Working with segments in Emma (advanced)

Overview
Setting up a segment
Viewing a segment
Editing a segment

Overview

Besides sending newsletters in Emma to a group (mailing list), you can send newsletters to a smaller subgroup, or segment. A segment is a customized list of your contacts, and you create this list by specifying one or more criteria. You can then send a newsletter to just the people who meet the criteria, rather than to an entire group or groups.

Segment examples

You can have a segment look for criteria such as:

Contacts that are in a specific group or subscription
Contact information (for instance, if their email address contains "@usc.edu")
Contact activity (for instance, if a contact has opened or clicked a specific newsletter)
Signup activity (for instance, if a contact signed up during a certain time period)

Setting up a segment

Step 1: Create the segment

Quick guide

Click the Audience tab. Then, in the left menu, click Segments.
Click Create a segment.
Keep Create from scratch selected, and click Continue.
Fill in the segment name and description.

Detailed guide (with screenshots)

Click the Audience tab. Then, in the left menu, click Segments.
Click Create a segment.
Keep Create from scratch selected, and click Continue.
Fill in the segment name and description.

Step 2: Define the segment criteria

As you select criteria, the number of contacts updates at the top of the page. You can select criteria based on:

Audience (group or subscription)
Contact fields
Response
Signup activity

If you want to specify more than one criteria, you can do so:

And: All of the criteria you include must be met, for a contact to be added to the segment
Or: Only one of the criteria you include must be met, for a contact to be added to the segment

Step 2 (cont): Examples of segment criteria

Example 1: Contacts who receive but have never opened the specific newsletter type

Contacts are added to the segment if they meet these requirements:

The contact has been added to the "DTS Monthly Newsletter" group
The contact has never opened any newsletters from your Dornsife department or unit

Example 2: USC contacts

Contacts are added to the segment if they meet the following requirement:

The contact's "Email" contact field contains "@usc.edu"

As you select criteria and Emma searches your contacts for matches, the number of contacts meeting the segment criteria updates at the top of the page. Once you finalize and save the segment, you will be able to view the list of contacts that meet the segment's criteria.

For more information about segment criteria, including more examples, refer to the following official Emma documentation:

Creating and managing segments

Step 3: Finalize the segment

Click Save. Emma creates the segment, and the page reloads. A sample list of contacts in the segment appears at the bottom of the page.

Viewing a segment

To view a segment, click its name in the segment list:

The segment appears, and you can click Edit to edit the name, description, or criteria.

A sample list of contacts in the segment appears at the bottom of the page. You can click Actions for more options, and use the search bar to narrow down the contact list. Be aware that if you use the search bar, you must type the contact's full email address. You will not get any results if you search by a partial email address.

Editing a segment

Click the Actions icon to the right of the segment name. Then, make a selection. For example, you can take one of the following actions:

Edit: Edit the segment criteria, name, or description.
Export: Export a spreadsheet of the contacts in the segment.
- Be aware that Emma restricts most accounts from downloading files containing contact information. If you export your segment, you will need to email ts@dornsife.usc.edu to request the spreadsheet.
Rename: Rename the segment.
Archive: Hide the segment from view (does not delete the segment or archive individual contacts).

Segments update dynamically. This means that when you make changes to the segment or to your contacts, Emma automatically checks to see if contacts meet the segment criteria. No additional work is required on your part.