You have an email list of 10,000 people. Cool. You send every single one of them the exact same email about your product launch. 3% of them click. 97% delete it or ignore it completely.
The problem isn't your email. The problem is you're treating 10,000 different people like they're all the same person. They're not.
Someone who bought from you last week has different needs than someone who signed up for your newsletter six months ago and hasn't opened an email since. The fact that they're getting identical messages is insane when you think about it.
Email segmentation is just sending different emails to different groups based on who they actually are and what they've done. Not complicated. Just requires actually doing it.
Why Most People Don't Segment (And Why That's Stupid)
The usual excuse: "It's too much work."
You know what's actually too much work? Writing the same promotional email 12 times this year and watching it perform worse every time because you're burning out your list by being irrelevant.
Here's the uncomfortable truth: unsegmented email lists have terrible engagement. You're losing money every time you blast your entire list with content that only matters to 20% of them.
The other 80% start ignoring you. Your open rates drop. Email providers notice. Your deliverability tanks. Now your emails are hitting spam for everyone, including the people who actually wanted to hear from you.
Segmentation fixes this. Not perfectly. But way better than the alternative.
The Basic Segments Everyone Should Have
Let's start simple. These five segments will cover most use cases and take like 20 minutes to set up:
1. New Subscribers (0-30 Days)
People who just joined your list. They're the most engaged they'll ever be right now. This exact moment.
Send them:
- Your welcome sequence
- Your best content
- Introduction to your products/services
Don't send them:
- The same weekly newsletter as everyone else
- Aggressive sales emails
- Anything that assumes they know who you are
These people need onboarding, not selling. Weird.
2. Active Engaged Subscribers
Opened or clicked in the last 30-60 days. These are your best people. They actually care.
Send them:
- Everything
- New product launches
- Your best offers
- Regular content
This is your money segment. Don't screw it up by getting lazy.
3. Moderately Engaged
Opened something in the last 90 days but not super active. They're interested but not obsessed.
Send them:
- Your best performing content
- Occasional offers
- Value-focused emails
Don't spam this segment. They're on the edge. Too many irrelevant emails and they slide into the next category.
4. Cold/Inactive Subscribers
Haven't opened in 90+ days. They're either not interested anymore, your emails are hitting spam, or that email address is dead.
Send them:
- Re-engagement campaigns ("Should we break up?")
- Your absolute best content
- Nothing else
If they don't respond to a re-engagement email, remove them. Yes, really. A smaller engaged list beats a bigger dead list every time.
5. Customers vs. Non-Customers
This one's obvious but people still mess it up. Someone who already bought your product doesn't need the same "why you should buy this product" email as someone who's never purchased.
Customers need:
- Product updates
- Upsells/cross-sells
- Support content
- Retention emails
Non-customers need:
- Educational content
- Social proof
- Conversion-focused emails
Sending a hard sales pitch for Product A to someone who bought Product A last week is a great way to look like an idiot. Ask me how I know.
Advanced Segments That Actually Work
Once you have the basics covered, these are worth setting up:
Purchase Behavior Segments
| Segment Type | Definition | Email Strategy |
|---|---|---|
| High-Value Customers | Spent $X+ in last 12 months | VIP perks, early access, premium content |
| One-Time Buyers | Purchased once, never again | Win-back campaigns, related products |
| Cart Abandoners | Added to cart, didn't buy | Abandoned cart sequence, address objections |
| Browse Abandoners | Viewed products, didn't add to cart | Product reminders, reviews, social proof |
The high-value customer segment is where you make your real money. Treat them accordingly.
Engagement-Based Content Preferences
If someone always clicks your product emails but never opens your blog content emails, maybe stop sending them blog content emails. Revolutionary concept.
Track what people actually engage with:
- Product updates vs. educational content
- Long-form vs. short emails
- Video content vs. text
- Specific topics or categories
Then send them more of what they want and less of what they ignore. It's not that deep.
Geographic Segments
Time zones matter. Sending an email at 2 AM someone's local time is a good way to get deleted immediately.
Also useful for:
- Local events
- Regional promotions
- Shipping considerations
- Seasonal relevance (summer in Australia is winter in the US, weird)
Demographic Segments
Age, gender, job title, industry—whatever data you collected during signup.
B2B example: Your email to a CEO should probably look different than your email to an entry-level employee. Different pain points, different authority to purchase, different priorities.
B2C example: Marketing baby products to people without kids is annoying for everyone involved.
How to Actually Implement This Without Going Insane
Segmentation sounds overwhelming. It doesn't have to be.
Step 1: Start with engagement segments
Most email platforms can automatically segment based on opens and clicks. Set up active, moderate, and inactive segments first. Takes 10 minutes.
Step 2: Add customer vs. non-customer
If you sell anything, this is mandatory. Sync your email platform with your payment processor. One time setup.
Step 3: Implement behavioral triggers
Someone abandons a cart? Automatically add them to the cart abandonment segment and trigger that sequence. Someone makes a purchase? Move them to the customer segment.
