Email segmentation is the process of dividing your email lists into categories for better outreach. Marketers can segregate contacts based on shared values and preferences and send personalized messages based on that information.
Successful email segmentation strategies can help you send targeted campaigns based on customer data. It’s a rudimentary yet effective personalization strategy that allows businesses to connect with audience segments on a personal level.
In this article, we will delve deeper into the art and science of email segmentation, explore the benefits, and learn how to segment your email list for maximum deliverability and conversion. We will also discuss top-proven email segmentation strategies to maximize the impact of any email marketing campaign.
What is Email Segmentation?
Email segmentation is a marketing technique for sending highly targeted emails by segregating subscribers based on shared behavioral data. Email marketers analyze customer data to uncover shared traits and patterns. The content is then tailored according to the preferences of individual segments, which improves customer engagement and conversion rates.
For example, let’s say you are a fitness enthusiast living in Florida who recently subscribed to a fitness newsletter. The segmentation possibilities are bottomless: fitness enthusiast, Florida resident, new subscriber, and even products or exercises you have expressed an interest in.
As part of the brand’s segmentation efforts, you can receive exclusive offers based on your location, personalized workout programs based on your fitness level, or product recommendations based on your browsing habits. Targeted campaigns like these engage email subscribers more efficiently.
What are the Benefits of Email Segmentation?
Email marketing segmentation allows businesses to approach target customers with targeted email campaigns for greater engagement. Here are the primary benefits of creating email segments:
Improved Deliverability
Email marketing segmentation improves deliverability in the long run. When you create segments, you send relevant content, increasing customer loyalty. This drastically reduces the chances of email subscribers marketing your messages as spam. Thus, creating email marketing segments can improve email deliverability and sender reputation over time.
Increased Conversions and ROI
By personalizing your email marketing campaign, you are sending the right message to the right customer at the right time. This combination ensures your messages are read. According to research, sending relevant messages can increase your open rates by 14.32% and click-through rates by 54.79% compared to sending bulk messages.
Lower Unsubscribe Rate
Relevant messaging also reduces the chance of customers unsubscribing from your newsletters. Segmented campaigns have a track record of reducing unsubscribe rates by 9.4% compared to bulk messaging campaigns.
Greater Customer Satisfaction
By personalizing your marketing efforts, you are automatically sending relevant emails to the target audience. This leads to increased customer loyalty and builds your brand’s reputation over time.
How to Segment Your Email List
You need to consider several factors before email segmentation. Here are our top recommendations to help you create separate segments and launch more targeted campaigns:
Demographic Data
Demographic segmentation is based on customer data such as age, gender, marital status, job role, etc. You can gather the information when new subscribers sign up for your newsletters. The more details you gather during the onboarding phase, the more personal your marketing campaigns can be.
Geographical Location
Targeting customers based on geographic location can supercharge your marketing strategies. This approach is especially effective for driving customers back to brick-and-mortar establishments. Modern shoppers love convenience. You can segment subscribers based on geolocation and send personalized recommendations.
Marketing Preferences
Gathering customers’ marketing preferences using signup forms can help you fine-tune your digital marketing campaigns. Ask basic questions like which departments, topics, or newsletters your new subscribers are interested in and the frequency at which they want to hear from you. You should update customer personas frequently to stay in sync with their evolving tastes.
Behavioral Segmentation
Behavioral segmentation is one of the most advanced forms of email segmentation. It leverages customer behavioral data from multiple sources, including your website, e-commerce store, and social channels. You can use certain email marketing software to calculate specific page hits, recent activity, and frequency of visits to create customer segments.
Email Engagement
Email segmentation techniques include monitoring open, engagement, and click-through rates. You create different segments based on how subscribers interact with your marketing emails. This strategy can help you identify and retarget inactive users in a more efficient way.
Sales Funnel Position
You should consider sending personalized messages to customers based on their position in the sales funnel. For example, while new leads might receive educational content familiarizing them with your business, loyal customers might get a discount coupon or early access to exclusive content, influencing them to go ahead with the purchase.
Discount Code Usage
You can track customers’ purchase history to find people who react better to discount coupons and free delivery offers. This lets you target high-value customers and seasonal shoppers who like to capitalize on freebies. You can send personalized emails to these lists during vacations to get more conversions.
Lead Magnet
If you employ lead magnets such as free content or early access, you can fine-tune your marketing strategy to segment contacts based on response. Follow customers’ behavior and interests and send targeted emails to draw their attention.
Abandoned Cart
E-commerce businesses can segment customers based on cart status. Find customers who have left items in their shopping cart and send targeted messages reminding them to complete their purchase. You can offer a discount code or free shipping above a specific cart value to get more conversions.
Survey Responses
If you conduct surveys or gather customer feedback frequently, you can group customers by their responses. Analyze their answers and use the information to target customers based on their likes, interests, problems, and other specificities.
