Have you ever received an exceptionally interesting newsletter that perfectly matches your interests? There’s a high chance that the sender has placed you in a carefully defined segment and tailored the content specifically for you.
Marketing is most effective when the message reaches the right audience and is relevant to the recipient. Targeting, in turn, is made possible through contact segmentation.
In this article, we’ll go through what segmentation is, why it’s important, and how to achieve effective segmentation in email marketing and marketing automation.
We’ll also provide practical tips and guidelines for implementing segmentation.
If you’d like to jump straight to the instructions, you can do so here:
How to get started with segmentation
- Define the goals and target audiences for segmentation
- Collect relevant data and choose segmentation criteria
- Build the segments
- Test segmentation and monitor results
- Optimize and expand segmentation
We wish you enjoyable learning moments with segmentation! 🤓
What does segmentation mean?
Segmentation means dividing your contact list into smaller target groups, or segments, based on criteria you have defined. These criteria can include demographic information (such as age, gender, or location), behavioral observations, or interests.
However, the ultimate goal of segmentation is not just to divide customer data into parts but to guide actions and communication. By utilizing segmentation, customer and sales messages can be precisely targeted to the right audiences.
Why is segmentation important?
Segmentation offers a variety of benefits:
- More relevant customer communication: By targeting your messages based on segments, you can send more relevant messages to each audience and offer products or services that match their specific needs.
- Effective consideration of different stages in the customer journey: You can create dedicated segments for interested prospects, new customers, loyal customers, and inactive customers.
- Increased customer satisfaction and brand loyalty: Content that aligns with the recipient's characteristics and interests engages effectively and enhances customer satisfaction.
- Improved customer insights: Segmentation helps you better understand the behavior and needs of each target group. For example, newsletter tool reports allow you to track how each segment responds to targeted messages. In addition, marketing automation reports provide insights into the development and statistics of each segment.
Segmentation and email marketing
Well-executed segmentation makes email marketing more strategic and effective, resulting in higher conversions and an improved customer experience.
You can start by dividing your contacts into simple segments, such as active and inactive subscribers, and gradually expand your efforts as data and experience accumulate over time.
Examples of customer communication segments at Liana. Segments can be created based on factors such as language, the product in use, or areas of interest.
Data collected from various forms can be utilized for segmentation. In addition to contact details, a newsletter subscription form can ask for other relevant information related to business needs or the recipient's preferences – such as which product categories they are interested in or how often they wish to receive the newsletter.
Newsletter subscription forms can be used to gather details about subscribers' characteristics or preferences for segmentation purposes. For example, Liana's subscription form asks which regional newsletter the subscriber wants to receive.
Segmentation can also be based on responses collected through a survey element in the newsletter.
Manual segmentation – doing it by hand
A simple way to implement segmentation is to manually create different lists or groups within your email marketing tool. This means you can group contacts by hand based on their stated interests, past purchases, or event participation.
Manual segmentation is particularly suitable for small subscriber lists and situations where communication is targeted using straightforward criteria, such as customer data or previous campaign results.
In email marketing, basic behavior-based segments can also be created. For example, you can extract subscribers who clicked a specific link from your newsletter report and create a new segment from them, or add them to an existing segment.
Dynamic lists
Many newsletter tools, such as LianaMailer, offer the ability to create dynamic lists that update automatically based on predefined conditions.
Dynamic lists make it easy and quick to gather contacts who meet specific criteria onto the same list. They reduce manual work and ensure that messages always reach the right people, improving campaign effectiveness.
For example, you can create a list of individuals who have opened your newsletter within the last 30 days. If a subscriber's activity changes – such as no longer opening emails – they are automatically removed from the list during the newsletter sending process. This way, segments stay up to date without the need for manual updates.
Manually handling segmentation works well for small subscriber lists and simple needs, whereas dynamic lists save time and keep segments relevant. As communication complexity and subscriber numbers grow, marketing automation provides significant additional efficiency to segmentation.
Examples of email marketing segmentation
Segmentation allows newsletters to be highly targeted and helps create personalized content sections within emails. Here are a few examples:
- Demographic segmentation: Segmentation is done based on demographic data relevant to the business, such as the customer’s age, gender, or location. This enables targeted messaging, for example, sending information about local events to residents of a specific area.
- Engagement-based segmentation: Newsletter readers can be segmented based on their interaction, such as whether they open emails or click links. This type of segmentation can also be used for list-cleaning purposes.
- Interest-based segmentation: Segments based on interests can be created using form data or a customer’s previous engagement. For example, a sporting goods store could send a tennis-themed campaign to customers who have previously clicked on tennis-related content in newsletters.
