Shopify & Mondial Relay: Unblocking Pickup Point Orders with Missing Phone Numbers

Hey everyone, your Shopify migration expert here, diving into a really hot topic that's been bubbling up in the community forums. We're talking about a critical issue affecting merchants using Mondial Relay for pickup point deliveries, particularly those in France where it's a super popular option. It's all about missing phone numbers and blocked shipping labels, a real headache for store owners trying to get orders out the door.

The Critical Mondial Relay Phone Number Problem

Our friend @nsgsc kicked off a vital discussion, highlighting a frustrating situation: customers select a Mondial Relay pickup point, complete their order without entering a phone number (because it's optional at that stage), and then BAM! – you can't generate the shipping label. The error message is clear:

“A recipient phone number is required for pickup point labels”

To make matters worse, Shopify won't let you edit these orders to add the missing phone number, stating:

“Orders sent to pickup points cannot be modified.”

Talk about being stuck between a rock and a hard place! This issue appears to have started only a few weeks ago, suggesting a recent change, likely on Mondial Relay's side.

Why This Is Happening: A Platform Gap

This isn't a simple configuration oversight, as @cuongnm_trooix and @rshrivastava63 pointed out. It looks like a genuine gap in Shopify's checkout flow, possibly triggered by a recent change in Mondial Relay's API requirements. Essentially, Mondial Relay now requires a phone number for these labels, but Shopify's checkout doesn't enforce it specifically for pickup point deliveries.

The 'require phone' setting in Shopify (under Settings > Checkout) primarily applies to the standard shipping address form. However, with Mondial Relay pickup point delivery, customers often do not go through a standard shipping address form because they only select a pickup point. This means there's no native way to make the phone number mandatory only for Mondial Relay pickup points without affecting other shipping methods.

Community Insights & Shopify's Acknowledgment

@nsgsc did the right thing and reported it to Shopify Support, who confirmed they've “recorded and forwarded directly to the Product team.” That's good news, indicating Shopify is aware and hopefully working on a permanent fix. But for now, we need solutions!

The community came up with some clever ideas and theories. @nsgsc himself suggested two potential fixes for Shopify:

• Quick fix: Set the merchant's phone number as the default Mondial Relay phone number if the customer hasn't provided one.
• Clean fix: Create an option for merchants to be able to set the phone number as mandatory specifically for Relay shipping methods.

Exploring Workarounds: What Works, What Doesn't

Our fellow merchants offered some practical advice, though some solutions came with nuances:

• Global Phone Requirement? @lumine initially suggested setting “Settings > Checkout > Customer contact method to require a phone number instead of email.” However, @nsgsc quickly clarified that this option is actually “Phone number or email,” and customers will typically choose email, rendering it ineffective for requiring a phone number:

  

  This highlights how tricky these settings can be when trying to enforce specific requirements!

• Cart Page Reminder: @rshrivastava63 offered a practical temporary workaround: “adding a note on the cart page reminding customers to include their phone number when choosing pickup point delivery.” This won't catch every single case, but it can certainly reduce the number of problematic orders.

• Shopify Flow Automation: @lumine also brought up a more sophisticated solution for those on plans with Shopify Flow: “a Flow automation that flags any Mondial Relay order with an empty phone before fulfillment lets you catch them and ask for the number.” This is a solid proactive approach to identify and address issues before they block label creation.

Actionable Steps for Merchants: What You Can Do Now

While we wait for Shopify's product team to implement a permanent solution, here are some immediate steps you can take to mitigate this issue and keep your Mondial Relay orders moving:

1. Report to Shopify Support (If You Haven't Already): The more merchants who report this issue, the higher the priority it will receive. Make sure your feedback is recorded and linked to this known problem.

2. Add a Cart Page or Checkout Note: Implement @rshrivastava63's suggestion. Go to your theme editor and add a clear, concise message on your cart page, or even on the shipping methods selection step, advising customers that a phone number is required for Mondial Relay pickup point orders. Something like: “Important: For Mondial Relay pickup point orders, please ensure you provide a phone number at checkout for successful delivery.”

3. Leverage Shopify Flow for Proactive Identification (if applicable): If your Shopify plan includes Shopify Flow, set up an automation to catch these orders early:

   • Trigger: Order created (or similar, like 'Order paid').
   • Condition: Set a condition where the 'Shipping method' is 'Mondial Relay pickup point' (or contains 'Mondial Relay') AND the 'Customer phone number' is empty.
   • Action: You can then choose to: tag the order (e.g., "Missing Phone"), send an internal email notification to your fulfillment team, or even automatically send a polite email to the customer requesting their phone number.

4. Manual Follow-up for Stuck Orders: For orders already stuck, you'll unfortunately need to reach out to the customer directly to get their phone number. Once you have it, you might need to manually create the label through the Mondial Relay website or app, outside of Shopify, and then manually fulfill the order in Shopify.

This issue is a prime example of how crucial it is for Shopify to adapt quickly to changes from shipping partners, especially for widely used services like Mondial Relay. It’s tough when a core shipping method becomes a bottleneck, but seeing the community rally with insights and workarounds is always encouraging. Hopefully, Shopify's product team will implement a 'clean fix' soon, like making the phone number mandatory specifically for these shipping methods, or allowing edits for pickup point orders. Until then, these workarounds can help keep your operations running smoothly. Keep an eye on the community forums for updates, and don't hesitate to share your own experiences. Running a store can be complex, but with the right tools and community support, you can tackle anything.