1. A Quick Start Guide to
Automated Segmentation
with RFM Analysis
2. Table of Contents
B. WHY SHOULD YOU CARE? 6
C. LET’S GET STARTED 7
F. USE SEGMENTTRANSITIONS TO MONITOR SUCCESS 20
G. NEXT STEPS 20
CHALLENGE: HOW DO I MAKE SURE MY MOST ENGAGED USERS REMAIN HOOKED ON MYAPP? 8
1. CHAMPIONS (POWER USERS) 8
2. LOYAL CUSTOMERS (HAPPY CAMPERS) 9
3. POTENTIAL LOYALISTS (BECOMING MORE ENGAGED) 10
CHALLENGE: HOW DO I ENCOURAGE REPEAT PURCHASE/CONVERSION? 11
4. NEW CUSTOMERS (BRAND NEW USERS) 11
5. PROMISING (SHOWING INTEREST) 12
6. NEEDS ATTENTION (AVERAGE USAGE) 13
CHALLENGE: HOW DO I ENSURE THAT I DON’T LOSE MY USERS? 14
7. ABOUTTO SLEEP (OCCASIONALVISITORS) 14
8. CANNOT LOSE THEM (FORMER POWER USERS) 15
9. AT RISK (FORMERLYACTIVE USERS) 16
10. HIBERNATING (INACTIVE USERS) 17
D. USE REACHABILITY METRICS TO ENGAGE USERS ON THE RIGHT CHANNEL 18
E. SUMMARY GRID 19
A. WHAT IS AUTOMATED SEGMENTATION? 3
3. CleverTap’s Automated Segmentation leverages RFM (Recency, Frequency, Monetary Value) Analysis to take the
guesswork out of creating user groups. It analyzes your user base to create 10 specific user groups, so you can:
A. WHAT IS AUTOMATED SEGMENTATION?
No matter what type of app you have, every
single one of your users is unique — and each
one will react differently to your marketing
campaigns. So how can you tailor your
marketing efforts to reach the right audience?
Smart marketing campaigns require smart
segmentation that goes beyond simple
demographics. By filtering your users
by activity and behavior, you can create
personalized content that resonates with each
one.
You can see what you’re doing right to engage
one group, and what you can do to more
effectively connect with others.
And with automated segmentation, you can
do it with the click of a button. If you’re new to
mobile marketing automation, you’re sure to
have questions about user segmentation.
What types of user groups should mobile
marketers create? Are there industry
standards? What engagement strategies are
most effective for each segment?
This guide will walk you
through each automated user
segment and offer campaign
ideas to successfully engage
each one.
Send personalized,
targeted messages
to every user
Monitor the health
of your user base
and track trends
Improve response
and conversion
rates
Increase retention,
revenue, and ROI
3 A QUICK START GUIDE TO AUTOMATED SEGMENTATION WITH RFM ANALYSIS
4. AI-powered technique that automatically calculates user activity
for key events in your app.
— AUTOMATED SEGMENTATION —
For a travel app, it could be
the number of bookings for hotels and flights.
For a media/OTT app, it could be
the number of times users viewed or shared content.
4 A QUICK START GUIDE TO AUTOMATED SEGMENTATION WITH RFM ANALYSIS
5. Automated segmentation measures how many times a user performs that event to determine frequency,
and the last time they performed the event to determine recency.
For a food delivery app, it could be
the number of orders placed.
Those two factors are used to divide your user base into segments on the RFM grid,
with the most active users in the top-right quadrant and the least active users in the lower-left quadrant.
5 A QUICK START GUIDE TO AUTOMATED SEGMENTATION WITH RFM ANALYSIS
6. Business Challenge
Which are the pertinent user segments
within Automated Segmentation?
HOW DO I MAKE SURE MY MOST ENGAGED USERS
REMAIN HOOKED ON MYAPP?
1. Champions
2. Loyal customers
3. Potential Loyalists
B. WHY SHOULD YOU CARE?
If you are not addressing these problems in your app today, you are
risking your customer engagement efforts.
USE MONETARYVALUE OF RFM TO ALLOCATE MARKETING SPEND
The RFM analysis assigns a monetary value to each segment that will help you attach a quantifiable value to your
segments. Attributing the right monetary value to each segment will allow you to quickly identify your high value
customers and re-engage customers that are about to churn.
Under the Monetary Value (M) score, RFM segmentation gives an aggregate value such as purchases,
readership, or subscriptions for each customer segment.
For example, Champions = $80, Cannot Lose Them = $67 and Hibernating = $39.
This helps you understand where is your highest value and what will be the marginal utility of every segment.
HOW DO I ENCOURAGE REPEAT
PURCHASES/CONVERSIONS?
4. New Customers
5. Promising
6. Need Attention
HOW DO I ENSURE THAT
I DON’T LOSE THESE USERS?
