AlpacaRelay + Shopify: Quality-Scored Emails, Connected

Start by visiting AlpacaRelay and signing up for a free account. No credit card is required. During onboarding, you'll be asked to name your brand and select your industry (beauty, cosmetics, skincare, etc.). This information helps AlpacaRelay's AI tailor email recommendations and quality scoring rules to your specific segment. Once your account is created, you'll land on the dashboard where you can access Settings, Integrations, and Campaigns.

From your AlpacaRelay dashboard, click Settings in the left sidebar. Select Integrations, then scroll to find Shopify in the ecommerce section. Click Connect Shopify. You'll see a blue authorization button that reads Connect with Shopify. This triggers Shopify's OAuth flow, which is a secure, industry-standard authorization method. You will not share your Shopify password with AlpacaRelay — instead, you'll grant specific permissions to access only the data AlpacaRelay needs.

After clicking Connect with Shopify, you'll be redirected to your Shopify admin login. Log in with your Shopify account credentials. Shopify will then display a permissions screen asking you to approve AlpacaRelay's access. AlpacaRelay requests read-only access to: customers (name, email, phone, location), orders (products, amounts, dates, status), products (titles, descriptions, images, prices, collections), abandoned checkouts (cart contents, checkout URLs), and subscription orders (for beauty box or recurring product subscribers). You can review each permission before approving. Once authorized, you'll be redirected back to AlpacaRelay, and the integration is live.

AlpacaRelay begins syncing your Shopify data immediately after OAuth authorization. You'll see a green confirmation banner in the Integrations panel showing Active. Data syncs via real-time webhooks for new orders and customer events, ensuring you have current information within seconds. Historical data (past customers, orders, products) syncs within 5-15 minutes depending on your store size. Navigate to Campaigns and click Create New Campaign. Choose a template type based on your beauty business: Abandoned Cart, Post-Purchase, Browse Abandonment, Product Recommendation, or Win-Back. AlpacaRelay will auto-populate your template with Shopify data (customer names, product images, prices, cart contents) and apply segmentation based on customer behavior and purchase history.

Before sending, every email you create is scored using AlpacaRelay's 8-Dimension Email Quality Framework (EQF), which evaluates Deliverability, Mobile Render, CTA Clarity, Personalization Depth, Visual Hierarchy, Copy Effectiveness, Brand Consistency, and Structural Compliance. Your draft email will display an Email Quality Score (EQS) out of 100 in the preview pane. For beauty brands, aim for a score of 75 or higher to maximize engagement. If your score is lower, AlpacaRelay's AI will suggest specific improvements (e.g., improve mobile padding, clarify the CTA button, personalize the subject line with customer name). Make adjustments based on these recommendations, and your score will update in real time. Once satisfied, click Schedule or Send Now. The email is then delivered with the EQS badge embedded, ensuring your team tracks quality over time.