Managing Contacts and Segments

Introduction

Effective contact and segment management is crucial for successful email marketing. By organizing your subscribers into meaningful groups and maintaining clean contact data, you can send more targeted, relevant emails that drive better engagement and results.

This tutorial will guide you through managing your contacts and creating powerful segments for targeted email campaigns.

Understanding Contacts

Contact Information

Basic Contact Data

  • Email address: Primary identifier for each contact
  • First name: For personalization and targeting
  • Last name: Complete name information
  • Subscription date: When they joined your list
  • Subscription status: Active, unsubscribed, bounced, etc.

Extended Contact Data

  • Company: Business information for B2B targeting
  • Job title: Professional information for segmentation
  • Phone number: For SMS marketing integration
  • Location: Geographic data for location-based campaigns
  • Custom fields: Any additional data specific to your business

Engagement Data

  • Email opens: Which emails they've opened
  • Link clicks: What content they've engaged with
  • Campaign history: All emails they've received
  • Website activity: Pages visited, products viewed
  • Purchase history: What they've bought and when

Contact Sources

Organic Sources

  • Website opt-in forms: Visitors who subscribe through your site
  • Social media: Subscribers from social media campaigns
  • Events: People who sign up at events or webinars
  • Referrals: Subscribers referred by existing contacts

Import Sources

  • CSV imports: Bulk uploads of existing contact lists
  • CRM integration: Contacts synced from customer management systems
  • E-commerce platforms: Customers from online stores
  • Third-party integrations: Contacts from other marketing tools

Contact Management

Accessing Contact Management

  1. Navigate to Lists in the left sidebar
  2. Click on "Contacts" from the dropdown menu
  3. You'll see your contact management interface

Contact Overview

Contact List View

  • Search functionality: Find specific contacts quickly
  • Filter options: View contacts by status, list, or criteria
  • Bulk actions: Perform actions on multiple contacts
  • Export options: Download contact data for analysis

Individual Contact Profiles

  • Contact details: View all information for a specific contact
  • Activity history: See their engagement with your emails
  • List memberships: Which lists they're subscribed to
  • Custom field data: Any additional information you've collected

Contact Actions

Adding Contacts Manually

  1. Click "Add Contact" button
  2. Enter contact information: Email, name, and other details
  3. Select target lists: Choose which lists to add them to
  4. Set subscription status: Subscribed, unconfirmed, etc.
  5. Save contact: Add to your database

Editing Contact Information

  1. Find the contact using search or filters
  2. Click on contact name to open their profile
  3. Edit information: Update any fields as needed
  4. Update list memberships: Add or remove from lists
  5. Save changes: Confirm updates

Bulk Contact Management

  • Select multiple contacts: Use checkboxes to select contacts
  • Choose bulk action: Delete, export, change status, etc.
  • Apply to segments: Perform actions on entire segments
  • Confirm changes: Review before applying bulk actions

Creating Segments

What Are Segments?

Segments are subsets of your contact list based on specific criteria. They allow you to send targeted emails to groups of subscribers who share common characteristics or behaviors.

Accessing Segments

  1. Navigate to Lists in the left sidebar
  2. Click on "Segments" from the dropdown menu
  3. Click "Create Segment" to start building

Basic Segment Creation

Segment Setup

  • Segment name: Give your segment a descriptive name
  • Description: Note the purpose and criteria
  • Target list: Choose which list to segment from
  • Update frequency: Static or dynamic segments

Defining Criteria

  • Contact fields: Filter by name, email, location, etc.
  • Engagement data: Based on opens, clicks, or activity
  • Date ranges: Subscription date, last activity, etc.
  • Custom fields: Any additional data you collect

Segment Criteria Examples

Demographic Segments

  • Location-based: "Subscribers in California"
  • Company-based: "Contacts from Fortune 500 companies"
  • Job title: "Marketing managers and directors"
  • Industry: "Healthcare professionals"

Behavioral Segments

  • Engagement level: "Highly engaged subscribers" (opened 5+ emails in 30 days)
  • Purchase behavior: "Customers who bought in last 90 days"
  • Website activity: "Visited pricing page but didn't purchase"
  • Email preferences: "Subscribers who prefer weekly emails"

Segment Types

Static Segments

  • Definition: Fixed list of contacts that doesn't change automatically
  • Use cases: One-time campaigns, specific event attendees
  • Management: Manually add or remove contacts
  • Best for: Campaigns with specific, unchanging criteria

Dynamic Segments

  • Definition: Automatically updates based on changing criteria
  • Use cases: Ongoing campaigns, behavior-based targeting
  • Management: Contacts automatically added/removed as they meet criteria
  • Best for: Automated campaigns and regular targeting

