Manually scanning through hundreds of rows of shipment data to find parcels that are past their expected delivery date is time-consuming and prone to error. A delayed shipment can easily go unnoticed until a customer complains.

The Solution: Conditional Formatting for Instant Visual Alerts

Conditional formatting automatically changes the appearance of a cell—such as its background color, font color, or border—based on specific rules you define. You can set it up to highlight any parcel exceeding its expected delivery time.

Step-by-Step Implementation Guide

Assume you have a spreadsheet with the following key columns:

• Parcel ID (Column A)
• Expected Delivery Date (Column B)
• Actual Delivery Date (Column C)
• Status (Column D)

In Google Sheets or Excel:

1. Select Your Data Range:
2. Create the Rule:
   • Go to Format     Conditional formattingHome     Conditional Formatting     New Rule
   • For a simple rule to highlight parcels not delivered and past their due date, choose "Custom formula is"
3. Set the Formula:

   Use a formula similar to this, adjusting cell references as needed:

   =AND($C2="", $B2 < TODAY())

   This formula checks if the "Actual Delivery Date" (C) is empty AND

4. Choose Your Format:red fillred text, to make delayed shipments stand out immediately.
5. Apply and Save: