Sendexa for Shopify: Order SMS, Abandoned Cart Recovery, and Checkout OTP (Coming Soon)
Collins Vidzro2026-08-069 min read
Sendexa for Shopify: Order SMS, Abandoned Cart Recovery, and Checkout OTP
A first look at our upcoming Shopify app — currently completing final store testing ahead of release
Status: coming soon. Sendexa for Shopify is fully built and code-complete, but it hasn't yet been through a live install on a real Shopify store, and it isn't available to install today. We'd rather tell you exactly where it stands than oversell it — this post is a preview of what it does and how it's built, not an install guide. If you want early access once store testing wraps up, reach out through your Sendexa dashboard.
Why We're Building This
We already shipped Sendexa for WooCommerce for stores running WordPress, and Shopify merchants have been asking for the same thing: reliable order SMS, a way to recover abandoned checkouts automatically, and a way to verify a shopper's phone number before an order — especially a Cash-on-Delivery order — goes out for fulfillment.
Shopify's platform works differently enough from WooCommerce that we didn't just port the plugin over. Shopify gives you native webhooks for checkout abandonment (no need to snapshot carts ourselves), a proper checkout extensibility framework for adding verification steps to checkout itself, and an app-hosting model where merchants install from a link rather than uploading a zip file. So Sendexa for Shopify is a purpose-built app: a Node/React Router admin app plus a checkout UI extension, both hosted by Sendexa — a merchant installs it, they don't run any of it themselves.
What It Does
1. Order Status Notifications (SMS + Email)
The app listens to Shopify's orders/create, orders/updated, and orders/cancelled webhooks and maps them to five events: order created, payment confirmed, fulfilled, cancelled, and refunded. Each event has its own on/off toggle and its own editable SMS and email templates, with placeholder tokens:
| Token | Fills in |
|---|---|
{customer_name} / {first_name} | Customer's name |
{order_id} / {order_number} | The order reference |
{order_total} | Order total, formatted |
{order_url} | Link to the order status page |
{store_name} / {store_url} | Your store details |
Because Shopify resends the full order payload on every orders/updated webhook (not just on meaningful changes), the app tracks which (order, event, channel) combinations have already been notified so a customer never gets the same "fulfilled" SMS twice.
2. Abandoned Checkout Reminders
Shopify fires native checkouts/create and checkouts/update webhooks the moment a shopper starts checkout — so unlike the WooCommerce plugin, there's no need to hook into cart events manually. The app tracks checkout state, and once a checkout has sat unconverted past a configurable threshold, it sends a recovery SMS and/or email with a link back to the checkout. Old, unconverted checkout records are cleaned up automatically after a configurable number of days.
3. Checkout Phone Verification (OTP)
This is the feature that needs Shopify's checkout extensibility framework, not just a webhook. A checkout UI extension renders a verification step directly inside Shopify's checkout, and can block the buyer from completing their order until they verify their phone number with an SMS code. Scope it to Cash on Delivery orders only or require it on every order. Code length (4–10 digits) and expiry (1–1440 minutes) are both configurable. Once verified, the order gets tagged sendexa-phone-verified automatically so you can filter for it in Shopify Admin.
4. Delivery Webhooks + Activity Log
Same principle as the WooCommerce plugin: sending isn't the same as arriving. The app can receive delivered/failed callbacks from Sendexa so the built-in Activity log page reflects real outcomes — type, event, recipient, linked order, status, and the Sendexa message ID — instead of just "sent."
How It's Built
For anyone comparing this to other Shopify notification apps, a few architecture details matter:
- Hosted, not self-installed. Unlike the WooCommerce plugin (which you upload and run on your own WordPress install), Sendexa for Shopify is hosted by Sendexa. A merchant installs it via a link, the same way any Shopify custom app installs — there's no server to manage.
- Credentials never reach the browser. The checkout OTP extension never talks to Sendexa directly. It calls the app's own
/api/otp/*routes, authenticated with Shopify's own checkout session-token mechanism — those server routes are the only place the Sendexa API secret is ever used. - Constant-time webhook verification. Inbound Sendexa delivery webhooks are verified with an HMAC-SHA256 signature compared using a timing-safe comparison, not a naive string check — avoiding timing side-channel attacks on signature verification.
- Standard Shopify webhook auth on all Shopify-side webhooks (orders, checkouts, app uninstall), using Shopify's official app framework rather than a hand-rolled check.
- OTP rate limiting — capped at 3 requests per phone number per 10-minute window, since every request triggers a real, billed SMS.
- Clean uninstall. Uninstalling the app deletes the shop's stored settings and abandoned-checkout tracking data — nothing lingers after a merchant removes it.
What It Doesn't Do (Yet)
To set the same accurate expectations we set for the WooCommerce plugin: this app currently supports SMS and email only — no WhatsApp, Voice, or USSD, even though those channels exist elsewhere in the Sendexa API. If your store needs WhatsApp order confirmations today, that's a direct Sendexa API integration rather than something this app covers yet.
It's also not on the Shopify App Store. It's being built and released as a private, single-merchant install first — the same cautious rollout path we took with the WooCommerce plugin before considering a public listing.
The checkout OTP verification step uses Shopify's checkout extensibility framework, which — following Shopify's platform-wide migration deadline for checkout customization — is available across Shopify plans in 2026, though exactly which extension surfaces are open to which plan can still vary. If checkout verification is the feature you need most, confirm current availability for your specific plan when you reach out.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I install this on my store today?
Not yet. The app is fully built but hasn't been through a real install/OAuth flow on a live Shopify store. We're completing that testing before opening it up.
How is this different from Sendexa for WooCommerce?
Same core idea — order notifications, abandoned-cart recovery, checkout OTP — but different delivery model. The WooCommerce plugin is a zip file you install and run yourself; the Shopify app is hosted by Sendexa, and you install it via a link, the way any Shopify app works.
Does it support WhatsApp?
Not currently. Like the WooCommerce plugin's first release, this app covers SMS and email only.
Will this be on the Shopify App Store?
Not initially. It's launching as a private, single-merchant install first.
What Shopify plan do I need?
Order notifications and abandoned-checkout reminders don't depend on your plan. The checkout OTP verification step uses Shopify's checkout extensibility framework — availability has broadened across plans through 2026, but confirm current specifics for your store when you request access.
How do I get early access?
Reach out through your Sendexa dashboard and we'll let you know as soon as store testing is complete.
What's Next
We'd rather ship this once it's actually been installed and run on a real store than announce a date we might miss. If you run a Shopify store and want to be first in line to test it, get in touch — and in the meantime, our Sendexa API and WooCommerce plugin cover the same order-notification and OTP use cases today if you need them now.
This post reflects the state of Sendexa for Shopify as of August 2026. It is not yet available for installation; details are subject to change before release.