Thinking about adding SimpleConnect to your store? This article answers the questions store owners ask most often before they start, such as what it costs, whether you can use the customer information already in SimpleConsign, and how texting and email work day to day. SimpleConnect is the marketing and reputation tool built into SimpleConsign. It includes email marketing, text messaging (SMS), and Reputation Management for your online reviews.
Applies to: SimpleConsign accounts with the SimpleConnect add-on. US customers only.
In this article
- Availability and getting started
- Pricing and plans
- Your customers and opt-ins
- Text messaging
- Email marketing
- Importing and exporting contacts
- Training and resources
Availability and getting started
When will SimpleConnect be available to my store?
SimpleConnect is in Beta with a small group of stores right now, and we aren't adding more stores yet. When it opens up, we'll announce it in the What's New section at the top of SimpleConsign, so that's the best place to watch.
Do I need a separate account, or do I have to move my data over?
No. SimpleConnect is part of your SimpleConsign account. Once the add-on is active, a SimpleConnect button appears in SimpleConsign, and clicking it signs you straight in. There's no second login or password.
Your customer and consignor list syncs in automatically, so there's nothing to migrate or upload.
Do I have to use all three tools?
No. Every plan includes email, text messaging, and Reputation Management, but you can use only the ones you want. Many stores start with email or reviews and add texting later.
Pricing and plans
How much does SimpleConnect cost?
There are three plans. Pricing is per location, per month, and it's added to your existing SimpleConsign bill.
| Plan | Monthly price |
|---|---|
| Essentials | $49 |
| Growth | $69 |
| Pro | $79 |
An active SimpleConsign subscription is required.
Is it a flat fee or based on how much I send?
Each plan is a flat monthly fee. Every plan includes all three tools. The only difference between plans is how many emails and text segments you can send each month. A segment is how carriers measure texts: every 160 characters is one segment.
If you run low before the month ends, you can buy a one-time top-up instead of changing plans:
| Top-up | Amount | Price |
|---|---|---|
| 500 additional emails | $1.25 | |
| 1,000 additional emails | $2.50 | |
| SMS | 500 additional segments | $4.50 |
| SMS | 1,000 additional segments | $9.00 |
Unused emails and segments don't carry over to the next month. For more on how usage is counted, see SimpleConnect Billing and Top-ups.
Is there a discount for higher plans or multiple locations?
No. Pricing is per location, and the plan prices above apply no matter which SimpleConsign plan you have or how many locations you add.
Is SimpleConnect billed separately?
No. It's an add-on to your SimpleConsign subscription, so it's on the same bill and the same account.
Your customers and opt-ins
Can I use the phone numbers and emails already in SimpleConsign?
Yes. Your customers' and consignors' names, email addresses, and phone numbers sync into SimpleConnect automatically and stay current.
Your reachable list may be smaller than your customer list. Before SimpleConnect can send someone marketing, they need to be opted in:
- Email: adding an email address to a profile opts that customer in to marketing email automatically.
- Text: adding a phone number does not opt the customer in to marketing texts. Someone has to choose that option on purpose. This is a legal requirement, because consent for marketing texts has to be given, not assumed.
How do customers opt in to texts?
You can set a customer's communication preferences in several places:
- On the customer or consignor profile, under Communication Preferences in the detail view
- When adding a new customer at the terminal, as part of the new customer form
- At checkout, where the customer's preferences open automatically when they're attached to a transaction, so your cashier can confirm them
- In Consignor Access, where consignors and vendors can log in and manage their own preferences
Can customers enter their own information on an iPad or tablet in the store?
No. There isn't a self sign-up option for customers right now, such as an iPad or kiosk in the store. Your staff add new customers and their preferences at the terminal, and consignors can update their own preferences in Consignor Access.
Can I connect the email sign-up form on my website, such as WordPress?
No. There's no direct connection to website sign-up forms right now. If you collect sign-ups on your website, you can export them as a CSV file and import them into SimpleConnect as an email list or a text group. See Importing and exporting contacts below.
Only import people who agreed to hear from you. Imported contacts also don't create customer records in SimpleConsign, and they don't have purchase history, so they won't show up in lists built from spending, brands, or visit dates.
My store moved to SimpleConsign from another system. Is that customer history included?
SimpleConnect uses the customer and consignor history stored in SimpleConsign, such as purchases, consignments, spending, and visit dates. That history is what powers the targeting filters in List Builder.
Customer history that was imported into SimpleConsign during your data conversion syncs over to SimpleConnect, just like the rest of your SimpleConsign data. If something wasn't part of the conversion, it won't be available in SimpleConnect either.
If someone replies STOP, are they removed automatically?
Yes. When someone replies STOP or OUT to a text, they're opted out automatically, and their profile in SimpleConsign updates too. Email works the same way when someone clicks Unsubscribe. Nothing manual is needed on your end.