Here's an example of how our customer has used segmentation in their email marketing:
Nissan: leveraging segmentation data to re-engage customers
Nissan's team created a segment of individuals who had shown little to no interaction with the company over the past six months. The idea was to send a highly relevant message to this segment to reignite their interest.
Nissan approached the segment members with two newsletters promoting special offers tailored specifically for them. The goal was to encourage recipients to visit a Nissan showroom with a purchase intention.
The campaign significantly boosted engagement within the target group: 1,700 recipients expressed interest, 88 people visited the showroom as a result of the campaign, and 69 car offers were sent out. Ultimately, the campaign led to the sale of 7 cars.
Segmentation and marketing automation
Marketing automation enhances segmentation, especially when the number of contacts grows so large that manually segmenting them in an email marketing tool becomes too time-consuming. Automation is also the solution when you want to leverage real-time behavioral data and build multi-step communication journeys based on customer actions.
Segmentation through marketing automation saves time and ensures that the right content reaches the right people at exactly the right moment.
Additionally, segmentation becomes significantly broader and more versatile, as customer data can be collected from sources integrated with the automation tool, such as websites and CRM systems. This enables the creation of complex segments that take into account factors such as website behavior, the stage of the buying journey, and the duration of the customer relationship.
Automation also expands the use of segments beyond just newsletters. Channels such as SMS, WhatsApp messages, ad retargeting, and website personalization offer numerous new ways to reach segment members and provide them with relevant content across different platforms.
Marketing automation clearly boosts segmentation efficiency and, as a result, improves message targeting. According to Liana's Marketing Automation 2025 survey, the most common result achieved with marketing automation was more effective targeting and segmentation.
Implementing segmentation in marketing automation
Automation workflows can utilize a feature that adds contacts to a specific segment or mailing list based on their actions. For example, individuals who download Liana's Marketing automation examples for B2C are added to a mailing list for contacts interested in marketing automation.
Automation workflows can be effectively utilized for segmenting contacts.
Belonging to a segment can also trigger a new automation workflow or action. For example, when a person registers for a webinar, the invitation automation can check whether the registrant belongs to a segment that prefers to receive webinar reminders not only via email but also through WhatsApp messages.
Examples of segmentation in marketing automation
Segments enable the implementation of various types of automation workflows. Here are a few examples:
- Onboarding new customers: A new customer triggers a series of onboarding messages that guide them on how to use products or services. In onboarding automation, segmentation is based on the customer’s status and the specific product they have adopted.
- Re-engaging inactive customers: Automation identifies customers who haven't interacted within a set period and sends them targeted messages. This approach can help win back customers who haven’t made an online purchase in a while.
- Lead nurturing through automation: Lead nurturing automation often segments leads based on their industry, company size, and behavior. For example, a person who downloads a guide can receive follow-up messages containing educational content, such as targeted tips and blog articles, alongside a contact request.
- Special treatment for VIP customers: Segmentation helps identify long-term, active, or high-spending customers. These customers can be rewarded with exclusive offers, benefits, and invitations to VIP events.
Getting started with segmentation
These steps will help you get started with segmentation in both email marketing and marketing automation.
1. Define the goals and target audiences for segmentation
Before starting segmentation, it's important to determine what you aim to achieve with it.
Segmentation strategies may vary depending on your objectives—whether it's increasing sales or improving the targeting of customer communication. For example, if your goal is to re-engage inactive contacts, you can create a segment of individuals who haven't opened your newsletters in the past 180 days.
In addition to goals, your industry can influence how segmentation is implemented and which contact details are most relevant. It’s crucial to identify industry-specific characteristics, understand your customers' purchasing process, and consider any potential restrictions related to data privacy or regulations. For example, segmentation needs can differ significantly between the insurance sector and B2C marketing.
At this stage, it's also beneficial to carefully consider your target audiences. This helps you identify which of your customers will benefit the most from targeted communication and what type of content would be most relevant to them.
Understanding your industry and defining clear objectives help in shaping your segmentation strategy. For example, an educational institution can benefit from dividing different student groups into their own segments, enabling it to deliver communication that is highly relevant to each specific audience.
2. Collect relevant data and choose segmentation criteria
Once goals, industry specifics, and target audiences are identified, the actual segmentation process can begin based on these factors.
Segmentation data can be collected from various sources, such as:
- Newsletter subscription forms
- Email marketing tool analytics
- CRM system
- Website behavior analytics (e.g., Google Analytics)
- Billing data
If you plan to use a newsletter subscription form for segmentation, it’s important to structure it to support your objectives. For instance, if you intend to send newsletters based on location, then the location field should be a required field on your form.
