Shopify chatbot to collect photos & pass to a returns app (2025 guide)

Let's be honest, handling returns for damaged or incorrect items is a drag. You know the drill: a customer gets the wrong thing or something's broken, and suddenly you're stuck in an endless email chain just trying to get a photo of the problem.

You're copying and pasting info from your inbox into your returns app, the customer is getting antsy, and your support team is burning out on tedious tasks. It’s a clunky, time-consuming process that nobody enjoys.

But what if you could just… skip all that? An AI chatbot can take the entire manual process off your team’s plate. This guide will walk you through exactly how a Shopify chatbot can collect photos and pass them to a returns app. It’s a straightforward change that can free up hours for your team, get customers sorted faster, and make the whole experience a lot less painful for everyone involved.

How the automated returns workflow works

First things first, this isn't some magic, one-click app you install and walk away from. Think of it more like a smart workflow that connects the tools you already use, making them work together automatically. It’s a dedicated conversational AI tool built to take on one of the most common and repetitive jobs in e-commerce support.

When it's set up, the workflow looks something like this:

1. The chat starts: It all begins when a customer opens your chat widget with a common problem like, "my order arrived damaged" or "this isn't what I ordered." The chatbot uses natural language processing (NLP) to figure out that they have an issue with a damaged item and need help with a return. It gets the point right away, without needing the customer to pick from a menu of options.

2. The bot gets the details: Instead of telling the customer to "email support with a photo," the chatbot immediately asks for what it needs. It might ask for their order number to confirm who they are, and then it prompts them to upload a photo of the damage right there in the chat window. No extra steps, no switching apps.

3. The bot does the work: Once it has the photo and the order info, the chatbot gets to work. It bundles up all the details and uses an API or a custom action to send everything straight to your returns management app, like Loop Returns or AfterShip. Or, if you prefer, it can create a new ticket in your helpdesk, like Gorgias, with all the information neatly attached.

A workflow showing how a Shopify chatbot to collect photos and pass to returns app automates the customer support process.

The goal here is to give customers a quick, self-service option that solves their problem on the spot. For them, it’s a super-fast fix. For your support team, it means one less manual task to worry about.

Key features for a Shopify returns chatbot

Not every chatbot can do this. A simple FAQ bot that just answers basic questions won't cut it. To build this kind of automated workflow, you need a platform that has a few specific and powerful features under the hood.

A solid Shopify connection

This is non-negotiable. The chatbot must connect directly to your Shopify store to access real-time order information. It needs the ability to look up an order number, confirm the customer's name and email, and see the exact items they bought. This connection is what allows the chatbot to have a genuinely helpful conversation. It can verify information instantly and personalize the chat, so the customer feels like they're being heard. Setting this up is a breeze with tools that have a deep Shopify integration, like eesel AI.

An eesel AI chatbot demonstrating a Shopify chatbot to collect photos and pass to returns app by checking a delivery status.

No-code workflows

This is probably the most important part. Many chatbots are great at answering questions, but they can't actually do things. They can't take information and send it to another app. For that, you need a platform with a flexible, no-code workflow builder that can make API calls, which is just a technical way of saying it can "talk" to your other software.

For example, a platform like eesel AI gives you a completely customizable engine to build what it calls 'AI Actions.' These actions let the chatbot go beyond just understanding a customer's request; they allow it to execute tasks. You can set up an action that tells the bot to take the photo and order details it just collected and send them to any other tool your team uses. The best part? You don't need to be a developer to do it. You can build this entire workflow yourself without touching a single line of code.

Secure photo collection

It might sound basic, but you’d be surprised how many chatbots don't let users upload files. Your tool obviously needs to have a feature that allows customers to upload a photo directly in the chat widget. Just as important is how it handles that data. You're dealing with customer information, so the whole process needs to be secure and private.

When you're looking at different options, make sure you choose one that takes data security seriously. Platforms like eesel AI, for instance, ensure that all customer data is encrypted and protected. They even offer features like EU data residency to help you meet compliance standards, so you can be confident that your customers' information is safe.

Why most chatbots can't handle this workflow

You’ve probably seen a lot of chatbot companies throwing around the term "AI-powered." The truth is, most of them are designed for simple Q&A, not for complex, multi-step tasks like this one. There’s a big difference between a basic chatbot and a true automation platform.