Proven Email Segmentation Strategies
If you are new to email marketing, you must segment your subscribers based on factors that apply to your business. Here are some proven email segmentation strategies to help you get more conversions:
Segment Customers via Signup Channels
Segmenting subscribers based on their signup channels lets you identify the most effective signup forms. Check which form fetches the most new subscribers and tailor offers by personalizing each subject line and CTA. Segmenting users based on signup channels lets you personalize email campaigns without too much information. This is ideal for small and emerging businesses that don’t have much customer data to work with.
For example, say a potential customer visits your online store to view a sale but doesn’t complete the purchase. You can target them with a personalized popup notification inviting them to sign up for your newsletter in exchange for an exclusive offer. Similarly, say you have a customer group that likes to browse new arrivals. You can target them with a free shipping offer to push a sale.
Segment Email Lists by Customer Journey
The customer lifecycle is an essential factor that could help you target customers way more efficiently. A typical customer journey involves five stages: awareness, engagement, conversion, retention, and loyalty. Understanding this cycle and where potential subscribers fall in the journey can help you launch tailored email marketing campaigns that convert.
For example, say a potential customer has subscribed to your email newsletters, which means they are already past the engagement stage. So, it is up to you to help them reach the next stage of the buyer’s journey—conversion. This is where you make an offer that convinces them to spend money on your brand.
Segment Subscribers by Purchase Behavior
This is an effective form of email segmentation and involves segregating customers based on their purchase history. The most common approach is to segment users based on how much they engage with your brand, products, and services. Here are three real-life examples to help you segment users based on purchase behavior:
Purchase within the last 30 days:
Repeat customers are more likely to buy from you again if they’ve enjoyed their previous interaction. Therefore, approaching them with lucrative offers should be your top priority. Remember, convincing a new customer to buy from you takes more time and effort than turning an existing customer.
No purchase within the last 30 days:
New subscribers who haven’t purchased from you after 30 days may just need a push. Give them a good reason to buy from your online store and they might just take the plunge. Treat these customers like inactive users and send a three-message series that includes best-selling product recommendations followed by an offer they cannot refuse.
No purchase within the last 90 days:
A customer who hasn’t purchased from you in 90 days has most likely defected. You can target them with a re-engagement campaign as a final effort to get them back on board. Create a three-part email series, as mentioned before, and use personalized messages and exclusive offers to capture attention.
Segment New Subscribers
You can create segments for subscribers who have joined your mailing list within the last 30 days. It is possible to nurture new leads with automated onboarding campaigns. For instance, you can set up a drip campaign to help them explore your range of products or influence them to make a purchase with an exciting discount while you still have their attention.
The key benefits of segmenting recent subscribers include:
- Building a strong first impression
- Gathering their trust by highlighting product benefits over features
- Persuading them to browse your products and start shopping
- Retaining their attention with personalized emails and offers
- Breaking them down into more classified segments based on data
Segment Customers by Top-order Value
Customers bringing in top-order value are the crème de la crème of your contact list and should be kept around at all costs. They are high-value, high-paying customers who must be respected. You can appreciate their patronage and loyalty frequently by showering them with gifts and incentives so that they will keep shopping from you.
The idea is to make the experience far more lucrative than the competition. You can start segmenting customers based on order value, purchase frequency, or total lifetime spend. Then pamper them with early access, insider looks, and exclusive rewards, so they choose you over the competition. The goal is to spoil them and keep them coming back for years.
Segment Patrons by Website Activity
Monitoring your customers’ website activity helps you understand their needs, wants, and preferences better. Upon decoding their core requirements, you can grab their attention and persuade them to convert quickly by sending personalized offers.
For example, say a website visitor has searched for summer dresses but left the interaction midway. You can surprise them with a personalized collection of best-selling summer dresses and an incentive like free shipping on a minimum cart value before a deadline. This will increase the chances of generating revenue quickly.
Segment Inactive Subscribers
If a customer doesn’t buy from you in over 90 days, despite your best efforts, it’s time to remove them from your email list to keep it healthy. List hygiene plays a crucial role in email deliverability and segmenting customers based on inactivity is an efficient way to maintain good email list hygiene.
Sending marketing emails consistently to subscribers who don’t interact with your business can increase bounce rates, which could affect your sender score and domain reputation badly. So, although removing subscribers might seem counterproductive, it might be the best for your business in the long run.
Streamline Your Email Marketing Efforts with Segmented Campaigns
Email segmentation might seem complicated initially. However, upon starting to practice, you’ll get the hang of it rapidly. In hindsight, email segmentation is the cornerstone of a successful email marketing strategy. It allows you to send the right message to the right person at the right time. But getting that balance right requires effort. Don’t be afraid to experiment and A/B test your email segments to identify which strategy works best for your business.
Further, you need the right tools and guidance to make the most of email segmentation. Book a discovery call today to learn how the experts at Email Industries can streamline your email marketing efforts with email segmentation and improve deliverability, conversion, and customer retention rates.
Founder and CEO of Email Industries