Your shop can automatically add interested customers to your email marketing list. Customers can opt in at registration, at checkout and from their dashboard, and all of them feed the same list. This guide explains how those opt-ins work and what you need to set up. For the sign-up forms visitors see on your blog, pages and waitlists, see Built-In Sign-Up Forms and Waitlist.
How customers opt in
At registration and at checkout
If you have set an opt-in label (see below), a tick box appears on the registration form and on the checkout page, including the confirmation page for free orders, so free products build your list too. When the customer ticks it, they are added to your marketing list straight away.
From the dashboard
A logged-in customer who did not opt in earlier can still subscribe later using the subscribe button on their dashboard. It is safe for them to click more than once, because they will not be added twice.
In every case, the customer's account also records that they are subscribed, so you can see who has opted in.
Setting it up
The opt-in only does something if your shop is connected to an email marketing provider. In your admin, open Site Settings, then Email Settings, then Email Marketing Integration. The key fields are:
Email Marketing Provider
Your email marketing provider: MailerLite, Kit (ConvertKit), Brevo, Mailchimp or AWeber. Leave this blank to switch the whole feature off. No opt-in box will appear and no one will be subscribed.
Marketing API Key
The key from your email provider. It is stored encrypted and is never shown again after you save it. If you are self-hosting, your shop needs an ENCRYPTION_KEY before it can save it: see The Encryption Key.
List / Group / Form ID
The number that tells your provider which list new subscribers join. This is the number people most often get wrong. For MailerLite it is the group ID, not the form ID. For Kit it is the form ID, for Brevo the list ID, for Mailchimp the audience ID, and for AWeber the account ID and list ID separated by a slash.
Default Subscriber Tag
An optional tag added to everyone, for example djangify-customer. In MailerLite a tag becomes a group, because MailerLite has no tags.
Buyers List / Group ID
Optional. A separate list for people who opt in from their purchases. If you fill it in, they are added there and tagged as customers. If you leave it empty, they join your main list.
Opt-in Checkbox Label
The wording shown next to the tick box at registration and checkout, for example "Keep me updated with exclusive tips, resources, and offers." If you leave it blank, no tick box appears at registration or checkout, though the dashboard subscribe button can still work.
Show Email List Stats panel
When ticked, a read-only Email List Stats panel appears in your admin under Site Data and shows your subscriber numbers from your provider. Untick it to hide the panel. Your list and forms keep working either way.
Confirmation emails
Customers are asked to confirm by email only if your provider is set up to do that. In MailerLite this is a setting called Double opt-in for API and integrations, which is off until you switch it on. The details for each provider are in Built-In Sign-Up Forms and Waitlist.
What happens behind the scenes
When a customer opts in, the shop sends their email address and name to your email provider and adds the relevant tag. If your provider is briefly unreachable, the customer's registration or dashboard action still completes. The subscription is attempted and logged, and is never allowed to block the customer.
A note on consent
Customers are only ever added when they actively tick the box or press subscribe. The shop never opts anyone in automatically, which keeps your list permission-based and your sending reputation healthy.