To opt back in to texts, the customer has to text START to your texting number from their own phone. You can't opt them back in for them.
Text messaging
Do I need to build a landing page to send a text?
No. You can send plain text messages to one person or a whole group, and you can paste a link to your website or social media page right into the text.
Page Builder is optional. It lets you build a simple mobile-friendly page (often called a landing page) with photos and buttons, then send its link in a short text. It's useful when you have more to share than fits in a text, like photos of new arrivals.
What are inbound messages, and do they count toward my plan?
Inbound messages are texts your customers and consignors send to you. Yes, they count toward your monthly segments, the same as texts you send. Automatic replies and keyword responses count too.
Where do I read and reply to texts? Is there a phone app?
There's no mobile app for SimpleConnect. You read and reply to texts in Messages, in the SMS System inside SimpleConnect. Owners and managers can also turn on email alerts under Settings > Alerts to get an email when a new text comes in.
You can open SimpleConnect in your phone's web browser, but it isn't designed for small screens and can be hard to use, so we don't recommend it. For the best experience, use a computer.
Will SimpleConnect tell me if a phone number is invalid?
Not always. The system doesn't check that a number is complete or that it's a mobile number. A text to a landline or a number with missing digits looks like it sent, but it isn't delivered, doesn't show in the SMS error report, and still uses segments.
To keep your list clean:
- Keep phone numbers accurate in SimpleConsign. Make sure each one is a complete, 10-digit mobile number.
- Run the SMS error report in the SMS System for the day you sent. It shows texts that failed for reasons like a disconnected number. The report doesn't run on its own, so you have to open it and run it.
- Check the duplicate phone number report to find numbers shared by more than one customer, like family members.
Why does my store have two texting numbers?
Your location is given two numbers: one for transactional messages (one-to-one conversations about a purchase, pickup, or question) and one for marketing messages (promotions, sales, new arrivals). Keeping them separate keeps the two kinds of consent separate, so someone can opt out of promotions and still get the service messages they want.
Email marketing
Will emails come from my store's address?
By default, your emails send from an @mysimpleconnect.com address created for your store, so you can start sending right away. If your business owns a website domain, you can send from your own address instead, like info@yourstore.com. See Sending SimpleConnect Emails from Your Own Domain.
Free addresses such as Gmail, Yahoo, or Outlook.com can't be used as the sending address.
Are email templates easy to change for my brand?
Yes. Templates use drag-and-drop editing. You can add your own images, headings, buttons, columns, and social media links, and set your colors, font, and text size for the whole email under Body settings.
If I set up an automation for customers who haven't shopped in a while, will they get the email every day?
No. Automations like Days Last Purchase and Days Last Consignment check your data every day, but they only email people who newly reach the number of days you chose. A customer who already got the email won't get it again the next day.
Automations keep running until you turn them off, so check in on them now and then.
Importing and exporting contacts
Can I import contacts?
Yes, though most stores don't need to, since your SimpleConsign customers sync automatically. Imports are for contacts from somewhere else, like an old email platform or an event sign-up sheet.
- Email Marketing: upload a CSV as a list. You can also upload a suppression list to carry over people who unsubscribed on your old platform.
- SMS System: import a CSV into a group, up to 4,000 contacts per file. Only contacts with a valid mobile number who are opted in to texts are added.
Can I export contacts?
No. SimpleConnect doesn't have an option to export your contacts or email lists. The only exports are in the SMS System, where you can download your opt-out list and the duplicate phone number report as CSV files. Your full customer list lives in SimpleConsign, which is the system of record.
Training and resources
Is there live training for SimpleConnect?
Yes. We're holding live training webinars on Mondays and Tuesdays at 10:00 AM Central:
- November: Monday the 2nd, Tuesday the 3rd, Monday the 9th, Tuesday the 10th, Monday the 16th, Tuesday the 17th, Monday the 23rd, Tuesday the 24th, Monday the 30th
- December: Tuesday the 1st, Monday the 7th, Tuesday the 8th, Monday the 14th, Tuesday the 15th
Are training and resources included?
Yes. The Help Center has articles for every part of SimpleConnect, with video walkthroughs in the Email Marketing and Reputation Management articles. Good places to start:
- SimpleConnect Overview, including the Marketing 101 section with real campaign examples
- Reach the Right Customers and Consignors with SimpleConnect, with start-to-finish walkthroughs of common marketing tasks
- SimpleConnect FAQ: How do I...?, with quick step-by-step answers
Next step
When you're ready to send your first campaign, Reach the Right Customers and Consignors with SimpleConnect walks you through common tasks from start to finish, like reaching shoppers based on what they've bought and consignors based on what they've brought in.