Automation handles this. You set it up once, it runs forever.
Step 4: Gradually add more specific segments
Don't try to create 47 segments on day one. Add them as you identify patterns and opportunities.
Notice everyone in Portland has a higher conversion rate? Create a Portland segment and test localized messaging.
See that people who click your Instagram posts convert better than people who come from Google? Segment by traffic source.
Build it over time.
Segmentation for Different Business Models
eCommerce
Priority segments:
- Purchase frequency (one-time vs. repeat)
- Product category preferences
- Average order value
- Cart/browse abandonment
- Customer lifecycle stage
Example: Someone who buys running shoes shouldn't get emails about yoga mats unless they've shown interest in yoga products. Send them running gear, nutrition for runners, training content. Obvious advice that somehow people ignore constantly.
SaaS
Priority segments:
- Trial vs. paid users
- Plan tier
- Feature usage
- Onboarding stage
- Activity level
A power user on your premium plan needs different emails than someone on a free trial who hasn't logged in. One needs advanced tips and upsells. The other needs activation emails and basic onboarding.
Content/Newsletter
Priority segments:
- Subscription length
- Content preferences (topics clicked)
- Engagement frequency
- Geographic location
- Traffic source
If someone always clicks your marketing content but ignores your sales content, maybe they're not a buyer. They're a reader. Treat them like a reader. Send them more reading material. Don't force product pitches.
Service-Based Business
Priority segments:
- Service tier
- Industry/niche
- Project stage
- Inquiry vs. client
- Location
Someone who inquired about services three months ago and never responded doesn't need your monthly newsletter. They need a re-engagement email asking if they still need help or if you should stop bothering them.
Common Segmentation Mistakes
Mistake 1: Creating segments but not using them
I've seen email lists with 30+ segments that all get the same broadcast email. What's the point? Either use your segments or delete them.
Mistake 2: Over-segmenting too early
You have 500 subscribers and you're trying to create 25 different segments. Stop. You need volume for segments to be effective. Start simple.
Mistake 3: Segmenting on worthless data
"People who signed up on a Tuesday vs. a Wednesday" is not a useful segment unless you have data proving it matters. Segment on behavior and characteristics that actually affect purchasing decisions.
Mistake 4: Never cleaning up segments
Segments change over time. Someone who was inactive can become active. Someone in your "new subscriber" segment isn't new anymore after 90 days.
Review and update your segment criteria quarterly. It's boring but necessary.
Mistake 5: Ignoring the "why"
Don't segment just to segment. Every segment should have a purpose. Why does this group exist? What unique emails should they receive? What's the goal?
If you can't answer those questions, you don't need that segment.
Tools That Make Segmentation Easy
Most email platforms have segmentation built in. Here's how it works in the popular ones:
| Platform | Segmentation Features | Best For |
|---|---|---|
| Klaviyo | Advanced behavioral segments, predictive analytics, real-time updates | eCommerce, data-driven marketers |
| Mailchimp | Basic segments and tags, limited automation on free plan | Small lists, beginners |
| ConvertKit | Tag-based system, visual automation builder | Creators, bloggers, course sellers |
| ActiveCampaign | Complex automation, CRM integration, lead scoring | B2B, service businesses |
| Beehiiv | Simple segments, engagement-based automation | Newsletter publishers |
Pick based on your needs, not what's trendy. Klaviyo is overkill for a 1,000-person blog newsletter. Mailchimp's free plan isn't enough for a serious eCommerce brand.
How to Know If Your Segmentation Is Working
Track these numbers before and after implementing segments:
Overall engagement:
- Open rates (should increase)
- Click rates (should increase)
- Unsubscribe rates (might increase temporarily as you clean list, then decrease)
Conversion metrics:
- Revenue per email sent
- Conversion rate
- Customer lifetime value
Deliverability:
- Spam complaint rate (should decrease)
- Bounce rate
- Inbox placement rate
If your segmented emails are performing worse than your broadcasts, your segments are wrong or your content is bad. One or the other.
The Real Benefit Nobody Talks About
Everyone focuses on higher open rates and more revenue. Those are great. But the actual best thing about segmentation?
You can send more emails without annoying people.
Right now you're probably limited to 1-2 emails a week because sending more feels spammy. With proper segmentation, you can send 5-7 emails a week to different segments and each person only gets the 1-2 emails that are relevant to them.
More relevant emails = more revenue. Without burning out your list.
It's like having multiple email lists that share subscribers. Fun.
Just Start With Three Segments
Look, I gave you a lot of segment ideas. Don't try to implement all of them tomorrow.
Start with three:
- New subscribers (last 30 days)
- Active subscribers (opened in last 60 days)
- Inactive subscribers (no opens in 90+ days)
Set those up this week. Run them for a month. Look at the results. Then add more segments.
The gap between "no segmentation" and "basic segmentation" is way bigger than the gap between "basic segmentation" and "advanced segmentation."
Stop treating your entire list like one person. They're not. Weird how that works.