7. About To Sleep
8. Cannot Lose Them
9. At Risk
10. Hibernating
6 A QUICK START GUIDE TO AUTOMATED SEGMENTATION WITH RFM ANALYSIS
7. In this section, we go over some practical
recommendations on how to effectively engage your
customers for each segment in the RFM grid.
C. LET’S GET STARTED
7 A QUICK START GUIDE TO AUTOMATED SEGMENTATION WITH RFM ANALYSIS
8. 1. CHAMPIONS (POWER USERS)
— HIGHEST RECENCY, HIGHEST FREQUENCY SCORE —
As the biggest advocates of your product,
incentivize these users to invite their friends.
WHAT
These users are your most active
users. They have the highest
recency and frequency scores.
These users love engaging with
your app and have incorporated it
into their personal habits.
Your Champions are the ideal segment to
test a new product feature or promotional
campaign.
CHALLENGE: HOW DO I MAKE SURE MY MOST ENGAGED USERS REMAIN HOOKED ON MYAPP?
HOWTO MEASURE SUCCESS
We recommend saving this
segment of users and then tracking
how many tested a new product
feature with ‘Feature Used’ event
property.
WHY
As a marketer, this segment
likely drives the most
conversions on your app
and you need to ensure that
your app stays an integral
part of their lives.
HOW - ENGAGEMENT CAMPAIGNS
8 A QUICK START GUIDE TO AUTOMATED SEGMENTATION WITH RFM ANALYSIS
9. 2. LOYAL CUSTOMERS (HAPPY CAMPERS)
— HIGH RECENCY, HIGH FREQUENCY SCORE —
Ask this user segment to rate your app in
order to improve your app store rankings.
WHAT
These users have
highest frequency of
use with strong recency.
Healthy users who use
your app frequently, but
aren’t as active as your
champions.
Send in-app messages to engage these
users with personalized content or product
updates.
CHALLENGE: HOW DO I MAKE SURE MY MOST ENGAGED USERS REMAIN HOOKED ON MYAPP?
HOWTO MEASURE SUCCESS
To monitor the progress of this segment, track the
‘Rate the app’ call-to-action button with an event
called ‘app rating’ to measure the number of times
users clicked on it. You can even measure the number
of times they performed critical events in your app
such as App Launched and Notification Clicked to see
how many users engage with your in-app messages.
WHY
This user segment
is ideal to explore
upsell opportunities
and spread word
of mouth for your
business.
HOW - ENGAGEMENT CAMPAIGNS
9 A QUICK START GUIDE TO AUTOMATED SEGMENTATION WITH RFM ANALYSIS
10. 3. POTENTIAL LOYALISTS (BECOMING MORE ENGAGED)
— HIGH RECENCY, AVERAGE FREQUENCY SCORE —
Offer a promotional loyalty card
to this segment.
WHAT
These users have
shown a recent uptick
in engagement, and
are primed to become
loyal customers or
champions.
Send related product recommendations
based on their purchase history.
CHALLENGE: HOW DO I MAKE SURE MY MOST ENGAGED USERS REMAIN HOOKED ON MYAPP?
HOWTO MEASURE SUCCESS
Use CleverTap’s Funnels to help measure conversions
for a series of events such as ‘Signup,’ ‘Initiate
Rewards Program,’ and ‘Complete Rewards Program’
for a given user segment. Analyze whether the
users in this segment click on a promotional push
notification, come back to the app and make a
purchase.
WHY
This user segment
is likely to be
receptive to product
recommendations,
or sign up for loyalty
programs.
HOW - ENGAGEMENT CAMPAIGNS
10 A QUICK START GUIDE TO AUTOMATED SEGMENTATION WITH RFM ANALYSIS
11. CHALLENGE: HOW DO I ENCOURAGE REPEAT PURCHASES/CONVERSIONS?
4. NEW CUSTOMERS (BRAND NEW USERS)
— HIGH RECENCY, LOWEST FREQUENCY SCORE —
Send a welcome offer to incentivize them
to explore your app.
WHAT
These are
users who have
recently launched
your app for the
first time ever.
HOWTO MEASURE SUCCESS
A great way to ensure that new customers keep coming
back to your app is by optimizing their onboarding
experience. Use CleverTap’s Flows to see how users
navigate through your app for an event such as ‘Product
viewed’ and ‘Welcome offer applied’ while exploring
your app to see exactly when they convert, or what
actions they perform before they drop off.
WHY
These users are
strong candidates to
encourage repeat use.
Show them the wow
factors of your app.
HOW - ENGAGEMENT CAMPAIGNS
Share pro tips so they visit the app more
frequently and quickly move towards
becoming potential loyalists.
