Handmade, craft and small-batch makers: one-offs, made-to-order and what to put in words Free & Pro

A maker’s store runs on photographs and a one-of-a-kind stock. A personal agent sees neither: it reads words and it reads stock counts. That sounds like bad news and mostly is not, because the thing a customer sends their assistant to do at a maker’s store is usually to reorder a consumable (the soap, the candle, the tea), check an order, or find "something like the bowl I bought" by description. This page is for makers on WooCommerce running Agent Adapt, with facts from the plugin as it ships on 13 October 2026. Makers selling only on a marketplace should read Marketplaces first.

What customers will ask their assistant

• "Order two more of the lavender soap from that maker."
• "Has my mug shipped?"
• "Do they have any blue ceramic bowls in stock under £40?"
• "Do they take commissions?"

Words for things that are usually pictures

The agent reads the title, short description (500 characters), full description (5,000), attributes, variations, categories and the first image’s URL. It shows the image to the customer but does not interpret it. For a one-off, the words are the listing: "Stoneware bowl, 18 cm, blue glaze with speckle, food safe, dishwasher safe". For a range, the attributes do the filtering: "Colour: Blue", "Size: Medium". Materials, care, dimensions and what makes the piece unusual belong in the description text.

One-offs and stock of one

Manage stock on one-off pieces with a quantity of one. The agent reads stock and will not add a sold piece, and low-stock counts are shown only if your store shows them. A sold one-off that stays visible as "sold out" is reported honestly; one you hide is never served to agents.

Made to order and commissions

A made-to-order piece with set options (size, colour) is a variable product and works. A piece that needs a free-text brief, an upload or a choice made in a form on the product page is not supported through the agent API; the agent can add the base product without those fields, or send the customer to the product page, whose URL it has. Commissions are a conversation: say on your terms page how to enquire, because the agent reads that page and can tell the customer. See Print on demand for the same limit.

With Pro, consider switching off paid-order cancellation with refund if you start making a piece the moment it is paid.

Lead times and shipping

The shipping page is not sent to agents. Lead times ("made to order, ships in 2–3 weeks"), where you ship to, and how fragile items are packed go in descriptions and on the terms page, which is sent.

Returns on handmade goods

Your returns page is quoted as plain text. Say what you accept, what is excluded (personalised and commissioned pieces), and how breakages in transit are handled. With Pro, an agent can send a return request on a completed order within your return window; it adds a note and emails you and refunds nothing until you act.

Your own domain

An agent reaches a store by its domain. A maker on a marketplace has no domain of their own there and cannot be agent-ready through the marketplace; a WooCommerce store on your own domain can be, with the free plugin and no settings. That is the same reason to have your own store as before agents: the customers are yours.

What to set up

1. Descriptions that say what the photo says: material, size, colour, finish, care.
2. Stock of one on one-offs.
3. Variations named plainly for ranges, with SKUs on repeatable items.
4. Lead times in descriptions; commissions and shipping on the terms page.
5. A returns page with the handmade exclusions.
6. With Pro: paid-order cancellation off if you make on payment.

Common questions

Can the agent describe the piece from its photo?

No. It shows the image to the customer and reads your words. Write the words.

Will it sell a piece twice?

Not if stock is managed with a quantity of one. Without stock management everything reads as available.

Can it ask me for a commission?

It can tell the customer what your terms page says about commissions. There is no message channel in the plugin.

Does the free plugin do all this?

Yes. Everything above except the Pro items is in the free plugin, with no settings.