Once your BigCommerce integration is connected, you can sync your existing BigCommerce contacts automatically into your Sinch MessageMedia account. You can set up contact sync when you first install the integration and automatically sync new contacts, customer groups and guest customers - without worrying about duplicate records.
Contact sync
Contact sync is a one-way automatic sync of contact information from BigCommerce to the Sinch MessageMedia platform. This means any names, phone numbers and emails in your BigCommerce database will be securely imported into your Sinch MessageMedia account - no manual uploads required.
These contacts are clearly marked as "BigCommerce" in your contact list to easily distinguish them from contacts added via other sources.
Contact sync automatically triggers every 24 hours - this pulls in the latest updates from your BigCommerce contacts list, including any changes or new entries and reflects them in your Sinch MessageMedia account.
Sinch MessageMedia sync history
Sync history is stored for 1 year. To view the sync history in Sinch MessageMedia:
- From the left-side menu, navigate to Contacts and then History.
- Click on the Syncs tab to the details of ongoing and completed syncs.
- To view detailed reports for completed syncs, click the More options (⋮) icon and click See detailed report.
The detailed sync report shows a breakdown of new contacts, updated contacts and invalid contacts.
Set up contact sync during installation
Getting started with contact sync is easy when you first install the Sinch MessageMedia app for BigCommerce integration. When you first connect the two platforms, check the box for Sync my contacts from BigCommerce to MessageMedia.
How these customers are shown and managed in Sinch MessageMedia differ depending on SMS opt-in consent option you select during installation:
Explicit consent: Only customers who have opted in to SMS marketing will be synced as subscribed. Customers who have opted out will be synced as unsubscribed for visibility.
Inferred (or implied) consent): Customers who provide their phone number and have a reasonable expectation of receiving SMS marketing (without explicitly opting in) will be synced as subscribed. Sinch MessageMedia will recognise and update their subscription status accordingly.
Important: The correct option will depend on regional regulations, and it is the customer's (i.e. your) responsibility to understand the opt-in requirements for their respective region.
Live (ongoing) sync
When a new customer is created during BigCommerce checkout, Sinch MessageMedia will automatically sync their details and subscription status to your contacts. This means the live sync will detect whether the customer opted in or out of SMS marketing at checkout and update their subscription status accordingly.
You can manage a contact's subscription status (unsubscribe / resubscribe) directly in the Sinch MessageMedia platform.
Sync customer groups
To keep your data organised, all existing BigCommerce customer segments and tags automatically sync as contact groups in the Sinch MessageMedia platform.
Sync "guest" customers
If a customer completes checkout as a guest, they won't appear as a customer in your BigCommerce store. Usually, this means you can't message them because their details aren't stored in BigCommerce's customer records.
With the Sinch MessageMedia integration, guest details are still synced to the Sinch MessageMedia platform and saved into a dedicated contact group called BigCommerce - Guests.
Contact sync duplicate handling
You can sync contacts from multiple supported integrations without creating duplicate records. This process keeps your contact data consistent, reduces manual cleanup and supports more accurate segmentation for multichannel messaging.
- Contacts with the same phone number will be merged during sync and tagged with a custom Source label in the Sinch MessageMedia platform under contact properties e.g. "BigCommerce, "Klaviyo".
- A single contact can belong to multiple source groups to enable better segmentation e.g. Contact A can be part of both "BigCommerce A" and "Klaviyo A" groups.