Why a strict script fails

Many popular chatbots operate on simple if/then logic. They're programmed to listen for certain keywords and reply with a canned response. They’re perfectly fine for answering "where is my order?" with a link to a tracking page, but they fall flat the moment a real action is needed.

A standard bot might see the word "return" and just send a link to your returns policy page. It can't adapt and ask for a photo, let alone do anything with that photo once it gets it. The conversation hits a dead end, and the customer has to go back to sending an email anyway, which defeats the whole point.

Avoiding the need for developers

Connecting a chatbot to a third-party returns app isn't a standard feature for most platforms. If you wanted to build this kind of workflow with a typical tool, you’d likely have to hire a developer to create a custom integration. That can easily add thousands of dollars to your costs and push your timeline back by weeks or even months. You end up stuck, waiting for someone else to build the solution you need.

This is where a truly self-serve platform makes all the difference. eesel AI was designed so that non-technical people, like support managers, can build these kinds of custom workflows on their own. The power to set up your own API actions from a simple dashboard means you don't need to rely on developers, making advanced automation something any team can afford to implement.

The importance of learning from your team

Most chatbots only know what you tell them. Their knowledge is limited to the FAQs and documents you manually upload. They have no idea how your team actually communicates with customers or solves their problems day-to-day. This is why so many chatbot interactions feel robotic and off-brand, leaving customers feeling frustrated.

A more advanced system can actually learn from your team's real-world experience. For example, eesel AI can analyze thousands of your past support conversations to understand your brand's unique tone of voice and learn how your agents have handled returns in the past. It picks up on your processes automatically, so from day one, it sounds less like a robot and more like one of your best support agents.

Pricing for Shopify chatbots

Let's talk money. When you're looking at these tools, you need pricing that makes sense and doesn't leave you with a surprise bill at the end of the month. Some platforms use pricing models that can get really expensive and hard to predict, especially as your business grows.

Here’s a quick comparison of a few popular options and how they approach pricing for this kind of workflow.

Platform	Plan Details	Key Limitations for This Workflow
Gorgias	* Starter: $10/month (50 tickets) * Basic: $60/month (300 tickets) * Pro: $360/month (2,000 tickets) * Advanced: $900/month (5,000 tickets) * Automation Add-on: Starts at $15/month. Pricing scales with ticket volume.	Primarily a helpdesk with rules-based automation. Passing data to external apps often requires custom development or specific integrations. Costs can become unpredictable since they scale with every ticket.
Tidio	* Free: (50 live chat conversations, 100 chatbot triggers) * Communicator: $29/seat/month * Chatbots: $29/month (from 2k engagements) * Tidio+: Starts at $394/month.	Great for live chat and simple chatbots that follow a script. However, it lacks a built-in, no-code way to make custom API calls to third-party returns apps, which limits its ability to handle this workflow without bringing in developers.
eesel AI	* Team: $299/month (Up to 1,000 AI interactions) * Business: $799/month (Up to 3,000 AI interactions) * All core products included (AI Agent, Copilot, Chatbot, etc.).	No per-resolution fees. Pricing is predictable and based on interactions, not tickets. The Business plan includes the AI Actions needed to pass photos to a returns app, which can be configured without developers. Monthly plans are available for flexibility.

Automate photo collection for returns with a Shopify chatbot

So, there you have it. Setting up a bot to handle photo returns isn't some far-off, futuristic idea. It's a practical and achievable way to make your support team more efficient and give your customers a much better experience. You can finally free your agents from the endless copy-paste cycle and let them focus on the more complex conversations where they can really make a difference.

The trick is to choose a platform that does more than just answer basic questions. You need a real workflow engine with custom actions and deep integrations that puts the power of automation right in your hands.

Building a Shopify chatbot to collect photos and pass to a returns app is a perfect first step into intelligent automation. With a tool like eesel AI, you can design, test, and launch this entire workflow in minutes, not months. You get full control to connect your tools, automate what you need, and see the impact on your team’s workload before you even push it live.

Ready to give it a try? Start your free trial or book a demo to see how you can build your first automated returns workflow today.