Sending Messages to Customers

How messages work

Messages in Passtastic are push notifications delivered through Apple Wallet and Google Wallet — free and unlimited. They appear on your customer's lock screen. (Want to reach customers by text instead? SMS is a separate, prepaid channel — see Sending SMS.)

When your customer portal is on, every message also stays in your customers' inbox on their page for 180 days, so a notification they swiped away is still there. The line Also appears in your customers’ portal. under the text box reminds you; it isn't shown when the portal is off. See Your Customer Portal.

Messages are plain text only (max 160 characters for best delivery). Links, images, and formatting are not supported by Apple/Google Wallet.

Sending a message from the dashboard

1. Open Programs from the sidebar and pick the program you want to message.

2. Click Send Message on the program page.

3. Write your message (max 160 characters recommended).

4. Send. The message is delivered to all customers who have this card installed.

Greet each customer by name

In Customers, select the customers you want to reach and click Send message. Under the message box, click + First name to add `[name]` where your cursor is. Each customer sees their own first name — "Hi [name]!" arrives as "Hi Ana!". The preview shows a sample name. If a customer has no name on file, the message goes out with the name left out: "Hi!".

Sending to a specific segment

You can target messages to groups of customers instead of everyone.

1. Open Customers from the sidebar.

2. Click Send Message to Group.

3. Choose your target audience:

• All Customers — everyone with the selected card
• Customer Segment — a specific group

4. If you chose a segment, select one from the list. You'll see a preview of how many customers will receive the message and the estimated delivery rate.

5. Write your message and click Send Message.

Smart segments (built-in)

Passtastic automatically creates these segments for you:

• All Customers — everyone who installed the card
• Inactive (7+ days) — haven't visited in a week
• Inactive (30+ days) — haven't visited in a month
• Frequent Visitors — 10+ visits
• New Customers — joined recently
• Ready to Redeem — completed their stamp/point card
• Never Scanned — installed the card but never used it
• High Value Customers — high purchase value
• Low Engagement — minimal interaction

These are available on all plans.

Custom segments

On Multi-Location and Groups & Brands plans, you can build your own segments using combinations of criteria (visit count, inactivity period, card type, custom fields, etc.).

Create custom segments from Customers → Create custom segment.

Tips for effective messages

Keep it short. 160 characters or less delivers best. It pops up on the lock screen as a push notification, not an email.

Be specific. "Free coffee this Friday" works better than "We have a special offer for you."

Create urgency. "Today only: double stamps on all drinks" drives immediate action.

Use for the right occasions:

• New promotions or seasonal offers
• Reminding inactive customers to come back
• Announcing events or schedule changes
• Rewarding loyal customers with exclusive deals

Don't over-send. Too many notifications and customers will delete the card. A good cadence is 1–2 messages per week at most.

Manual messages vs. Campaigns

Passtastic has two ways to reach customers with a push notification:

See Messages and Campaigns for how to set up campaigns.

Common questions