Omnisend provides unified email and SMS marketing for Shopify stores. This guide covers complete setup for multi-channel ecommerce marketing.
Omnisend Email Marketing & SMS
Why Omnisend for Shopify?
Related: Shopify Seguno Integration: Email Marketing Guide (2025), Mailchimp setup guide, favicon converter.
Omnisend advantages:
| Feature | Benefit |
|---|---|
| Multi-channel | Email + SMS + Push |
| Ecommerce focus | Built for online stores |
| Easy to use | Simple interface |
| Pre-built workflows | Ready-to-use automations |
| Affordable | Competitive pricing |
Best for:
- SMB Shopify stores
- Combined email + SMS needs
- Teams wanting simplicity
- Budget-conscious merchants
Omnisend Pricing
Related: Klaviyo setup guide, connect Shopify with Postscript, Yotpo integration.
| Plan | Emails/mo | SMS | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free | 500 | 60 | $0 |
| Standard | 6,000+ | Variable | $16+/mo |
| Pro | Unlimited | Variable | $59+/mo |
SMS credits are purchased separately or included in Pro plan.
Setting Up Omnisend
Related: Pinterest integration, Shopify setup guide.
Step 1: Install App
- Go to Shopify App Store
- Search “Omnisend”
- Click Add app
- Install and open
Step 2: Connect Store
- Authorize Shopify connection
- Complete account setup
- Verify sender email
Step 3: Import Data
Data imported automatically:
├── Customers and emails
├── Order history
├── Product catalog
├── Cart data
└── Browse behavior
Essential Automations
Pre-Built Workflows
| Workflow | Trigger | Goal |
|---|---|---|
| Welcome Series | New subscriber | First purchase |
| Abandoned Cart | Cart left | Recover sale |
| Browse Abandonment | Viewed, didn’t add | Re-engage |
| Order Confirmation | Purchase | Confirm + upsell |
| Product Review | Days after delivery | Get reviews |
| Win-Back | No purchase 60+ days | Reactivate |
Setting Up Abandoned Cart
- Go to Automation > Workflows
- Select Abandoned Cart
- Customize timing:
- Email 1: 1 hour
- SMS: 4 hours (optional)
- Email 2: 24 hours
- Edit content
- Activate
Welcome Series Setup
- Choose Welcome Series template
- Configure 3-5 emails:
- Welcome + discount
- Brand story
- Best sellers
- Social proof
- Set timing (1-2 days apart)
- Activate
SMS Marketing
Enable SMS
- Go to Settings > SMS
- Apply for number or bring your own
- Set compliance settings
- Enable in workflows
SMS Best Practices
- Keep messages under 160 chars
- Include clear CTA
- Use sparingly (2-4/month max)
- Always include opt-out
- Time messages appropriately
SMS + Email Workflows
Combine channels:
Abandoned Cart Flow:
├── 1 hour: Email reminder
├── 4 hours: SMS reminder
├── 24 hours: Email + discount
└── 48 hours: Final SMS (optional)
Campaign Types
Email Campaigns
- Promotional sales
- New arrivals
- Newsletters
- Holiday campaigns
SMS Campaigns
- Flash sales
- Exclusive offers
- Time-sensitive alerts
- VIP announcements
Push Notifications
- Back in stock
- Price drops
- New products
- Sale reminders
Segmentation
Built-In Segments
| Segment | Criteria |
|---|---|
| New subscribers | Joined last 30 days |
| Buyers | Made purchase |
| Non-buyers | Subscribed, no purchase |
| VIP | High order value |
| At-risk | No purchase 90+ days |
Custom Segments
Create based on:
- Purchase behavior
- Email engagement
- Products purchased
- Order value
- Location
Forms and Popups
Popup Types
| Type | Use Case |
|---|---|
| Welcome popup | First-time visitors |
| Exit intent | Leaving without action |
| Wheel of fortune | Gamified signup |
| Embedded | Always visible |
| Teaser | Minimal, expandable |
Popup Setup
- Go to Forms
- Choose template
- Customize design
- Set targeting rules
- Enable
Reporting
Key Metrics
| Metric | Target |
|---|---|
| Open rate | 20-25%+ |
| Click rate | 2-5% |
| Conversion rate | 1-3% |
| Revenue per email | Track trend |
| SMS opt-in rate | 5-10% |
Revenue Attribution
Omnisend tracks:
- Email-driven revenue
- SMS-driven revenue
- Campaign performance
- Workflow performance
Omnisend vs Klaviyo
| Feature | Omnisend | Klaviyo |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | $$ | $$$ |
| Ease of use | Easier | More complex |
| SMS included | Yes | Separate |
| Segmentation | Good | Excellent |
| Analytics | Good | Excellent |
| Best for | SMB | Data-driven |
Troubleshooting
Low Deliverability
Solutions:
- Verify domain (DKIM, SPF)
- Warm up sending
- Clean list regularly
- Monitor spam complaints
Workflows Not Triggering
Check:
- Workflow is active
- Trigger conditions met
- Contact in segment
- Test with real action
Best Practices
List Building
- Offer value for signup
- Use exit intent popups
- Collect SMS consent separately
- Set expectations
Content
- Personalize with customer data
- Mobile-first design
- Clear CTAs
- Test subject lines
Frequency
- Email: 2-4/week maximum
- SMS: 2-4/month
- Push: 1-2/week
2025 Snapshot
Quick benchmarks for the Omnisend workflow. Use these as planning ranges, then validate against your own data.
