Claude Code, ChatGPT, Shopify, Shippo
Alex Willen (The Automated Operator) · Oct 15, 2026
TL;DR
What did Alex Willen (The Automated Operator) use Claude Code for?
An e-commerce owner had Claude Code build a phone-friendly web app that turns every email, Facebook and Instagram message and comment into a ticket with a drafted reply, order details from Shopify and Amazon, and buttons for refunds, cancellations and return labels. They say the app saved them hours in under two weeks, and the return-scanning button worked on the first try.
What they did
They asked ChatGPT how to make an app that works on desktop and iPhone (it suggested a progressive web app), then gave Claude a short prompt: one place for every customer interaction, a ticket for each email, Facebook message, Instagram DM and comment, a drafted reply they can edit before sending, and a dismiss option. Claude Code set up a job that pulls new messages every 10 minutes and looks up order details. As tickets came in they kept asking for changes: ticket IDs, a feedback box on each draft, a checkbox for when a reply should go into the knowledge base, links to the order, and channel badges. Later it gained return labels through Shippo and a camera button that reads the tracking number on a returned parcel, opens the ticket and refunds the checked-off items.
How it went
They say the app saved them hours in under two weeks, and the return-scanning button worked on the first try.
Worth knowing
- Meta's API is inconsistent: Claude can send Instagram DMs but not Facebook Messenger replies, so those still get copied and pasted by hand. When the app learned from every edit, it started reusing replies written for odd one-off cases, so they switched to explicit feedback. A person still approves every reply for now.
- Price check: Claude: free plan; Pro: US$20/month, or US$17/month on a yearly plan (US$200/year) (checked Nov 1, 2026); ChatGPT: free plan; Go: US$8/month (checked Nov 1, 2026); Shopify: no free plan; Basic: US$39/month, or US$29/month on a yearly plan (US$348/year) (checked Oct 28, 2026).
Paying for Claude? See cheaper Claude alternatives.
Try it yourself
Paste this into a chatbot, then add your own details underneath.
Build me a simple web app that puts all customer messages for [brand] in one place. Create a ticket for each email, Facebook message, Instagram DM and comment, draft a reply I can edit before sending, and let me dismiss a ticket without replying. Make it a progressive web app so I can add it to my phone's home screen.
Original post
See Alex Willen (The Automated Operator)'s original post on Substack → (Oct 15, 2026)
Sources
- Alex Willen (The Automated Operator) on Substack, Oct 15, 2026 — the original post
- Claude pricing — checked Nov 1, 2026
- ChatGPT pricing — checked Nov 1, 2026
- Shopify pricing — checked Oct 28, 2026