Mobile and Web segments:: Creating SMS segments – Emarsys

You can create segments based on data collected by SMS Campaigns.

Prerequisites

In order to use SMS segments, SMS needs to be enabled on your account.

You can use Emarsys link shortener or tracking mechanism, but publicly-used link shortening is not supported.

For more information on SMS Segments watch the October 2023 Product Release video:

Creating an SMS segment

Here is what you need to do to create an SMS segment:

Go to Contacts > Segments, click Create Segment, select Standard Segment, then click SMS segment.
Name your segment.

Optionally, you can add a description to your segment.
Select a template.

Currently, only one SMS template is available called SMS.

You can add conditions to your segment by clicking + Add condition. Conditions are grouped with the AND operator.

To remove a condition, click the - icon.

You can choose from the following conditions:

Clicked - You can filter contacts who clicked an SMS message.
Not clicked - You can filter contacts who did not click an SMS message.
Sent - You can filter contacts to whom an SMS campaign was sent.
Not sent - You can filter contacts to whom an SMS campaign was not sent.
Received - You can filter contacts who received an SMS campaign.
Not received - You can filter contacts who did not receive an SMS campaign.
Soft bounced - You can filter contacts to whom an SMS message could not be delivered due to a soft bounce.
Hard bounced - You can filter contacts to whom an SMS message could not be delivered due to a hard bounce.
Any campaign / campaign name - The SMS campaign the contact clicked. It can be either a specific campaign or a specific one.
At any time - The segment is created based on interactions with the campaign from last 180 days.
In the last number of days / X days ago - You can define the timeline of the interaction with the campaign.

Notes:

Already existing segments where the In the last number of days option is used with a date exceeding 90 days are not affected by the updated threshold (i.e. a maximum of 90 days) unless you edit such segments. If you edit such segments, the thresholds described above take into effect. Existing segments using the At any time option automatically fetch data from the last 180 days.
For positive criteria (e.g., clicked, sent, etc.), the timeframe option At any time is displayed by default.
For negative criteria (e.g., not clicked, not sent, etc.), the timeframe option X days ago is displayed by default.

When you are ready, click Save Segment.

Best practices

Continuously review your contact database to ensure you are getting the optimal results when sending targeted and relevant messages to your contacts.
To optimize SMS communications and engagement, concentrate on your most engaged contacts. We identify these as contacts who have clicked a link in your messages within the last 30 days. This method will improve ROI, reduce unsubscribes or spam complaints, and promote a more efficient sending strategy.
To reengage customers who have slowly disengaged with your communication, use reengagement campaigns that target contacts with an engagement not exceeding 90 days. Limiting the reengagement timeframe helps brands focus on contacts who have been engaged in the past but have since declined. This strategy improves chances of winning back contacts and turning them into engaged contacts that will then fall into the optimum segment of an engagement within the last 30 days.
The final group to target for reengagement would be contacts who have interacted with an SMS campaign within the last 180 days. Since these contacts last interacted with the brand nearly 6 months ago, it's recommended to check if they still wish to receive marketing communications via SMS.
Based on their response:
- If they confirm their desire to stay opted-in they could be moved to a win-back campaign to reengage the contacts and turn them into engaged contacts once again.
- If contacts decide to not respond or even opt-out of receiving further communication, brands will be able to update their contact database and avoid sending further communication to contacts that do not want to reengage with the brand at this point.
Removing disengaged contacts from regular campaigns will also help brands further optimize their SMS sending strategies and really focus on their most valuable and engaged user group, while respecting their less or disengaged contacts wishes to receive fewer or no further communication via SMS messages.