Mailchimp Integration
The Mailchimp integration connects EventWorks to your Mailchimp account, letting you sync contacts to your email audiences, import subscribers back into EventWorks, and create targeted email campaigns from your account data.
Getting There
Go to Settings > Integrations and find the Mailchimp card. Click Connect to begin setup, or click the Settings (wrench icon) button if you're already connected.
Overview
Once connected, Mailchimp handles:
- Contacts → Mailchimp — Push contacts to your Mailchimp audience with merge field mapping
- Mailchimp → Contacts — Import subscribers from Mailchimp into EventWorks
- Subscription status — Automatically pushed to Mailchimp when contacts are updated in EventWorks
- Campaigns — Create a Mailchimp campaign segment from your accounts and open the campaign editor
Key Concepts
API Key Authentication
Mailchimp connects using an API key that you generate in your Mailchimp account. Enter it when connecting the integration.
Audiences (Lists)
You select which Mailchimp audience (list) to sync with. All contact syncing and subscriber imports work with this selected audience.
Merge Fields
Merge fields let you map EventWorks contact data to Mailchimp merge tags. For example, you might map first_name to the Mailchimp tag FNAME so that first names appear in your email templates.
How To...
Connect to Mailchimp
- Go to Settings > Integrations.
- Click the Mailchimp card, then click Connect to MailChimp.
- Enter your Mailchimp API key in the field provided.
- Click Connect to MailChimp.
Tip: You can find your API key in Mailchimp under Account > Extras > API Keys.
Select Your Audience
After connecting:
- Click the Settings button on the Mailchimp card.
- Under the Lists section, select the Mailchimp audience you want to sync with from the dropdown.
- Click Save.
Configure Merge Fields
Merge fields map EventWorks contact data to Mailchimp merge tags so your subscriber information is available in email campaigns:
- On the Mailchimp settings page, find the Merge fields section.
- For each EventWorks field, enter the corresponding Mailchimp merge tag:
| EventWorks Field | Example Merge Tag |
|---|---|
| first_name | FNAME |
| last_name | LNAME |
| company | COMPANY |
| account.type | ACCTYPE |
| account.postcode | POSTCODE |
| account.manager.name | MANAGER |
| account.tags_list | TAGS |
- Click Save.
Note: The merge tags you enter must match the merge tags defined in your Mailchimp audience. Create the merge tags in Mailchimp first if they don't already exist.
Sync Contacts to Mailchimp
To push contacts from EventWorks to your Mailchimp audience:
- On the Mailchimp settings page, find the Sync Contacts section.
- Select a date range to filter which contacts are included (based on creation date).
- Click Sync Contacts.
Contacts with email addresses are pushed to your selected Mailchimp audience. Their subscription status and merge field data are included.
Note: Contacts without email addresses are skipped.
Import Subscribers from Mailchimp
To pull subscribers from your Mailchimp audience into EventWorks:
- On the Mailchimp settings page, use the import option.
- Subscribed members from your selected audience are imported as contacts in EventWorks.
- If a contact's company merge field has a value, an account is automatically created or matched.
Create a Campaign from Accounts
You can create a targeted Mailchimp campaign from your EventWorks account data:
- On the Mailchimp card, use the campaign creation option.
- EventWorks collects all email addresses from your accounts' contacts.
- A segment is created in your Mailchimp audience with these contacts.
- A new campaign is created targeting that segment.
- You'll be redirected to Mailchimp's campaign editor to design and send your email.
Automatic Subscription Sync
When you update a contact's subscription status in EventWorks, the change is automatically pushed to Mailchimp:
- If a contact is marked as subscribed in EventWorks, they're subscribed in Mailchimp.
- If a contact is marked as unsubscribed in EventWorks, they're unsubscribed in Mailchimp.
This happens automatically whenever a contact is saved, as long as the Mailchimp integration is enabled and the contact has an email address.
Disable the Mailchimp Integration
- Go to Settings > Integrations and find the Mailchimp card.
- Click the Disable button.
Settings & Configuration
All Mailchimp settings are managed at Settings > Integrations > Mailchimp. You need the edit settings permission.
| Setting | Description |
|---|---|
| API key | Your Mailchimp API key |
| List | The Mailchimp audience to sync with |
| Merge fields | Map EventWorks contact fields to Mailchimp merge tags |
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Can I sync to multiple Mailchimp audiences?No. You can select one audience at a time. To sync with a different audience, change the list selection in the settings.
Q: What happens if a contact doesn't have an email?Contacts without email addresses are skipped during sync. An email is required for Mailchimp subscribers.
Q: Are existing Mailchimp contacts duplicated?No. Contacts are matched by email address. If a subscriber with the same email already exists in your Mailchimp audience, their data is updated rather than duplicated.
Q: How do I create merge tags in Mailchimp?In Mailchimp, go to your Audience > Settings > Audience fields and |MERGE| tags. Add the merge tags you want to use, then enter the corresponding tag names in the EventWorks merge field settings.