11 A QUICK START GUIDE TO AUTOMATED SEGMENTATION WITH RFM ANALYSIS
12. CHALLENGE: HOW DO I ENCOURAGE REPEAT PURCHASES/CONVERSIONS?
5. PROMISING (SHOWING INTEREST)
— HIGH RECENCY, LOW FREQUENCY SCORE —
WHAT
These users have shown
recent interest in your
app, but haven’t yet made
it a frequent part of their
daily lives.
HOWTO MEASURE SUCCESS
Use Retention Cohorts to track the
progress of this segment to analyze how
engagement campaigns encourage repeat
purchases. Track events such as ‘Category
viewed’ and ‘Add to cart’ to measure the
performance of your campaigns.
WHY
This user segment offers
untapped opportunity
to drive more future
purchases.
Send push notifications with relevant deep links
that lead them straight into a page of interest in
your app.
HOW - ENGAGEMENT CAMPAIGNS
Cross-sell these users on a related product
or feature to motivate them to upgrade to a
paid subscription so they have reasons to
visit more frequently.
12 A QUICK START GUIDE TO AUTOMATED SEGMENTATION WITH RFM ANALYSIS
13. 6. NEEDS ATTENTION (AVERAGE USAGE)
— AVERAGE RECENCY, AVERAGE FREQUENCY SCORE —
Engage in one-on-one dialogue with users by
running a push notification campaign asking
them to give feedback on your app.
WHAT
These users are on the
fence, representing an
opportunity to engage
before they lose interest.
Enable free shipping or a limited-time
upgrade offer for this user segment to let
them know you are actively thinking of
improving their app experience.
CHALLENGE: HOW DO I ENCOURAGE REPEAT PURCHASES/CONVERSIONS?
HOWTO MEASURE SUCCESS
Use campaign tracking metrics to track click
through and open rates to measure this segment’s
progress. The metric ‘Influenced Conversion Rate’
on the CleverTap campaign stats page can be
a great way to identify how many users clicked
on a push notification and then went on to give
feedback with the ‘Review this app’ call-to-action.
WHY
This user segment
comprises mostly of
impulsive or one-
time buyers who are
influenced by time-
sensitive offers and
discounts.
HOW - ENGAGEMENT CAMPAIGNS
13 A QUICK START GUIDE TO AUTOMATED SEGMENTATION WITH RFM ANALYSIS
14. CHALLENGE: HOW DO I ENSURE THAT I DON’T LOSE MY USERS?
7. ABOUTTO SLEEP (OCCASIONALVISITORS)
— AVERAGE RECENCY, LOW FREQUENCY SCORE —
Send a personalized product
recommendation.
WHAT
These users visit now and
then, but may slip away if
not engaged with.
HOWTO MEASURE SUCCESS
Use the events ‘Notification Clicked’ and
‘Shop Now’ to track the number of users that
click on your product recommendations. Use
‘UTM Visited’ if it’s an external campaign link.
WHY
Remind them of your
app’s value to encourage
them to come back to the
app.
HOW - ENGAGEMENT CAMPAIGNS
Invite them to access
exclusive features or content.
14 A QUICK START GUIDE TO AUTOMATED SEGMENTATION WITH RFM ANALYSIS
15. CHALLENGE: HOW DO I ENSURE THAT I DON’T LOSE MY USERS?
8. CANNOT LOSE THEM (FORMER POWER USERS)
— LOW RECENCY, HIGHEST FREQUENCY SCORE —
Send a survey to find out if they didn’t return
due to a bad experience, and use this
opportunity to address user concerns.
WHAT
These users used to
be highly active in
your app, but haven’t
shown much recent
activity.
HOWTO MEASURE SUCCESS
Analyze the number of users that
perform the events ‘Take the survey’
and ‘Completed survey’ to measure the
effectiveness of your campaign.
WHY
These users are strong candidates
to re-engage since they understand
your brand and app well. Reach
out to these users to learn what
changed and try to win them back.
HOW - ENGAGEMENT CAMPAIGNS
Share a personalized product or feature
update based on previous purchases or
content activity.
15 A QUICK START GUIDE TO AUTOMATED SEGMENTATION WITH RFM ANALYSIS
16. CHALLENGE: HOW DO I ENSURE THAT I DON’T LOSE MY USERS?
9. AT RISK (FORMERLYACTIVE USERS)
— LOW RECENCY, AVERAGE FREQUENCY SCORE —
Offer a discount or exclusive content so users
can see your app’s latest improvements.
WHAT
These users used to be
active, but have shown a
drop-off in recent activity.
HOWTO MEASURE SUCCESS
Since this segment used to be active
previously, save this segment of users and
compare their previous activity to their
current activity to track progress.
WHY
Users in this segment
have transacted in the
past but have gone cold
with inactivity.
HOW - ENGAGEMENT CAMPAIGNS
Send an update on their connections (friends
and family) that have joined your app since
they last visited.
