Why Aren't My Mailchimp Emails Sending with Coupon Carrier Codes?

If you're using Coupon Carrier with Mailchimp and your subscribers aren't receiving emails with their unique codes (or the code is blank), here's a troubleshooting checklist. We'll cover the most common causes, from configuration errors to Mailchimp-specific quirks.

1. Check Your Coupon Carrier Configuration

• Is it Active? Paused configurations won't trigger. Go to your Coupon Carrier dashboard and ensure the configuration is toggled "ON".
• Is it Connected? Verify that your Mailchimp connection is active. Go to "Connected Apps" in Coupon Carrier and check the status. If it's disconnected, reconnect it.
• Correct Trigger? Make sure your Coupon Carrier configuration is set to the correct trigger (e.g., "New subscriber to list," "Subscriber enters segment," "Tag added"). Double-check the list name and tag name.
• Code List: Ensure your configuration is linked to a code list that contains available codes. If your code list is empty, no codes can be delivered.
• Code Storage Field: Confirm that you've selected the correct Mailchimp merge field (e.g., *|COUPON|* ) where Coupon Carrier should store the code.

2. Check Your Mailchimp Setup

• Automation/Journey is Active: Make sure your Mailchimp automation (Classic Automation or Customer Journey) is turned ON.

• Correct Merge Tag: In your Mailchimp email template, verify that you've used the exact merge tag you specified in Coupon Carrier (e.g., *|COUPON|* ). A typo here will prevent the code from displaying. Use the "Merge Tags" dropdown in the Mailchimp editor to ensure accuracy.

  

• Subscriber Status: Ensure the subscriber you're testing with is actually a new subscriber or has the correct tag added after the Coupon Carrier configuration was activated. Mailchimp often won't re-trigger automations for existing subscribers. Test with a brand new email address.
• One Journey Per Subscriber (Important!): Mailchimp Customer Journeys typically only run once per subscriber. If you've already tested with an email address, it won't trigger again unless you've explicitly configured the Journey to repeat. See Mailchimp's documentation on Journey settings.

3. Timing and Delays

• Coupon Carrier Processing Time: Coupon Carrier checks for new triggers (new subscribers, tag additions) every few minutes (typically 1-5 minutes). There will be a slight delay.
• Mailchimp Delays: Mailchimp itself can sometimes experience delays in sending automated emails.

• Solution: Wait Trigger (Recommended for Journeys): To prevent emails from sending before the code is added, use a "Wait for Trigger" step in your Mailchimp Customer Journey. Set it to wait for a "Coupon Carrier" event.

  

  
  

  • In your Coupon Carrier configuration, enable the option to "Trigger a Customer Journey API Step" and provide a name for the event (e.g., "code_added"). This is what you'll wait for in Mailchimp.

    

• Tag Added Trigger: If you use the journey "tag added" as a starting point, you don't need to use a wait, because coupon carrier triggers mailchimp AFTER it has added the code.

4. Troubleshooting Specific Errors

• "Skipped" Requests in Coupon Carrier: Check your Coupon Carrier configuration's "Rejected/Skipped Requests" section. This will often provide a reason for the failure (e.g., "Email doesn't exist in segment," "Invalid merge fields"). Address the specific error.

  

• "Blocked" or "Paused" Redeem Link: If you're using a Redeem Link, ensure your configuration is active. If "Link Validation" is enabled, test emails will show as blocked; use live previews instead.
• Broken QR Code Image: Ensure that the image tag in the email is correct. See section 2. on "Correct Merge Tag."

5. Still Stuck?

If you've checked all of the above and your codes still aren't being delivered, please contact Coupon Carrier support with the following information:

• Your Coupon Carrier username.
• The name of the Coupon Carrier configuration.
• A screenshot of your Mailchimp automation/journey.
• The email address of a subscriber who should have received a code but didn't.
• The exact merge tag you're using in your email template.

This information will help us diagnose the problem quickly.