Using Segments to Target Promotions

Customer segments become most powerful when you use them to control who is eligible for a promotion. Instead of offering a discount to every customer, you can restrict it to a specific segment — giving VIP customers exclusive deals, re-engaging lapsed shoppers, or rewarding loyal patrons at a specific location. This guide explains how to connect segments to promotions, how the promotion engine evaluates segment membership at sale time, and how segment targeting works alongside other promotion conditions.

Assigning a Segment to a Promotion

To target a promotion to a specific customer segment, you assign the segment in the Promotion Editor:

1. Navigate to Marketing > Promotions and open the promotion you want to target (or create a new one).
2. In the Promotion Editor, locate the Customer Segment dropdown in the targeting section.
3. Select the desired segment from the dropdown. The list shows all active segments (both manual and rule-based).
4. Save the promotion.

Once a segment is assigned, the promotion will only apply to customers who are members of that segment. If no segment is assigned (the dropdown is left blank), the promotion applies to all customers (and to anonymous sales, depending on other conditions).

You can change or remove the segment assignment at any time by editing the promotion. Changes take effect on the next sale processed after the edit is saved.

How the Engine Checks Segment Membership

At sale time, when the promotion engine evaluates whether a promotion should apply to the current invoice, it checks the customer segment condition as follows:

1. The engine reads the promotion's assigned segment (if any).
2. If no segment is assigned, this condition is automatically satisfied and the engine moves on to evaluate other conditions.
3. If a segment is assigned, the engine checks whether the customer attached to the current invoice is a member of that segment.
4. If the customer is a member, the segment condition is satisfied and the engine continues evaluating the remaining conditions.
5. If the customer is not a member, the segment condition fails and the promotion is skipped for this invoice.

The membership check is performed against the segment's current membership list at the time of the sale. For manual segments, this is the explicit list of added customers. For rule-based segments, this is the membership list as of the last refresh. If a rule-based segment has not been refreshed recently, it may not reflect the customer's latest behavior — this is why refreshing segments before launching a campaign is important.

Behavior When No Customer Is Attached

If no customer record is attached to the invoice, segment-targeted promotions are automatically skipped:

• The promotion engine cannot verify segment membership without a customer record, so it treats the condition as unmet.
• This means anonymous walk-in sales will never receive a segment-targeted promotion, even if the promotion's other conditions (date range, location, etc.) are all satisfied.
• This behavior is intentional — segment targeting is designed to reward identified customers. If your business wants a promotion to apply to everyone including anonymous sales, do not assign a segment to it.
• Cashiers should be aware that attaching a customer record can unlock additional discounts. If a regular customer is making a purchase and the cashier does not attach their profile, they may miss out on a segment-targeted promotion they would otherwise qualify for.

Example: VIP-Only 20% Off

Here is a complete walkthrough of creating a segment-targeted promotion from start to finish:

Step 1: Create the VIP Segment

1. Navigate to Marketing > Segments > New.
2. Name the segment "VIP Customers".
3. Select Rule-Based as the segment type.
4. Add a filter rule: Total Spend greater than $1,000.
5. Save the segment.
6. The system populates the segment with all customers whose lifetime spending exceeds $1,000.

Step 2: Create the Promotion

1. Navigate to Marketing > Promotions > New.
2. Set the promotion type to Invoice Discount.
3. Set the discount to 20% off the invoice total.
4. In the Customer Segment dropdown, select VIP Customers.
5. Configure any other desired conditions (date range, location scope, usage limits, etc.).
6. Save and activate the promotion.

Step 3: At the POS

When a cashier processes a sale:

• If the attached customer is in the VIP Customers segment, the 20% invoice discount is applied automatically.
• If the attached customer is not in the segment (they have spent less than $1,000 lifetime), the promotion is skipped and they pay the full price.
• If no customer is attached, the promotion is skipped.

This setup ensures that only your highest-value customers receive the VIP discount, reinforcing their loyalty without eroding margins on every transaction.

Combining Segments with Other Targeting

Segment targeting does not replace other promotion conditions — it works alongside them. All conditions on a promotion must be met for it to apply. The most common combinations are:

Segment + Location Scope

A promotion can be restricted to both a customer segment and a specific location. For example, a promotion targeting the "Downtown Regulars" segment and scoped to the downtown location ensures that only downtown regulars shopping at the downtown location receive the discount. If a downtown regular visits a different location, they do not qualify.

Segment + Date Range

A promotion can target a segment and be active only during a specific date range. For example, a "Lapsed Customer Win-Back" promotion targeting the "Inactive 90+ Days" segment might run only during February 2026. Outside that date range, the promotion is inactive even for segment members.

Segment + Usage Limits

A promotion can target a segment and enforce usage limits. For example, a VIP promotion might allow each customer to use it only once (per-customer limit) or might have a global limit of 100 uses (first 100 VIP customers to shop get the deal).

All Conditions Must Be Met

The promotion engine evaluates all conditions together using AND logic. The customer must be in the segment and the location must match and the date must be within range and usage limits must not be exceeded. If any single condition fails, the promotion does not apply.

Segments with Campaigns

Promotions linked to marketing campaigns can also have segment targeting. This combination gives you campaign-level budgets with audience-level precision:

• A campaign defines the overall marketing initiative, its date range, and its budget ceiling.
• Individual promotions within the campaign can each target different segments. For example, a "Spring Sale" campaign might include a 15% off promotion for the "New Customers" segment and a 25% off promotion for the "VIP Customers" segment.
• The campaign's budget tracks total discount dollars across all its promotions. When the budget is exhausted, all promotions in the campaign stop applying, regardless of which segment they target.
• This structure lets you run sophisticated multi-audience campaigns under a single budget umbrella, ensuring you do not overspend while still offering different deals to different customer groups.

Tips for Effective Segment Targeting

• Review segment membership periodically — Segments only work well if their membership is accurate. Refresh rule-based segments before launching promotions and review manual segments to ensure they are up to date.
• Keep segments focused and well-named — A segment called "VIP - Spent Over $1000" is immediately clear to any team member configuring a promotion. Vague segment names lead to targeting mistakes.
• Use rule-based segments for dynamic audiences — If the customer group should evolve over time (e.g., top spenders, recent visitors), rule-based segments automatically adapt when refreshed. Manual segments are better for fixed lists that do not change based on behavior.
• Use manual segments for hand-curated lists — When you need precise control over exactly who is in the group (e.g., specific corporate accounts, loyalty program beta testers), manual segments prevent unexpected additions or removals.
• Communicate exclusivity to customers — Segment-targeted promotions are most effective when customers know they are receiving something special. Train cashiers to mention "You qualify for our VIP discount today" rather than silently applying it.
• Test before launching — After creating a segment-targeted promotion, process a test sale with a customer who is in the segment and another with a customer who is not. Verify that the promotion applies correctly to the segment member and is skipped for the non-member.
• Watch for overlapping segments — If a customer is in multiple segments and each segment has a different promotion, stacking rules determine how the promotions interact. Review your stacking configuration to ensure the customer receives the intended combination of discounts.

What to Read Next

• Creating Customer Segments — Detailed guide on creating manual and rule-based segments, including all available filter rules.
• Promotion Stacking Rules — Learn how multiple promotions, coupons, and loyalty redemptions interact when more than one applies to the same invoice.