16 A QUICK START GUIDE TO AUTOMATED SEGMENTATION WITH RFM ANALYSIS
17. CHALLENGE: HOW DO I ENSURE THAT I DON’T LOSE MY USERS?
10. HIBERNATING (INACTIVE USERS)
— LOWEST RECENCY, LOWEST FREQUENCY SCORE —
Send a text message with a reactivation offer
to win them back.
WHAT
They are no longer active
on your app, have low
reachability, and are in
danger of uninstalling.
HOWTO MEASURE SUCCESS
Measure the event ‘App Launched’ and ‘Offer
applied’ to track the progress of your campaign.
Use A/B tests to improve the copy of your
messages for sub-segments of hibernating users
to further optimize campaign performance.
WHY
These dormant users
require an aggressive
strategy to reactivate
them.
HOW - ENGAGEMENT CAMPAIGNS
Share new features or content added since
their last session.
17 A QUICK START GUIDE TO AUTOMATED SEGMENTATION WITH RFM ANALYSIS
18. D. USE REACHABILITY METRICS TO ENGAGE USERS
ON THE RIGHT CHANNEL
Once you have identified segments that you
want to engage, you want to make sure you
reach them on the right channel. When you click
on each segment on the RFM grid, you will see
reachability metrics across channels such as
mobile push, email, SMS and web push.
For example, for Champions in the above
grid, reachability on mobile push is at 92% as
compared to 53% on email. So it’s likely that
a push campaign will be the most effective
channel to engage Champion users.
Reachability brings out each
segment’s unique engagement
preferences to help prioritize
your marketing channels and
adapt your messaging to user
preferences.
18 A QUICK START GUIDE TO AUTOMATED SEGMENTATION WITH RFM ANALYSIS
19. Customer
Segment
RFM
Segment
Activity Actionable Tip
E. SUMMARY GRID
POWER USERS Champions
Bought recently, buy often and
spend the most!
Reward these users. They can be early
adopters for new products and will
likely promote your brand.
HAPPY CAMPERS
Loyal
Customers
Spend good money often and
responsive to promotions.
Upsell higher value products. Ask for
reviews. Keep them engaged.
BECOMING
MORE ENGAGED
Potential
Loyalists
Recent customers, but spent a good
amount and bought more than once.
Offer membership / loyalty program,
recommend other products.
BRAND NEW
USERS
New
Customers
Bought most recently, but not often.
Provide onboarding support, give
them early success, start building
relationship.
SHOWING
INTEREST
Promising
Recent shoppers, but haven’t spent
much.
Create brand awareness, offer free
trials.
AVERAGE
USAGE
Need
Attention
Above average recency, frequency
and monetary values. May not have
bought very recently though.
Make limited-time offers and
personalized recommendations based
on past purchases to reactivate them.
FORMER
POWER USERS
Cannot
Lose Them
Made biggest purchases, and often.
But haven’t returned for a long time.
Win them back via renewals or
newer products, don’t lose them to
competition, talk to them.
FORMERLY
ACTIVE USERS
At Risk
Engaged with your app and
purchased often, but not for awhile.
Time to bring them back!
Send personalized emails to
reconnect, offer renewals, provide
helpful resources.
INACTIVE
USERS
Hibernating
Last purchase was long ago. Low
spenders and low number of orders.
Offer other relevant products and
special discounts. Recreate brand
value.
OCCASIONAL
VISITORS
About
To Sleep
Below average recency, frequency
and monetary values. Will lose them
if not reactivated.
Share valuable resources, recommend
popular products / renewals at
discount, reconnect with them.
19 A QUICK START GUIDE TO AUTOMATED SEGMENTATION WITH RFM ANALYSIS
20. G. NEXT STEPS
Automated segmentation is a proven method for improving your marketing campaign performance. You can focus
on your most responsive users without over messaging them. And you can encourage low-activity users to engage
with your app more frequently through personalized campaigns.
F. USE SEGMENTTRANSITIONS TO MONITOR SUCCESS
Once you’ve got some
engagement campaigns
up and running, you’ll
be eager to see their
success.
Segment Transitions is
a new visualization tool
that reveals how your
segments are changing.
For instance, let’s say
you have a lot of at risk
customers coming from
the new customers segment. This tells you that most of your new customers are becoming inactive on your app
and that you can improve your onboarding experience to avoid this situation in the future. You’ll get to see the
direct impact your campaigns have on the growth of your user base. Stay tuned for a comprehensive guide on
Transitions coming soon!
NEED FURTHER
ASSISTANCE? CONTACT
OUR SUPPORT TEAM.
LIKE WHAT YOU SEE?
CONTACT US TO SCHEDULE
A DEMO.
20 A QUICK START GUIDE TO AUTOMATED SEGMENTATION WITH RFM ANALYSIS