manual DM required.
Step 4: Delivery-Based Follow-up
When the package is marked as delivered, the system automatically sends a friendly reminder: "Your package arrived! We'd love to see what you think 📦"
This "golden window" follow-up increases post rates by 30-40%.
Time Comparison
| Task | Manual | Automated |
|---|---|---|
| Address collection | 5-10 min (DM + wait) | 0 min (self-serve) |
| Order creation | 3-5 min | 0 min (automatic) |
| Tracking notification | 2 min | 0 min (automatic) |
| Follow-up reminder | 3 min (calendar + DM) | 0 min (automatic) |
| Total per influencer | 15-20 min | 2 min |
For a 50-influencer campaign: Save 10+ hours of manual work.
Getting Started
If you're a Shopify brand ready to eliminate spreadsheet shipping, tools like Seeding Ops make it easy. The setup takes about 10 minutes, and you can start generating claim links immediately.