NDR recovery 101: turning failed deliveries into revenue
Most brands lose 7–12% of revenue to NDR. Here's the 3-touch WhatsApp flow that wins back 18–22% of failed attempts.
The NDR problem nobody talks about
Non-Delivery Report (NDR) events quietly eat 7–12% of Indian D2C revenue. Courier partner flags a failed delivery, and unless someone reaches the customer in the next 24 hours, the order is toast.
The 3-touch recovery flow
- Touch 1 (NDR + 30 min): WhatsApp message confirming the issue (“Your courier tried to deliver #{{id}} today but couldn’t reach you. Tap below to reschedule.”)
- Touch 2 (NDR + 6 hours): SMS fallback if WhatsApp wasn’t read.
- Touch 3 (NDR + 24 hours): Voice call — last mile before the order closes.
Why WhatsApp first
Read rates on NDR WhatsApp messages sit at 82–91%. SMS reads clock in at 30%. Voice picks up at 40%. Start with the cheapest highest-signal channel, escalate only when signal is weak.
What good looks like
Brands running this flow recover 18–22% of NDR orders — compared to ~4% for brands that only email the customer.
What to avoid
- Generic “Your delivery failed” template with no action.
- Waiting until day 3 to call.
- Asking the customer to reach out to the courier themselves.
Depra routes NDR events automatically from Shopify → courier webhook → WhatsApp agent, no manual ops required. Book a demo to see it on your own flows.
Written by
Zia Wasi
Part of the Depra team, building the future of AI-powered business automation.
