Automated Email Order Tracking System with AI Classification and Notion Sync

Overview

⚠️ Self-Hosted Solution Required
This workflow requires a self-hosted n8n instance with active integrations for Gmail, Google Gemini AI, OpenAI, and Notion. API credentials and database IDs must be configured before use.

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Description

This intelligent automation system monitors your Gmail inbox for order-related emails, extracts key order information using AI, and automatically syncs the data to a Notion database for centralized order tracking. Perfect for individuals managing multiple e-commerce accounts or small businesses tracking customer orders across various platforms (Amazon, Noon, Namshi, etc.).

What This Workflow Does

1. Email Monitoring: Continuously monitors Gmail inbox for new incoming emails
2. Smart Classification: Uses AI to identify order-related emails (confirmations, shipping notifications, delivery updates)
3. Intelligent Extraction: Parses email content to extract order details (order number, items, prices, status, delivery info)
4. Database Synchronization: Automatically creates or updates Notion database records with order information
5. Status Tracking: Monitors order progression through stages (Ordered → Shipped → Out for Delivery → Delivered)

Key Features

• Multi-vendor support: Works with any e-commerce platform (Amazon, Noon, Carrefour, Namshi, etc.)
• Duplicate prevention: Searches existing records before creating new entries
• Smart updates: Only modifies records when order status actually changes
• Status validation: Detects backward status changes (potential returns/reshipments)
• Graceful error handling: Handles missing data and optional fields intelligently
• Timestamped history: Maintains audit trail of all status changes

Technologies Used

• Gmail Trigger: Email monitoring
• JavaScript Code: Email content classification with pattern matching
• Google Gemini AI / OpenAI: Natural language processing for order extraction
• Structured Output Parser: JSON formatting and validation
• Notion API: Database search, create, and update operations

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Prerequisites

Before setting up this workflow, ensure you have:

1. Self-hosted n8n instance (version 1.0.0 or higher)
2. Gmail account with IMAP access enabled
3. Google Gemini API key OR OpenAI API key
4. Notion workspace with:
   • Integration access configured
   • Database created with the required schema (see below)
   • Integration token/API key

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Notion Database Schema

Create a Notion database with the following properties:

Required Properties

| Property Name | Type | Description | |--------------|------|-------------| | Name of the Item | Title | Product/item name | | Order Number | Text | Unique order identifier | | Quantity | Number | Number of items | | Expected Date | Date or Text | Expected delivery date | | Order Status | Select | Options: Ordered, Shipped, Out for Delivery, Delivered |

Optional Properties (Recommended)

| Property Name | Type | Description | |--------------|------|-------------| | Vendor | Select | E-commerce platform (Amazon, Noon, etc.) | | Customer Name | Rich Text | Order recipient name | | Price | Number or Rich Text | Item price | | Order Total | Number | Total order amount | | Currency | Select | Currency code (AED, USD, SAR, etc.) | | Delivery Location | Rich Text | Delivery city/address | | Notes | Rich Text | Status change history | | Created Date | Created Time | Auto-populated by Notion | | Last Updated | Last Edited Time | Auto-populated by Notion |

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Setup Instructions

Step 1: Import the Workflow

1. Copy the workflow JSON from this template
2. In your n8n instance, go to Workflows → Add Workflow → Import from File/URL
3. Paste the JSON and click Import

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Step 2: Configure Gmail Trigger

1. Click on the Gmail Trigger node
2. Click Create New Credential
3. Follow the OAuth authentication flow to connect your Gmail account
4. Configure trigger settings:
   • Trigger On: Message Received
   • Filters: (Optional) Add label filters to monitor specific folders

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Step 3: Configure AI Model (Choose One)

Option A: Google Gemini AI

1. Click on the Google Gemini AI Model node
2. Click Create New Credential
3. Enter your Gemini API key (obtain from Google AI Studio)
4. Select model: gemini-1.5-pro or gemini-1.5-flash

Option B: OpenAI

1. Click on the OpenAI Chat Model node
2. Click Create New Credential
3. Enter your OpenAI API key (obtain from OpenAI Platform)
4. Select model: gpt-4o or gpt-4-turbo

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Step 4: Update Email Classification Node

1. Click on the Check Email Type node (JavaScript code)
2. Review the classification patterns (pre-configured for common e-commerce emails)
3. (Optional) Add custom keywords specific to your vendors

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Step 5: Configure Notion Integration

5.1: Create Notion Integration

1. Go to Notion Integrations
2. Click New Integration
3. Name it (e.g., "n8n Order Tracker")
4. Select your workspace
5. Copy the Internal Integration Token

5.2: Share Database with Integration

1. Open your Notion order database
2. Click Share → Invite
3. Search for your integration name and select it
4. Grant Edit permissions

