Customer Segments v25.9+

Customer Segments in Maho enable you to create dynamic groups of customers based on powerful, real-time conditions. Target specific customer behaviors, demographics, purchase patterns, and engagement metrics to deliver personalized experiences, targeted promotions, and automated marketing campaigns.

Overview

Customer segmentation is a fundamental feature for data-driven marketing and personalization:

• Dynamic targeting: Automatically match customers based on real-time conditions
• Rich condition types: 13+ condition categories covering customer data, orders, cart, and behavior
• Sales rule integration: Use segments for targeted pricing and promotions
• Email automation: Trigger automated email sequences (see Email Automation)
• Website-aware: Scope segments to specific websites
• Performance optimized: Efficient SQL queries with smart caching

Key Benefits

For Marketing Teams

• Precision targeting: Reach the right customers with the right message
• Behavioral triggers: React to customer actions in real-time
• Campaign performance: Measure segment-specific conversion rates
• Reduced waste: Stop broadcasting, start targeting

For E-commerce Managers

• Personalized pricing: Offer segment-specific discounts and promotions
• Inventory management: Target promotions to move slow-moving stock
• Customer retention: Identify at-risk customers before they churn
• Lifetime value optimization: Focus on high-value customer segments

For Business Owners

• Revenue growth: Increase conversion through personalization
• Customer insights: Understand your customer base through segmentation
• Operational efficiency: Automate targeting and promotions
• Competitive advantage: Deliver enterprise-level personalization

Segment Conditions

Maho provides 13 powerful condition types to create sophisticated customer segments:

1. Customer Personal Information

Target customers by their profile data:

Example: Birthday Campaign

Conditions:
- Days Until Birthday: equals 0
- Newsletter: Subscribed

2. Customer Address

Segment by billing or shipping address:

Example: Free Shipping to California

Conditions:
- Shipping Address: State equals CA
- Order: Total Ordered Amount > $50

3. Customer Lifetime Value (CLV)

Identify high-value and VIP customers:

Example: VIP Customer Segment

Conditions:
- Lifetime Sales Amount: greater than $1000
- Number of Orders: greater than 5
- Lifetime Refunds: less than $100

4. Newsletter Subscription

Target by subscription status:

Example: Subscription Drive

Conditions:
- Newsletter: Not Subscribed
- Number of Orders: greater than 0

5. Shopping Cart Attributes

Target customers based on their active cart:

Example: High-Value Cart Abandonment

Conditions:
- Cart Status: equals Active
- Cart Grand Total: greater than $200
- Days Since Cart Update: greater than 0.04 (1 hour)

6. Shopping Cart Items

Target based on specific products in cart:

Example: Complete the Set

Conditions:
- Cart Items: Category equals "Cameras"
- Cart Items: SKU does not contain "memory-card"

7. Order Information

Segment by historical order data:

Example: Inactive Customer Win-back

Conditions:
- Days Since Last Order: greater than 90
- Number of Orders: greater than 1
- Newsletter: Subscribed

8. Order Items

Target based on previously purchased products:

Example: Replenishment Campaign

Conditions:
- Order Items: SKU equals "COFFEE-BEANS-500G"
- Order: Purchase Date was 30 days ago

9. Product Viewed

Target customers who viewed specific products:

Example: Browse Abandonment

Conditions:
- Product Viewed: Category equals "Laptops"
- Product Viewed: Viewed Date was in last 7 days
- Number of Orders: equals 0 (no purchase yet)

10. Product in Wishlist

Target based on wishlist activity:

Example: Wishlist Reminder

Conditions:
- Product in Wishlist: Added Date was 14+ days ago
- Newsletter: Subscribed

11. Combine Conditions

Use logical operators to create complex segments:

• ALL (AND): All conditions must be true
• ANY (OR): At least one condition must be true
• NOT ALL: At least one condition must be false

Example: High-Value Abandoned Cart OR Long-Time Inactive

Combine: ANY of the following
  Sub-group 1 (ALL):
    - Cart Status: Active
    - Cart Grand Total: > $200
    - Days Since Cart Update: > 1 day

  Sub-group 2 (ALL):
    - Days Since Last Order: > 180
    - Lifetime Sales: > $500

Practical Examples

Example 1: VIP Customer Tier

Goal: Identify top-spending customers for exclusive benefits

Segment Configuration:

Name: VIP Platinum Tier
Conditions (ALL):
- Lifetime Sales Amount: greater than $5000
- Number of Orders: greater than 10
- Average Order Value: greater than $200
- Lifetime Refunds: less than 5% of Lifetime Sales
Website: All Websites
Active: Yes

Use Cases: - Exclusive product access - VIP pricing tiers (via sales rules) - Dedicated customer service - Invitation-only events

