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Managing Pre-orders
on Dynamics 365

Microsoft Dynamics 365

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Microsoft Dynamics 365 is a suite of intelligent business applications that helps organizations unify data and streamline processes, including e-commerce and ERP functions. Through its Shopify Connector and other integration solutions, Dynamics 365 can synchronize products, orders, and inventory, as well as handle pre-orders and negative inventory for more advanced workflows.

This guide will break down how Dynamics 365 handles key pre-order functions like negative stock, Shopify’s “On Hold” status, and fulfilment workflows—so you’ll know what to expect, where it excels, and any workarounds you may need.

How ERPs and pre-orders work together in the modern ecommerce stack

As the central source of truth for your ecommerce operations, ERPs play a crucial role in pre-orders—primarily in two areas:

Product & inventory management (tracking stock, syncing availability).
Order processing (handling pre-order statuses and fulfilment flows).

Below is a typical flow. Click through to see how Shopify, the ERP and pre-order application interact.

1

Order & Inventory Sync

The ERP synchronizes orders and inventory across various sales channels (e.g., Shopify, Amazon, retail POS).

Key Considerations for Managing Pre-orders on Dynamics 365

In the diagram above you may have noticed the word “should” being used a couple of times… That’s because not all ERPs fully support Shopify’s pre-order features out of the box. Some may lack support for negative inventory counts or fail to respect Shopify’s “On Hold” order status, requiring workarounds or additional configuration. Read on to see how Dynamics 365 interacts with Shopify pre-orders and what you might need to adjust.

Syncing Shopify Products

Yes, Microsoft Dynamics 365 can synchronize product data—such as titles, SKUs, and inventory levels—with Shopify through various integration solutions. These integrations facilitate seamless data exchange between the two platforms, ensuring consistency and efficiency in managing your e-commerce operations.

Syncing Shopify Orders

Yes, Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central can synchronize Shopify order data, including statuses, customer details, and line items, through its Shopify Connector. This integration ensures a smooth flow of order information for efficient order management. Order Synchronization:
• Importing Orders: Orders placed in Shopify can be imported into Business Central, creating corresponding sales orders and importing customer details.
• Order Statuses: The connector handles open, fulfilled, or canceled statuses; when an order is fulfilled in Business Central, shipping details (including tracking info) can sync back to Shopify.
• Customer Details: Billing/shipping addresses and customer records stay updated across both platforms.
• Line Items: Product identifiers, quantities, and pricing flow into Business Central, aligning inventory and fulfillment processes.

Handling Negative Inventory

Yes, Microsoft Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management supports negative inventory levels, which helps manage pre-orders or overselling scenarios. Enabling Negative Inventory:
• Physical Negative Inventory: Permits recording inventory quantities below zero for sales orders when stock is insufficient.
• Setup: Go to Inventory Management > Setup > Inventory > Item Model Groups, select the relevant item model group, and enable Allow physical negative inventory.

Resources:

• Negative inventory doc

Respecting Shopify’s “On Hold” Status

The integration between Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central and Shopify covers various order statuses, but explicit support for Shopify’s “on hold” status is not clearly documented. While standard statuses like open, fulfilled, and canceled can sync, whether “on hold” is recognized depends on how you configure mappings or custom workflows in Business Central.

Pre-Order-Specific Features

Yes, Microsoft Dynamics 365 offers features for handling pre-orders through Intelligent Order Management, enabling a seamless process from order placement to fulfillment. Pre-Order Management in Dynamics 365:
• Pre-Order Eligibility: Mark products as Pre-order Eligible and set a Launch Date.
• Order Processing: Pre-order items receive a Preorder Hold status, indicating they’re not yet available.
• Configuration Steps: Enable OnHandChangeSchedule, upload on-hand schedule changes, and turn on Backorders in Settings. Then mark products with Pre-order Eligible = Yes, plus a Launch Date.
• Reference: For a detailed guide, see Microsoft docs on backorder/preorder functionality in Intelligent Order Management.

Resources:

• Official pre-order doc

Custom Workflows with Order Tags, Line-item Properties or Metafields

Yes, Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central can utilize Shopify’s metafields to create custom workflows. This allows for the synchronization and management of additional product data, supporting tailored processes. By importing or exporting product info (including metafields), you can trigger specific actions within Dynamics 365 based on these custom attributes.

Resources:

• Microsoft doc on Shopify metafields

Supporting Full vs. Partial Order Fulfilment

Yes, Microsoft Dynamics 365 supports both full and partial order fulfillment, helping businesses manage different fulfillment scenarios effectively. Full Order Fulfillment:
• Single Shipment: If all items are in stock, you can pick, pack, and ship the entire order at once.
Partial Order Fulfillment:
• Partial Quantities: If only some items are available, the system allows picking those while leaving the rest pending.
• Status Updates:
The order is updated to reflect partially shipped items, and remaining items can be fulfilled when restocked.

Summary

Dynamics 365 support for
Shopify Pre-orders

Pre-order touchpoint	Dynamics 365 support
Products sync with Shopify	✅ Syncs titles, SKUs, and inventory with Shopify through connectors
Orders sync with Shopify	✅ Imports Shopify orders, statuses, customers, and line items via the Shopify Connector
Negative inventory support	✅ Allows negative inventory for pre-orders or overselling
Shopify “On Hold” status recognition	⚠️ “On hold” mapping is not clearly documented, may require custom configuration
Specific pre-order support	✅ Intelligent Order Management includes robust pre-order functionality
Custom workflows	✅ Shopify metafields can trigger custom processes in Dynamics 365
Partial fulfilment support	✅ Supports both full and partial fulfillment workflows

Strengths & Limitations

✅ Strengths
• Comprehensive ERP/CRM suite with native Shopify Connector
• Intelligent Order Management for pre-orders
• Negative inventory and partial fulfillment are well-supported

⚠️ Limitations
• “On hold” status unclear without custom mapping