| Data point | 2024 | 2025 | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|---|
| Typical core flow setup (welcome + abandoned cart) | 30–60 min | 20–45 min | Estimates time-to-first-value |
| Abandoned cart recovery benchmark | 5–10% | 5–15% | Sets realistic expectations for automation revenue |
| Email ROI benchmark (industry) | ~$36 per $1 | ~$36–$42+ per $1 | Useful for budgeting and vendor comparisons |
| Recommended cadence (SMB) | 1–2 emails/week | 2–4 emails/week | Balances revenue vs list fatigue |
Practical Implementation Notes
Data sync and ownership
Most Shopify integrations follow the same lifecycle: a one‑time historical import (customers, products, orders) followed by ongoing incremental updates via API/webhooks. In practice, the biggest failures come from identity and mapping—not from missing features. Before you activate anything customer‑facing, decide which system is the source of truth for customer identity (email vs phone), consent flags, segmentation, and lifecycle fields.
Treat the first week as a controlled rollout. Start with a small segment (internal addresses or a low‑risk cohort), validate that events fire exactly once, and then scale automation volume. This approach prevents silent double‑sending, broken attribution, and hard‑to‑debug “it looks connected but nothing happens” situations.
QA checklist (run once, then reuse)
Use a seed dataset (test customers, a few SKUs, a low‑value test order) to run an end‑to‑end path: signup → first purchase → fulfillment → refund. Confirm that reporting matches your store’s order IDs and timestamps.
Operational checks:
- App permissions/scopes match the features you actually use
- Timezone aligns across scheduled sends, reporting windows, and dashboards
- Edge cases are represented correctly (partial refunds, cancellations, multi‑location fulfillments)
- Baselines are captured so you can measure lift after go‑live
Marketing workflow notes
For email/SMS platforms, prioritize two flows first: welcome and abandoned checkout/cart. Keep early versions simple (one goal per message) and add segmentation only after you’ve validated tracking. A practical sequence is: welcome → abandon → post‑purchase education → win‑back.
Decisions that avoid painful rework:
- Frequency caps per channel (and quiet hours for SMS)
- Consent collection and proof (opt‑in method, opt‑out handling, suppression lists)
- Discount strategy (one‑time codes, expiry windows, exclusions for already‑discounted items)
- Attribution rules (what counts as “assisted” vs “last click”)
Additional operational tip: keep a lightweight changelog of integration settings (API tokens, webhook endpoints, key automations) so you can correlate performance changes to configuration changes during troubleshooting.
When something looks “connected but not working”, start with the simplest invariant: can you see the same order/customer identifiers in both systems, and do timestamps line up with your store timezone? Fix identity first, then rebuild rules.
Next Steps
After setup:
- Enable welcome series - First automation
- Set up abandoned cart - Quick revenue
- Create popup - List building
- Test SMS - If budget allows
- Monitor performance - Optimize
Shopify + Omnisend implementation checklist (2025)
This section adds practical “make it stable” steps you can use after you install the app/connector. It’s intentionally lightweight: the goal is fewer sync surprises, cleaner reporting, and easier troubleshooting.
1) Quick setup checklist
- Permissions first: grant only the scopes you need (orders/customers/products as required) and document who owns the admin credentials.
- Data mapping: confirm how email, phone, currency, and SKU are mapped between Shopify and Omnisend.
- Historical import: decide how far back to import orders/customers (avoid importing years of data if you don’t need it).
- Deduplication rules: pick one unique identifier per object (usually email for customers, order ID for orders) to prevent doubles.
- Alerts: set a lightweight alert path (email/Slack) for failed syncs, auth expiry, and API rate limits.
2) Data you should verify after connecting
Most integration issues show up in the first hour if you test the right things. Use the table below as a QA checklist (create a test order if needed).
| Data object | What to check | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Customers | Email/phone format, marketing consent fields, duplicates | Prevents double messaging and broken segmentation |
| Orders | Order total, tax, discount, shipping, currency | Keeps revenue reporting and automation triggers accurate |
| Line items | SKU, variant ID, quantity, refunds/returns behavior | Avoids inventory and attribution mismatches |
| Fulfillment | Status changes + timestamps, tracking numbers, carrier fields | Drives customer notifications and post-purchase flows |
| Catalog | Product titles, handles, images, collections/tags | Ensures personalization and reporting match your storefront |
3) Automation ideas for Marketing
- Welcome series: new subscriber → educational sequence + first-purchase offer in Omnisend.