5.3: Get Database ID

1. Open your Notion database in browser
2. Copy the database ID from the URL:

   https://notion.so/workspace/DATABASE_ID?v=...
                              ^^^^^^^^^^^^
   

5.4: Configure Notion Nodes

1. Click on Search a database in Notion node

2. Click Create New Credential

3. Paste your Integration Token

4. In the node parameters:

   • Database ID: Paste your database ID
   • Filter: Set to search by Order Number property

5. Repeat credential setup for Create a database page in Notion and Update a database page in Notion nodes

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Step 6: Update Agent Prompts

1. Click on the Email Classification and Extraction Agent node

2. Review the system prompt (pre-configured for common order emails)

3. Update the {{$now}} variable if using a different timezone

4. (Optional) Customize extraction rules for specific vendors

5. Click on the Order Database Sync Agent node

6. Replace {{notion_database_id}} with your actual database ID in the prompt

7. Review status handling logic

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Step 7: Test the Workflow

1. Click Execute Workflow to activate it
2. Send yourself a test order confirmation email
3. Monitor the execution:
   • Check if email was classified correctly
   • Verify extraction output in the AI agent node
   • Confirm Notion database was updated
4. Review your Notion database for the new/updated record

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Step 8: Activate for Production

1. Click Active toggle in the top-right corner
2. The workflow will now run automatically for new emails
3. Monitor executions in the Executions tab

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Workflow Node Descriptions

Email Trigger

Monitors Gmail inbox for new incoming emails and triggers the workflow when a message is received.

Check Email Type

JavaScript code node that analyzes email content using pattern matching to identify order-related emails based on keywords, order numbers, and shipping terminology.

Email Router (IF Node)

Routes emails based on classification results:

• TRUE branch: Order-related emails proceed to extraction
• FALSE branch: Non-order emails are filtered out (no action)

Email Classification and Extraction Agent

AI-powered parser using Google Gemini or OpenAI to extract structured order information:

• Order number, items, prices, quantities
• Order status (Ordered/Shipped/Out for Delivery/Delivered)
• Customer name, delivery location, expected dates
• Vendor identification

Structured Output Parser

Validates and formats AI extraction output into clean JSON for downstream processing.

Search a database in Notion

Queries the Notion database by order number to check if a record already exists, preventing duplicates.

Order Database Sync Agent

Intelligent database manager that decides whether to create new records or update existing ones based on search results and status comparison.

Create a database page in Notion

Adds new order records to Notion when no existing record is found.

Update a database page in Notion

Modifies existing records when order status changes, appending timestamped notes for audit history.

No Action Taken

Terminates workflow branch for non-order emails with no further processing.

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Customization Options

Add More Vendors

Edit the Check Email Type node to add vendor-specific keywords:

const customVendors = [
  'your-vendor-name',
  'vendor-domain.com'
];

Modify Status Values

Update the Email Classification and Extraction Agent prompt to add custom status values or change status progression logic.

Add Email Notifications

Insert a Send Email node after database sync to receive notifications for status changes.

Filter by Labels

Configure Gmail Trigger to monitor only specific labels (e.g., "Orders", "Shopping").

Multi-Database Support

Duplicate the Notion sync section to route different vendors to separate databases.

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Troubleshooting

Email not being classified as order

• Check the Check Email Type node output
• Add vendor-specific keywords to the classification patterns
• Review email content for order indicators

AI extraction returning empty data

• Verify AI model credentials are valid
• Check if email content is being passed correctly
• Review the extraction prompt for compatibility with email format

Notion database not updating

• Confirm integration has edit permissions on the database
• Verify database ID is correct in all Notion nodes
• Check that property names in the workflow match your Notion schema exactly

Duplicate records being created

• Ensure Search a database in Notion node is filtering by Order Number
• Verify the search results are being evaluated correctly in the sync agent

Status not updating

• Check if the Order Database Sync Agent is comparing current vs new status
• Review the status comparison logic in the agent prompt

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Performance Considerations

• Email Volume: This workflow processes each email individually. For high-volume inboxes, consider adding filters or label-based routing.
• AI Costs: Each email classification uses AI tokens. Monitor your API usage and costs.
• Rate Limits: Notion API has rate limits (3 requests/second). The workflow handles this gracefully with built-in error handling.

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Privacy & Security

• All email content is processed through AI APIs (Google/OpenAI) - review their privacy policies
• Notion data is stored in your workspace with your configured permissions
• No data is stored or logged outside your n8n instance, AI provider, and Notion workspace
• Consider using self-hosted AI models for sensitive order information

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Support & Contributions

Found a bug or have a suggestion? Please open an issue or contribute improvements to this template!

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License

This template is provided as-is under the MIT License. Feel free to modify and distribute as needed.

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Credits

Created for the n8n community to streamline e-commerce order tracking across multiple platforms.