The Problem: Manual Tracking is Inefficient

With a high volume of orders, delayed parcels can easily slip through the cracks. Scrolling through endless rows of data to compare the "Expected Delivery Date" with the "Current Status" or "Actual Delivery Date" wastes valuable time and can lead to missed customer service interventions.

The Solution: Conditional Formatting for Instant Visibility

Conditional formatting is a feature in spreadsheet programs like Google Sheets or Microsoft Excel that automatically changes the appearance of a cell—such as its background color, text color, or border—based on specific rules you define.

Here’s a step-by-step guide to setting it up for your shipment log:

1. Structure Your Data:Order ID, Shipment Date, Expected Delivery Date, Current Status, and Actual Delivery Date.
2. Identify the "Alert" Condition:
3. Apply the Rule (Example for Google Sheets):
   • Select the range of rows you want to format (e.g., A2:E100).
   • Go to Format     Conditional formatting.
   • Under "Format rules," choose "Custom formula is".
   • Enter a formula like: =AND($D2="In Transit", $C2<=TODAY())
     This assumes Column D is "Current Status" and Column C is "Expected Delivery Date". It highlights rows where status is "In Transit" AND the expected date is on or before today.
   • Set the formatting style (e.g., red background
   • Click Done.
4. For Delivered but Late Items:=AND($E2<>"", $E2>$C2)yellow