- Abandoned cart: cart started but not purchased → reminder email/SMS from Omnisend (timing based on your AOV).
- Post-purchase: order created → delivery/usage tips + cross-sell for complementary products in Omnisend.
- Win-back: no purchase in 60–90 days → reactivation campaign using Omnisend segments.
- VIP: customer hits LTV threshold → move into VIP tier and trigger perks via Omnisend.
API sanity check (Shopify Admin API)
If your integration UI says “connected” but data isn’t flowing, a quick API call helps confirm whether the store is accessible and returning the objects you expect.
# List the 5 most recent orders (GraphQL)
curl -X POST "https://your-store.myshopify.com/admin/api/2025-01/graphql.json" \
-H "X-Shopify-Access-Token: $SHOPIFY_ADMIN_TOKEN" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d "{\"query\":\"{ orders(first: 5, sortKey: CREATED_AT, reverse: true) { edges { node { id name createdAt totalPriceSet { shopMoney { amount currencyCode } } customer { email } } } } }\"}"Tip: keep tokens/keys in environment variables, and test in a staging store/site before rolling changes to production.
4) KPIs to monitor (so you catch problems early)
- Sync freshness: how long it takes for a new order/customer event to appear in Omnisend.
- Error rate: failed syncs per day (and which object types fail most).
- Duplicates: number of merged/duplicate contacts or orders created by mapping mistakes.
- Revenue parity: weekly spot-check that Shopify totals match downstream reporting (especially after refunds).
- Attribution sanity: confirm that key events (purchase, refund, subscription) are tracked consistently.
5) A simple 30-day optimization plan
- Week 1: connect + map fields, then validate with 5–10 real orders/customers.
- Week 2: enable 1–2 automations and measure baseline KPIs (conversion, AOV, repeat rate).
- Week 3: tighten segmentation/rules (exclude recent buyers, add VIP thresholds, handle edge cases).
- Week 4: document the setup, create an “owner” checklist, and set a recurring monthly audit.
Related integration guides
More marketing tools: Klaviyo Shopify Integration: Setup Guide (2025), Shopify Mailchimp Integration: Complete Email Marketing Guide (2025), Shopify HubSpot Integration: Sync Ecommerce and CRM Data (2025).
Common issues (and fast fixes)
Even “simple” integrations fail in predictable ways. Use this as a quick troubleshooting playbook for Shopify + Omnisend.
- Duplicate customers/orders: usually caused by running two connectors at once. Pick one source of truth and dedupe by email (customers) and order ID (orders).
- Currency/timezone drift: confirm store timezone and reporting currency match what Omnisend expects, especially if you sell internationally.
- Missing permissions: if data is partially syncing, re-check API scopes (orders vs customers vs products) and re-authorize the app.
- Webhooks not firing: look for blocked callbacks, disabled webhooks, or a stale token. If possible, test with a fresh order and watch for events.
- Rate limits & delays: large imports or high order volume can queue syncs. Stagger imports, reduce lookback windows, and monitor retry queues.
- Refund/return mismatch: clarify whether refunds create separate objects or adjust the original order record (finance teams should agree on the model).
Privacy & compliance notes (2025)
Integrations often touch personal data (email, phone, address). Keep this lightweight checklist in mind:
- Least privilege: only grant the data scopes you actively use; remove unused apps quarterly.
- Consent fields: treat marketing consent separately from transactional messaging (especially for SMS).
- Data retention: define how long you keep customer event data, and who can export it.
- Access review: restrict admin accounts and rotate keys/tokens if staff changes.
Suggested rollout plan
- Connect in staging (if possible): validate mapping on a small dataset.
- Import a short history window: start with 30–90 days unless you have a clear reason to import more.
- Run side-by-side QA: compare a handful of orders across systems (totals, taxes, shipping, refunds).
- Go live gradually: enable 1–2 automations first, then expand once you trust the data.
Change control (keep it maintainable)
- One owner: assign a single owner for the integration (who approves mapping and workflow changes).
- Log changes: track what you changed (fields, filters, timing) and why, so you can roll back quickly.
- Monthly audit: re-check scopes, API tokens, and error logs—especially after major store/theme/app changes.
Sources
For more advanced features, see Klaviyo integration. For simpler email, check Mailchimp integration.
If you’re unsure where to start, document one “happy path” order from checkout to delivery and make every automation/report depend on that single source of truth.