Engagement-Based Segments

Highly Engaged

  • Criteria: Opened 3+ emails in last 30 days
  • Use for: New product announcements, premium content
  • Strategy: Reward engagement with exclusive offers

Moderately Engaged

  • Criteria: Opened 1-2 emails in last 30 days
  • Use for: Educational content, value-driven emails
  • Strategy: Increase engagement with valuable content

Low Engagement

  • Criteria: No opens in last 30 days
  • Use for: Re-engagement campaigns, preference updates
  • Strategy: Win back with special offers or content

Inactive Subscribers

  • Criteria: No opens in 90+ days
  • Use for: Final re-engagement attempts, list cleaning
  • Strategy: Last-chance campaigns before removal

Advanced Segmentation

Multi-Criteria Segments

AND Logic

  • Example: Contacts in "California" AND "Opened last email"
  • Use case: Highly specific targeting
  • Result: Smaller, more targeted segments

OR Logic

  • Example: Contacts in "California" OR "New York"
  • Use case: Broader geographic targeting
  • Result: Larger segments with related characteristics

Behavioral Segmentation

Purchase-Based Segments

  • First-time buyers: Recently made their first purchase
  • Repeat customers: Multiple purchases over time
  • High-value customers: Spent above average amount
  • Lapsed customers: Haven't purchased recently

Engagement Patterns

  • Email time preferences: When they typically open emails
  • Content preferences: What types of content they engage with
  • Frequency preferences: How often they want to hear from you
  • Device preferences: Mobile vs. desktop email usage

Lifecycle Segmentation

New Subscribers

  • Timeframe: Subscribed in last 30 days
  • Content: Welcome series, introductory offers
  • Goal: Onboard and engage new subscribers

Established Subscribers

  • Timeframe: Subscribed 30+ days ago, regularly engaged
  • Content: Regular newsletters, product updates
  • Goal: Maintain engagement and drive conversions

At-Risk Subscribers

  • Criteria: Declining engagement over time
  • Content: Re-engagement campaigns, preference updates
  • Goal: Prevent unsubscribes and reactivate interest

Contact Lifecycle Management

Subscription Management

Double Opt-In Process

  1. Initial subscription: Contact submits email address
  2. Confirmation email: Automated email with confirmation link
  3. Confirmed subscription: Contact clicks confirmation link
  4. Welcome sequence: Automated welcome emails begin

Preference Management

  • Email frequency: Allow subscribers to choose frequency
  • Content types: Let them select topics of interest
  • Communication channels: Email, SMS, or both
  • Pause options: Temporary subscription pauses

List Hygiene

Regular Cleaning

  • Remove hard bounces: Delete permanently bounced emails
  • Suppress soft bounces: Temporarily exclude repeatedly bounced emails
  • Remove unengaged: Consider removing long-term inactive subscribers
  • Update information: Keep contact data current and accurate

Bounce Management

  • Hard bounces: Permanent delivery failures (invalid email addresses)
  • Soft bounces: Temporary delivery issues (full inbox, server problems)
  • Bounce tracking: Monitor bounce rates for list health
  • Automatic removal: Set up rules for automatic bounce handling

Best Practices

Segmentation Strategy

Start Simple

  • Basic demographics: Begin with location, age, or industry
  • Engagement levels: Segment by email activity
  • Purchase behavior: Separate customers from prospects
  • Gradually add complexity: Build more sophisticated segments over time

Regular Review

  • Monthly segment analysis: Review segment performance
  • Update criteria: Adjust segments based on results
  • Remove outdated segments: Clean up unused or irrelevant segments
  • Test new segments: Experiment with different criteria

Data Quality

Accurate Information

  • Validate email addresses: Use email validation tools
  • Update contact information: Regularly refresh contact data
  • Remove duplicates: Identify and merge duplicate contacts
  • Standardize data: Use consistent formatting for names, locations, etc.

Privacy Compliance

  • Consent tracking: Document how and when consent was obtained
  • Data minimization: Only collect necessary information
  • Right to deletion: Provide easy ways for contacts to remove their data
  • Transparent communication: Be clear about data usage

Targeting Effectiveness

Relevant Content

  • Match content to segments: Send relevant information to each group
  • Personalization: Use segment data for personalized messaging
  • Timing optimization: Send emails when segments are most likely to engage
  • A/B testing: Test different approaches with different segments

Next Steps

After mastering contact and segment management:

  1. Create Targeted Campaigns - Use segments for targeted messaging
  2. Set Up Automation - Create segment-based automated sequences
  3. Analyze Performance - Track how different segments perform

Remember: Effective segmentation is about understanding your audience and delivering relevant content. Start with basic segments and gradually build more sophisticated targeting as you learn more about your subscribers' preferences and behaviors.