Before building a segment, you probably already have an idea of the customers you want to target. When actually building a segment, your classifications need to be logical to produce the correct target.
The “AND,” “OR,” and “AND NOT” operators come into play when you are looking to classify customers that satisfy a set of conditions - or that don’t.
There are three basic ways to set up a target:
- AND - People who must satisfy multiple conditions at the same time
- OR - People who must satisfy at least one condition
- AND NOT - People who do not satisfy a particular condition
We will walk through a few examples of each of the logical operators. For most of these examples, we’ll consider combinations of MVBs, Frequent Buyers, and Active customers. We'll visualize the selections with a Venn diagram, and the stars indicate the result of the AND/OR/AND NOT statements.
The “AND” Statement
Once in the segment builder, use the “AND” option when seeking to satisfy multiple criteria or conditions simultaneously. For example, customers can be both One-Time Buyers and Faders, both MVBs and Active, or both MVBs and Frequent Buyers.
Example: MVB AND Frequent Customers
In this example, you want to select customers that are both MVBs and Frequent Buyers. If they are only Frequent Buyers but not MVBs, we don’t want to select them, nor if they are only MVBs, but not Frequent Buyers.
You can add as many of these conditions as you like, but be wary of making nonsensical statements with conditions that cancel each other out. For example, a customer could not be considered both a One-Time and a 2+ Buyer.
Example: MVB AND Frequent AND Active
In this example, you want to select customers that are MVBs, Frequent Buyers, and Active Buyers. If they do not match all three criteria simultaneously, they will not be included in the segment.
“OR” Statement
When utilizing “OR,” you are setting a list of conditions in which at least one is satisfied, but not necessarily all of them (If all of them are satisfied, that's fine too).
For instance, a customer can be just an MVB, just a Frequent Buyer or both an MVB and a Frequent Buyer. Because they satisfy at least one condition, they satisfy the OR statement.
Example: Active OR Frequent OR MVB
In this example, you are identifying customers that are at least one of Active, Frequent, or MVBs. As long as they meet at least one of the three, they will fit within the segment.
Example: (MVB OR Frequent) AND Active
In this example, your targeted customers can be either an MVB or Frequent Buyer, but must also be an Active Buyer. So, at least one of the two former conditions must be met, in addition to the latter.
“AND NOT” Statement
This statement is an exclusion property, which specifically means that you want to pick people who do not satisfy a certain criteria.
Example: MVB AND NOT Frequent
In this example, the buyer must be an MVB, but cannot be a Frequent Buyer. If a customer meets both conditions, they will be excluded from the segment.
Example: MVB AND NOT Frequent AND NOT Active
In this example, the selected customers are MVBs, but are neither Frequent nor Active Buyers.
Example: (MVB OR Frequent) AND NOT Active
In this example, the customer can either be an MVB or a Frequent Buyer (or both), but cannot be an active buyer.
Example: MVB AND Frequent AND NOT Active
In this example, the customer must be both an MVB and a Frequent Buyer - but not an Active Buyer. Any of the latter will be excluded from the segment.
Example: NOT MVB
In this example, you are targeting customers that can be anything but an MVB. As long as they are not an MVB, they will meet your criteria and be listed in the segment.
Example: NOT MVB AND NOT Frequent AND NOT Active
In this final example, your selected customers can be anything except an MVB, Frequent Buyer, or Active Buyer. If they are any of the three, they will not be chosen.
This wraps up the process of including and excluding particular groups of customers while building segments. This allows you to hone in and pinpoint the exact type of customers you want to reach. In turn, each message will be timely, relevant, and targeted.