Customer segments
Group customers by what they spend, how often they buy and how recently, recount them every night, add people by hand and aim promotions at a segment.
What it is
A segment is a group of customers. You define it with rules on what they spend, how often they buy and how recently they last bought. The app finds the customers who match. Segments are recounted every night, and you can add customers by hand as well. Their main use is to limit a promotion to a segment, for example "customers who spent more than 50,000 in your currency and bought in the last 90 days".
Who it is for
- Shops that want to reward their best customers
- Businesses that want to win back customers who have not bought for a while
- Marketing staff who aim offers at a group instead of everyone
Before you start#
- Rights on Segments: view, add, edit and delete.
- Segments count invoices, so customers need invoiced sales for the rules to find them.
Step by step#
- Open Marketing › Segments and choose New segment.
- Give it a name.
- Add rules. Each rule takes one measure (total spend, order count or days since last purchase), a comparison (at least, at most, more than, less than) and a number.
- Save. The customers who match are worked out at once.
- Add any customers by hand who should always be in the segment.
- Open a promotion and limit Who can use it to the segment.
How members are found#
- All the rules must hold for a customer to match.
- Spend and order count come from invoices. By default, approved credit notes come off total spend (the spend net of returns policy).
- Days since the last purchase are counted from your business's own today.
- Matched members are worked out again when you save, when you choose Refresh, and every night (the refresh nightly policy, on by default).
- Customers added by hand stay in the segment through every refresh.
Both policies are under Policies… on the Segments screen.
Switching off and deleting#
A segment can be switched off. It cannot be deleted while a live promotion is limited to it; end or change the promotion first.
Limits and what is not there yet#
- Rules use total spend, order count and days since the last purchase. Other customer fields are not rule measures yet.
- Segments do not send messages themselves. Marketing messages go through the messaging hub and need each person's proven opt-in.
Questions#
How often is a segment updated?
Every night, and also when you save it or choose Refresh. Hand-added members are never removed by a refresh.
Do returns count against spend?
By default, yes: approved credit notes come off a customer's total spend. Switch spend net of returns off in Policies… to count gross sales.
Can one customer be in several segments?
Yes. Each segment is worked out on its own, so a customer can match several.
Why can't I delete a segment?
A live promotion is limited to it. Change that promotion's eligibility or end it, then delete the segment.