Email segmentation for e-commerce: tools and methods to increase your customers

If you want your e-commerce platform to attract really interested visitors (facilitating conversions) an effective segmentation strategy is what you need. Find out how to reach the right recipients with your emails and land them on your online store to increase sales.

With the percentage of Internet users on the rise and the possibility of accessing the world of the web ever faster and easier, the number of digital consumers continues to experience a steady and rather meteoric increase. Who benefits directly from this trend? The e-commerce sector. In 2020 alone, more than 2 billion people bought goods and services online , totaling $4.2 trillion worldwide.

As the number of users of e-commerce platforms grows, so does the number of activities that need to be done to grab the consumer's attention. And that may not be exciting news for those in the industry. In this scenario, in fact, you can no longer rely solely on your services and products to engage customers. It is certainly also necessary to improve the knowledge and reputation of the brand and its Email Marketing campaigns to win the competition.

When it comes to capturing the attention of your email subscribers, nothing is more effective than sending personalized messages. The best way to do it? Segmentation, of course!

From increasing the relevance of your emails to boosting your ROI, the benefits of segmentation are virtually endless.

If you haven't yet implemented segmentation to attract visitors to your ecommerce, now is the best time to start. In this article, we introduce you to the world of targeted segmentation for the e-commerce sector, delving into best practices and tools you can use to get the most out of this valuable technique.

How to increase sales using segmentation

Here are some methods to segment your contacts and the data you need to take into consideration to create groups and lists with which to form your database clusters.

Demographics

If you're a total newbie to segmentation, there's no better way to get started than using demographics. If you use demographic data to segment your email subscribers, you will be able to cater to the various interests of your customers by classifying them by different parameters: gender, location, age, etc. Segmentation based on demographic data already provides highly accurate buyer persona profiles. In fact, it allows you to have the information and data necessary to form different clusters and to send them targeted messages.

Segmentation by geographical area:

If you have two stores located in two different cities, you don't want to send updates about both stores to all of your subscribers. Instead, you should segment your customers based on their location and only send them store updates in their respective city.

Segmentation by gender:

If you have separate clothing sections for men and women, sending an email about a new menswear launch to your customers won't help. In this case, gender-based segmentation will get you straight to the point. Simply put, the use cases for demographic-based segmentation are numerous. However, the main benefit is that it allows you to segment your audience on very specific parameters and serve the unique interests of each resulting segment without missing a beat.

Interests and preferences

If your store offers a variety of products and categories, the most effective way to increase sales is to segment your subscribers based on their interests and shopping preferences . For example, you can use the analysis of their browsing behavior, send surveys or take advantage of a preference centre, as in the image below.

A preference center essentially allows your subscribers to choose the type of communication they want to receive from your brand. In practical terms, suppose you ticked the boxes for travel books and historical novels in the above example. The books that will be recommended to you in subsequent emails will belong exclusively to these genres.

The most beneficial aspect of preference-based segmentation is that it presents huge opportunities for cross-selling or upselling . If you already know what kind of purchases customers in a particular segment are making, sending highly targeted emails that showcase other products related to their interests will grab their attention and increase the likelihood of conversion.

Here's an example that will give you a better idea of what we're talking about:

Level of interaction

Segmenting your subscribers based on the level of interaction with your website and emails is an equally effective tactic. Website interaction metrics , such as time spent on a particular product page, number of visits to a particular page, drop-offs, and the like can provide you with a wealth of relevant data about your customers. You can use these results to send targeted communications and increase conversions.

If you see a particular segment of your audience interacting positively with your electronics product page, then sending emails offering discounts on certain products in that category can incentivize that segment to make a purchase.

Similarly, analyzing interaction metrics with your email campaigns can be incredibly helpful as well. For example, you can create different segments and distinguish between those who regularly click and interact with your emails and those who are rather inactive and passive . Converting the first segment shouldn't be difficult, while for the second, you could focus on creating well-designed reactivation campaigns to awaken them. It is an interesting topic that we will return to tell you about.

Purchase history

There are very few things that give you as much information about a user as their purchase history. Every time a customer buys something from your store it allows you a peek into their interests, preferences and choices . Among other things, these metrics make excellent segmentation metrics.

Segmenting customers based on their purchase history gives you the ability to promote accessories and recommend products similar to their products of interest.

Cart abandonment

In terms of severity, cart abandonment for ecommerce stores is second only to failure to track customers who have abandoned their carts. The average cart abandonment rate across all industries stands at a staggering 69.57% - a figure that doesn't get anyone jumping for joy. However, the only way to reduce this value to your business is to adopt an effective segmentation routine.

Create a separate segment for all customers who have abandoned their carts and try to recover them with extremely relevant and well-crafted emails. In addition to reminding them to return to their abandoned carts, give them an incentive (like a special offer or discount) that will actually motivate them to move forward with their purchase. Of course you will never be able to win back all these customers, but if your campaigns are well thought out, then you could end up exceeding your own expectations.

What you can use to amplify your segmentation strategies

Segmentation may seem complicated if managed with only your skills, but with the right tools you will see that it can be an extremely immediate and affordable strategy for everyone.

A professional Email Marketing solution can be a first step to start applying a segmentation strategy. Relying on this tool allows you to collect the information necessary to profile your customers and create registration forms that are fully integrated into your platform. Later, you can use this information to divide them into different segments and launch customized campaigns. Also in this case, the use of a professional platform is extremely useful for creating groups and clusters within your database in a simple and immediate way.

To recap

As an e-commerce business, keeping up with ever-changing customer needs and expectations can be downright exhausting. With segmentation, however, you can not only keep up with the needs of your customers, but you can go further and plan for next steps as well.