Many Offset clients use MailChimp as their preferred email marketing solution. While we don't have an API integration with their system, clients who want to utilize the power of Auto Login Tokens, aka. Magic Links, clients can export customer lists with the tokens attached. You can then import those unique tokens into your MailChimp customer accounts using MailChimp Merge Tags. This allows customers to gain access to their accounts without having to enter their login credentials. This article describes the steps of exporting those tags for use in MailChimp.
IMPORTANT: Auto Login Tokens allow customers to click a link and automatically log into their account so they can place an order. It is important to keep in mind that you must take great care in attaching these links to the correct customer account as they are non-secure and bypass account passwords. Importing these tokens incorrectly could give a customer immediate access to another customer's account. Always make sure to test this process internally before sending auto-login links to a large number of customers. You may also want to include a warning in your email message for customers reminding them not to forward this email to others.
Exporting Customers Along With Auto Login Tokens
You can download an export of customers along with their autologin tokens in a few different places in the system depending on the list you are looking for.
NOTE: When you export the list, the system will generate a new, unique token for each customer. This token will allow customers access to their accounts for 60 days. After 60 days, when the link is clicked, the customer will be prompted to enter their email and password to gain access. Make sure to import a new export of tokens from Offset to your MailChimp customer accounts before each release.
All Customers Magic Link Export
This option is best for clients who want to download a list of ALL the customers in their database.
Go to the Customers page in Offset. Select the Actions dropdown and choose EXPORTS > All Customers (Magic Link).
Exporting an All Customers (Magic Link) file on the Customers page.
Your All Customers (Magic Link) export will include all the customer details of a regular customer export file with an additional column in the last cell called preauth_login_key with the auto login tokens.
An example of Auto Login Tokens from the All Customers (Magic Link) export.
Exporting A Filtered Customer List
If you want to download a select list of customers, use the Customer Filters to narrow down results based on specific criteria like Groups, Customer Tags, or even Clubs.
Navigate to the Customers page and select the Filters button. Enter your search criteria and select Filter Customers to generate your results. To export tokens, select some or all of the customers in the list by selecting the checkbox to the left of the ID column. Next, select the Choose an Action dropdown and choose the option for Customer Export with Auto Login Token [.csv].
Exporting a Customer Export with Auto Login Token [.csv] file on the Customers page using the Choose An Action dropdown.
The Customer Export with Auto Login Token [.csv] export will include fewer columns than a regular customer export file with the tokens in the last cell called preauth_login_key.
An example of the Customer Export with Auto Login Token [.csv] export file.
After downloading your file, make sure to save the file for use in the next step.
Copying Your MailChimp Marketing Links
When your email draft is ready in MailChimp, you will want to insert the URL for the page that you want your customers to access using their token. Go to Settings > Marketing Page page and scroll down to the MailChimp header. This is where you can choose the appropriate link. For example, if you want folks to log into a live allocation offer, you would use the Offering Link. If you want customers to update the credit card on their account, you should use the Account Billing Link. For club members updating their club credit card, choose the Account Club Billing Link. Copy the entire link to your clipboard for pasting into your MailChimp campaign.
Examples of MailChimp Marketing Links
Inserting MailChimp Marketing Links into A MailChimp Campaign.
In your Mailchimp campaign, create a link to text or create a button with a link. An example button text could say, "Click Here To Access Your Allocation" or "Click Here to Update Your Credit Card." Choose the appropriate URL from the Marketing Links > MailChimp page in Offset to point people to the intended page. Next, paste the MailChimp Marketing Link into your button or link.
Adjusting your Mergetag Name
After pasting the Offset Marketing link into your campaign, make sure to update the link with the appropriate MailChimp Merge Tag. For example, the information between the "*|" where it says "MMERGETAG" should match the name of the merge tag where you will import the data in MailChimp. You will likely need to add a new merge tag for this step in the process. If you are not sure how to add a new merge Merge Tag, please contact MailChimp support.
Replace MMERGETAG with the appropriate customer merge tag.
Importing Merge Tags Data Into MailChimp
Once your links are set up, and you have added your new Merge Tag, you will need to import the tokens into your MailChimp accounts. Use the token export file to map to your MailChimp customer accounts using the email and preauth_login_key columns. The preauth_login_key tokens should populate in your Merge Tag field. Always make sure that the email and token are lined up exactly as they appear on the export before importing into MailChimp to ensure customers will log into the correct account. If you are not sure how to import this data in MailChimp, please reach out to their support team for assistance.
Columns to import into MailChimp Merge Tags
NOTE: Offset does not provide support for MailChimp. For assistance with the MailChimp app, please visit Mailchimp Support Options.
Additional Resources From MailChimp