Example 2: Cart Abandonment - High Value

Goal: Recover high-value abandoned carts

Segment Configuration:

Name: Cart Abandoned $200+
Conditions (ALL):
- Shopping Cart: Status equals "Active"
- Shopping Cart: Grand Total greater than $200
- Shopping Cart: Days Since Update greater than 0.04 (1 hour)
- Newsletter: Subscription Status equals "Subscribed"
Website: All Websites
Auto Email: Enabled (Enter Segment)
Active: Yes

Email Sequence: 1. 1 hour: Gentle reminder 2. 24 hours: 10% discount coupon 3. 7 days: 15% + free shipping

Expected ROI: 20-25% recovery rate

Example 3: New Customer Welcome

Goal: Nurture first-time customers

Segment Configuration:

Name: New Customers - No Orders
Conditions (ALL):
- Customer: Days Since Registration less than 30
- Customer: Number of Orders equals 0
- Newsletter: Subscribed
Website: All Websites
Auto Email: Enabled (Enter Segment)
Active: Yes

Email Sequence: 1. Immediate: Welcome + 15% off first order 2. 3 days: Product guide & bestsellers 3. 7 days: Customer testimonials 4. 14 days: Last chance offer

Example 4: Win-back Inactive Customers

Goal: Re-engage customers who haven't ordered in 6 months

Segment Configuration:

Name: Inactive 180+ Days
Conditions (ALL):
- Order: Days Since Last Order greater than 180
- Order: Total Orders greater than 1
- Newsletter: Subscribed
- Lifetime Sales: greater than $100
Website: All Websites
Auto Email: Enabled (Enter Segment)
Active: Yes

Strategy: - Email sequence with progressive discounts - Showcase new products since last visit - "We miss you" personalization

Example 5: Birthday Campaign

Goal: Send birthday offers to customers

Segment Configuration:

Name: Today's Birthdays
Conditions (ALL):
- Customer: Days Until Birthday equals 0
- Newsletter: Subscribed
Website: All Websites
Auto Email: Enabled (Enter Segment)
Refresh Mode: Auto (Daily refresh)
Active: Yes

Email: - Birthday greeting - 20% birthday discount coupon (30-day expiration) - Free shipping

Example 6: Category Affinity - Cross-sell

Goal: Target customers who bought from one category with related products

Segment Configuration:

Name: Camera Buyers - No Accessories
Conditions (ALL):
- Order Items: Category equals "Cameras"
- Order: Purchase Date was in last 90 days
- Order Items: Category does not equal "Camera Accessories"
Website: All Websites
Active: Yes

Sales Rule: 15% off camera accessories

Example 7: Geographic Expansion

Goal: Target new shipping regions

Segment Configuration:

Name: UK Customers - New Region
Conditions (ALL):
- Shipping Address: Country equals "United Kingdom"
- Customer: Created At after 2025-01-01
Website: UK Website
Auto Email: Enabled (Enter Segment)
Active: Yes

Welcome Sequence: 1. Welcome to UK store 2. Free shipping on first order 3. Local customer success stories

Example 8: Repeat Purchase Cycle

Goal: Trigger replenishment for consumable products

Segment Configuration:

Name: Coffee Replenishment Due
Conditions (ALL):
- Order Items: Category equals "Coffee"
- Order: Purchase Date was 28-35 days ago
- Newsletter: Subscribed
Website: All Websites
Auto Email: Enabled (Enter Segment)
Active: Yes

Email: "Time to restock your coffee!"

Example 9: High-Intent Browsers

Goal: Convert browsers who viewed expensive items

Segment Configuration:

Name: High-Value Browsers - No Purchase
Conditions (ALL):
- Product Viewed: Price greater than $500
- Product Viewed: Viewed in last 7 days
- Number of Orders: equals 0
- Newsletter: Subscribed
Website: All Websites
Active: Yes

Strategy: Personal consultation offer, financing options

Example 10: Loyalty Tier Advancement

Goal: Motivate customers close to next loyalty tier

Segment Configuration:

Name: $50 Away from Gold Tier
Conditions (ALL):
- Lifetime Sales: greater than $950
- Lifetime Sales: less than $1000
- Days Since Last Order: less than 60
Website: All Websites
Auto Email: Enabled (Enter Segment)
Active: Yes

Email: "Just $50 away from Gold status! Here's what you'll unlock..."

