How to Split Customer Segments Using the Shopify Email
How to Split Customer Segments Using the Shopify Email
by Dillan Gandhi
To split customer segments in Shopify Email, go to Customers → Segments → Create Segment in your Shopify Admin. Write a ShopifyQL rule or describe what you want in plain language using Shopify’s AI assistant Sidekick and Shopify builds a dynamic, auto-updating list. Once saved, that segment appears as a recipient option in any Shopify Email campaign.
How Do You Create a Customer Segment in Shopify Email
1. Open the Segment Builder
In Shopify Admin: Customers → Segments → Create Segment. The ShopifyQL editor opens with a default query. You can edit the query directly or click the Templates icon to start from a pre-built filter.
2. Write Your Rule (ShopifyQL or Sidekick)
Common samples from our projects in Gallery Gifts Online: Harry Potter Collection:
- First-time buyers: orders_count = 1
- VIP customers: amount_spent >= 500
- UK-only audience: customer_countries CONTAINS ‘United Kingdom’
- Lapsed customers: last_order_date <= -90d AND orders_count > 1
- Last product purchased: products_purchased MATCHES ( tag CONTAINS ‘Harry Potter’)
- Last Viewed Products: storefront.product_viewed MATCHES ( tag CONTAINS ‘Harry Potter’)
Use AND / OR operators to combine multiple conditions. To use Sidekick: open it from the admin (purple glasses icon), describe your audience in plain English, and it generates the query instantly.
3. Run, Review, and Save
Click Run Query to preview which customers match. The count displays above the editor. Review, adjust if needed, then click Save Segment. It’s now available in the recipient field of every Shopify Email campaign.
4. Send Your Campaign
In Marketing → Campaigns → Create Campaign → Email, select your saved segment as the recipient. Shopify automatically filters out customers who haven’t opted into marketing , GDPR and CCPA compliance is built in.
How Shopify Segments Trigger Automated Emails
Shopify Flow can trigger actions when customers enter or leave a segment — making your marketing fully automated. This is where a solid Growth Marketing strategy really compounds: the segments do the filtering, Flow does the sending, and you focus on the offers. Useful workflows include:
- VIP welcome: send a thank-you email the moment a customer crosses the £500 spend threshold.
- Abandoned cart recovery: tag customers who leave items in their cart and trigger a reminder sequence.
Behaviour-based tagging: if a customer browses a product category multiple times, Flow adds a tag (e.g. “High Quality Porcelain”). Build a segment from that tag for product-interest campaigns.
How Searchlight London Helps Setting Up Your Shopify Email Segments
At Searchlight London, our technical SEO team build and manage Shopify segmentation strategies that connect your customer data to campaigns that actually convert. If you want help setting up segments, writing ShopifyQL queries, or building Flow automations. Get in touch today.