Release Update, Oct. 04, 2021

PostedJanuary 12, 2022

To streamline the order process, Best Inc. released a new structure of order type for order requests on both data feed template and API requests.

New Customer Order Type – VAS

BEST Inc. is now supporting a new Customer Order Type – VAS, an acronym for Value Added Service. This new order type will allow our customers to indicate when certain orders will have order documents required for fulfillment. This will ensure that our operations team will include all order documents with the order before it is handed over to the carrier for delivery.
When the new VAS Customer Order Type is indicated on the order, a list of required documents must also be submitted with the order creation request. VAS order creation requests without at least one specified required document will be rejected. VAS orders can be uploaded on our portal using the order template, or through our BEST API.
In order to use the order upload template to submit a VAS order, first you must select the CustomerOrderType as VAS:

Then use the separate sheet RequiredDocs to indicate the required documents associated with the order:

Finally, enter the VAS order number and the document type(s) that will be required for the order:

For API VAS orders, here is a sample VAS order creation request/response body:

Once the VAS order has been created, it will be placed into Pending status and will not be dispatched to the warehouse for fulfillment. After all of the specified required order documents have been uploaded to the order, it will then be dispatched to the warehouse for fulfillment at that time.
Order documents can be attached with the order creation request using the Documents array, and/or can also be submitted via our BEST Inc portal, as well as our Order Document Uploading endpoint detailed here:

VAS orders that have been sent through the BEST API with their order documents attached with the order creation request will not be placed into Pending status and will instead be dispatched to the warehouse for fulfillment.
Pending order auto-cancellation
PLEASE NOTE: Orders with the “Pending” status will be automatically canceled 7 days after creation if you do not upload all required order documents.

Gift Customer Order Type Removal

The customer order type of Gift will be removed after 30 days and will no longer be an option when submitting an order creation request.
Orders that contain Gift Notes and/or require Gift Wrap will still be fulfilled as normal from our warehouse operations team. This change means that “Gift” orders can still have gift notes and/or gift wrapping, but can now utilize a different Customer Order Types. For example, an order can now be submitted using the VAS customer order type and still contain gift notes and/or be gift wrapped.

WillCall Customer Order Type Removal

The customer order type of WillCall will be removed after 30 days and will no longer be an option when submitting an order creation request.
WillCall orders can still be created using the ServiceLevel option of WillCall. This change allows for WillCall orders to be created with alternate customer order types.

SRG Customer Order Type Removal

The customer order type of SRG will be removed after 30 days and will no longer be an option when submitting an order creation request.
SRG orders can still be created using the ServiceLevel option of Routing. This change allows for SRG orders to be created with alternate customer order types.

Routing Customer Order Type Removal

The customer order type of Routing will be removed after 30 days and will no longer be an option when submitting an order creation request.
Routing orders can still be created using the ServiceLevel option of Routing. This change allows for Routing orders to be created with alternate customer order types.

Summary

In summation, we are adding a new customer order type called VAS to help ensure that certain orders are able to have their order documents included with fulfillment before being shipped.

The current customer order types of Gift, SRG, WillCall, and Routing will no longer be a valid option for order creation after 30 days. Instead, they are being controlled either through the Gift Note/Gift Wrap fields, or they have a separate ServiceLevel to indicate the service required for the order. This change allows orders to use the customer order type field separately from the ServiceLevel field, but still designate the desired service.

If you have any questions or concerns about these updates, please email us-it-api@best-inc.com at any time and a representative will respond to you in a timely manner.