Sync customers to Mailchimp or Platform.ly lists, text them through Twilio (with a WhatsApp option) straight from the customer list, request reviews after a sale via Sidekick, and let new customers register through the public intake form.

Your customer list is only worth what you do with it. PHP Point Of Sale connects the profiles you already keep to the channels stores actually use — email lists, text messages and review requests — and each integration is configured on the location record, so a multi-store business can run different accounts at different stores; see locations and registers.

Email marketing with Mailchimp

Mailchimp is an email list service for newsletters and campaigns. Connected, it lets you subscribe customers to your Mailchimp audiences without exporting spreadsheets:

1. Log in to Mailchimp and create an API key (under your account's Extras → API keys, click to generate one) and copy it.
2. In PHP Point Of Sale, open Locations in the left menu and Edit the location you're connecting.
3. Paste the key into the Mailchimp API Key field.
4. Optionally pick Default Mailing Lists — the audiences preselected for customers created at this location.
5. Save the location.

From then on, every customer form at that location shows a Mailing Lists section listing your Mailchimp audiences as checkboxes — tick them while creating or editing a customer and the subscription happens as part of saving the profile. Repeat the setup per location if different stores use different Mailchimp accounts.

Segmenting with Platform.ly

If you use Platform.ly instead, the setup mirrors Mailchimp: enter the Platform.ly API Key and Platformly Project ID on the location, and customer profiles gain a Segments section where you place the customer into your Platform.ly segments.

Text messages with Twilio

SMS runs through Twilio, configured per location: edit the location and fill in Twilio SID, Twilio Token and Twilio SMS From Number (your Twilio phone number). The same credentials power everything that texts a customer:

• Bulk and one-off texts from the customer list — see the steps below.
• SMS receipts — customers with Always SMS Receipt on their profile, or a text receipt chosen at checkout.
• Status notifications from work orders and deliveries, so customers hear about progress automatically.

Tick Send SMS via WhatsApp on the location to deliver these messages over WhatsApp instead of SMS — useful in regions where WhatsApp is the default channel. Twilio account setup and the rest of the messaging stack are covered in email, SMS and notifications.

Send a text to customers

1. Go to Customers → Customers in the left menu.
2. Tick the checkbox on one or more customer rows.
3. Click Send SMS in the menu that appears above the list.
4. Type your message in the Write your message window ("your order is ready", "we found the part") and click Submit.

Each selected customer must have a phone number on file — the app reports per customer when a number is missing or a message can't be sent, and if Twilio isn't configured for your current location it links you straight to the location's message configuration. Get customers' express consent before texting; message and data rates may apply.

Email customers

1. On the same customer list, tick the customers to contact.
2. Click E-Mail above the list.

Your device's email application opens with the selected customers' addresses pre-filled, ready to compose — the app hands the addresses to whatever mail service you normally use. Only customers with an email on their profile are included. (Automated emails — receipts, statements, invoices — send through the app itself; see email, SMS and notifications.)

Review requests with Sidekick

Reviews drive local search, and the best moment to ask is right after a good visit. Sidekick is the connected review platform:

• On the location record, enter the Sidekick API Key.
• Tick Sidekick Automatically Ask For Reviews After Sale — after every completed sale with a customer attached, that customer's contact details (name, email, phone, address, company) are pushed to Sidekick, which handles the review request. Customers without an email or phone number are skipped.
• To work your existing base and not just new sales, use the bulk export: on Customers → Customers, click the ellipsis (…) and choose Export to Sidekick, then confirm. A progress percentage tracks the run. The option only appears when a location has a Sidekick API key, and it's gated by the Export to Sidekick permission on the Customers module — see permissions and templates.

Customers assigned to a location are exported using that location's key; customers without a location go to every location that has a key.

The customer intake form

The intake form is a public web page where customers type their own details and land in your database as regular customer profiles — no employee login involved.

1. Go to Customers → Customers.
2. Click the ellipsis (…) in the top right and choose Customer Intake Form.
3. A new tab opens with the form. Copy its URL to use anywhere: a tablet or kiosk at the counter, a QR code on signage, a link in an email or on your site.

The form collects title, first and last name, email, phone number, address, city, state, zip, country and comments — plus any customer custom fields you've marked Show on Customer Intake Form. After Submit, the page thanks the customer and refreshes, ready for the next person, and the new profile appears in Customers immediately — ready for mailing lists and loyalty.

If self-service signup doesn't fit your store, turn on Disable Customer Intake Form in Store Config: the menu link disappears and the public page stops working.

A practical rollout order

Get the intake form and Mailchimp running first, since a growing list makes every later channel better; add SMS when you have order-status moments worth texting about; and turn on review requests once service is consistently worth reviewing.

Common questions

Why don't I see Mailing Lists on the customer form? The current location has no Mailchimp API Key. Lists appear per location, so check the location the employee is signed in to — and verify the key is valid in Mailchimp.

Why did Send SMS fail for some customers? Each failure is reported by name: usually the profile has no phone number, or the number can't receive messages. If nothing sends at all, the location's Twilio SID / Token / SMS From Number aren't configured — the error links you to the location's message settings.

Can I message customers on WhatsApp instead of SMS? Yes — tick Send SMS via WhatsApp on the location. Texts, SMS receipts and status notifications then go out over WhatsApp through Twilio.

How do customers get asked for a review automatically? Enter the location's Sidekick API Key and tick Sidekick Automatically Ask For Reviews After Sale. Every completed sale with an attached customer (who has an email or phone) sends their contact to Sidekick for the request.

Where does the intake form link go — can I put it on a tablet? Anywhere. Open … → Customer Intake Form, copy the tab's URL, and load it on any device or turn it into a QR code. The form resets after each submission, so one kiosk serves customer after customer.

Can I add my own questions to the intake form? Yes — create customer custom fields and tick Show on Customer Intake Form on each field you want the public form to ask.

How do I turn self-service signup off? Store Config → Disable Customer Intake Form. The menu entry disappears and the public URL stops accepting submissions.