The key to successful segmentation is ensuring that the data you use is high-quality and up-to-date. It’s essential to regularly clean out duplicates and incorrect addresses. If your data is incomplete, you can encourage customers to update their information by offering incentives such as a giveaway or a discount code.
Once data sources are identified, segmentation criteria should be selected to align with marketing goals. Segments can be built based on the following attributes:
- Demographic data: such as age, gender, location, and profession
- Customer preferences: such as interests, selected product categories, and preferred communication schedule
- Behavioral data: such as purchase history, website visits, newsletter open and click rates, and inactivity
- Position in the customer journey: such as leads, new customers, and loyal customers
Segmentation offers numerous opportunities, but it’s important to avoid making it overly complex. Collecting unnecessary customer data is not data responsible behavior.
Start small and focus on relevant data – you can always expand segments and their criteria as your needs grow and your expertise deepens.
3. Build the segments
Once plans are in place and sufficient data has been collected, it's time to start building segments. Different segmentation methods can be used individually or in combination, depending on the tool in use (email marketing tool or marketing automation platform), campaign objectives, and data complexity.
The most common segmentation methods include:
- Manual segmentation: Recipient lists are manually created in the email marketing tool by filtering contacts based on specific attributes or by uploading pre-filtered contact lists from other sources. Manual segmentation is suitable for simple segmentation needs and one-time campaigns. However, if the segment is intended for repeated use, it requires ongoing manual maintenance and updates.
Example: A company wants to send follow-up emails only to webinar attendees. Based on the webinar registration list, a segment is manually filtered in the email marketing tool to send a recording and additional information. In the future, the list can be updated by adding participants from similar events.
- Dynamic lists: Automatically updating dynamic lists gather contacts that meet predefined criteria. These lists are updated at the time of sending and do not require manual maintenance, but their setup requires planning and familiarity with the tool. In some cases, dynamic lists may be a premium feature in email marketing platforms.
Example: A segment is automatically created for newsletter subscribers who have not opened any emails in the past six months. An activation email can be sent to this segment, and if no action is taken, the contact can be removed from the list.
- Segmentation within automation workflows: In marketing automation workflows, segmentation can be executed automatically and in real time based on user behavior. Automation allows segmentation to occur as part of the customer lifecycle and is ideal for managing large contact databases. Automated segmentation requires expertise in using the automation tool and careful planning.
Example: Vacation bookers are added to an upsell segment that receives automated emails about tours available at their destination and offers to upgrade their hotel room before the trip begins.
4. Test segmentation and monitor results
Once you have divided your subscribers into different segments, it’s important to ensure that your targeted communication meets the specific needs of each segment. By testing and monitoring results, you can continuously optimize your campaigns.
In your email marketing tool, the relevance of your communication can be tested through A/B testing. Subject line A/B tests help you understand which type of messaging resonates best with each segment. Content A/B tests allow you to experiment with different types of content to identify what drives the best conversions. For instance, does a more commercial approach or a more informative tone work better for this particular segment?
A/B testing of newsletter subject lines and content helps identify which type of content works best for each segment.
You can also test factors such as sending time. Do certain times of the day or specific days of the week perform better for this segment than others?
When running A/B tests, it’s best to test only one element at a time to draw clear conclusions about what factor influenced the results.
To evaluate the success of your newsletters, monitor key performance indicators such as:
- Open rate: Is the message reaching your audience effectively?
- Click-through rate (CTR): Is the content engaging and relevant to the segment?
- Conversions: Are the desired actions being completed, such as filling out a form or making a purchase?
The more regularly you test, the more refined your communication with each segment will become. Document segment-specific insights, especially if you're managing multiple segments.
5. Optimize and expand segmentation
Once your segmentation starts delivering results, it’s time to take it to the next level. For example, you can enhance your segments by leveraging customer data more deeply, target the segment with new types of actions, and work towards increasing customer loyalty.
At the latest, this stage is a good time to transition segmentation to marketing automation. Automation enables real-time and personalized communication across multiple channels, even for large contact volumes. In addition to newsletters, members of a segment can be reached through channels like WhatsApp messages or personalized website content.
Even if your segmentation is automated, it’s important to monitor the overall situation. New segments might be needed, for instance, if your product range or target audiences evolve, or if clear changes in customer behavior are observed.
Segment and target content with trusted marketing tools
With the email marketing tool LianaMailer and the marketing automation platform LianaAutomation, you can effortlessly create precise segments and reach them with meaningful content. Our experts are happy to provide you with more tips on implementing effective segmentation using Liana’s tools.