Configuration

Creating a Segment

1. Navigate to Customers → Customer Segments
2. Click "Add Segment"
3. Configure basic settings:
4. Name: Descriptive segment name
5. Description: Internal notes
6. Status: Active/Inactive
7. Websites: Scope segment to specific websites

8. Refresh Mode: Auto (scheduled) or Manual

9. Build conditions in the "Conditions" tab:

10. Click "+" to add conditions
11. Choose condition type from dropdown
12. Configure operator and value

13. Nest conditions using Combine for complex logic

14. Optional: Configure email automation:

15. Enable "Auto Email Active"
16. Choose trigger: Enter or Exit segment

17. Configure email sequence (see Email Automation)

18. Save the segment

Refreshing Segments

Segments can be refreshed manually or automatically:

Manual Refresh: - Click "Refresh Segment" in segment edit screen - Forces immediate recalculation of membership

Automatic Refresh: - Set "Refresh Mode" to "Auto" - Runs daily via cron at 5 AM (default) - Configure schedule in customer/customer_segments/cron_schedule

Refresh Status: - Pending: Waiting to be refreshed - Processing: Currently refreshing - Completed: Successfully refreshed - Error: Refresh failed (check logs)

Using Segments in Sales Rules

1. Navigate to Promotions → Shopping Cart Price Rules
2. Create or edit a price rule
3. In Conditions tab, add condition:
4. Customer Segment → Matches: Select your segment(s)
5. Configure discount and other rule details
6. Save the rule

Example: VIP-Only 20% Discount

Name: VIP Platinum - 20% Off
Conditions:
- Customer Segment: matches "VIP Platinum Tier"
Actions:
- Apply: 20% discount on entire cart
- Free Shipping: Yes

Performance & Optimization

Segment Refresh Performance

Large segments can take time to refresh:

• Small (< 1,000 customers): < 1 second
• Medium (1,000-10,000): 1-5 seconds
• Large (10,000-100,000): 5-30 seconds
• Very Large (100,000+): 30 seconds - 2 minutes

Optimization Tips: - Use indexed fields when possible (customer_id, email, created_at) - Avoid overly complex nested conditions - Refresh during off-peak hours - Consider manual refresh for rarely-used segments

Database Indexing

Critical indexes for segment performance:

-- Customer table
CREATE INDEX idx_created_at ON customer_entity(created_at);
CREATE INDEX idx_email ON customer_entity(email);

-- Order table
CREATE INDEX idx_customer_id ON sales_flat_order(customer_id);
CREATE INDEX idx_created_at ON sales_flat_order(created_at);

-- Cart table
CREATE INDEX idx_customer_id ON sales_flat_quote(customer_id);
CREATE INDEX idx_updated_at ON sales_flat_quote(updated_at);
CREATE INDEX idx_is_active ON sales_flat_quote(is_active);

Caching

Segment results are cached in customer_segment_customer table:

• Membership persists between refreshes
• Fast lookup for sales rules and email triggers
• Invalidated only on segment refresh

Monitoring & Analytics

Segment Metrics

Each segment displays key metrics:

• Matched Customers: Current segment size
• Last Refresh: When segment was last updated
• Refresh Status: Current processing status
• Created At: Segment creation date
• Priority: For overlapping segment resolution

Viewing Segment Members

To see which customers are in a segment:

1. Option A - Admin Grid:
2. Customer grid → Filter by segment

3. Shows all customers in selected segment

4. Option B - Database Query:

   SELECT c.entity_id, c.email, c.firstname, c.lastname
   FROM customer_entity c
   JOIN customer_segment_customer sc ON c.entity_id = sc.customer_id
   WHERE sc.segment_id = 1;  -- Your segment ID
   

5. Option C - Export:

6. Use Maho export functionality
7. Filter by segment before export

Performance Monitoring

Monitor segment refresh performance in logs:

Location: var/log/customer_segmentation.log

2025-10-21 05:00:00 INFO: Refreshing segment: VIP Platinum (ID: 1)
2025-10-21 05:00:02 INFO: Segment 1 refreshed successfully. Time: 1.82s, Memory: 12.5MB, Customers: 342

Best Practices

1. Segment Design

Do: - Use descriptive names ("Cart Abandoned $200+" vs "Segment 1") - Add detailed descriptions for team reference - Test conditions on a few customers first - Start simple, add complexity as needed

Don't: - Create overlapping segments unless intentional - Use overly broad conditions (entire customer base) - Neglect to document segment purpose

2. Refresh Strategy

For Real-Time Needs: - Use manual refresh mode - Trigger via API or admin action - Best for time-sensitive campaigns

For Scheduled Campaigns: - Use auto refresh mode - Leverage daily cron job - Best for ongoing automation

3. Condition Building

Efficient Conditions: - Use indexed fields (email, customer_id, dates) - Avoid string pattern matching on large datasets - Combine related conditions logically

Inefficient Conditions: - LIKE '%pattern%' on large text fields - Overly nested combine conditions (>3 levels) - Cartesian product conditions

4. Email Automation Integration

When to Automate: - Transactional sequences (cart abandonment, welcome) - Time-sensitive offers (birthday, win-back) - Behavioral triggers (browse abandonment)

When to Manual Send: - One-time campaigns - A/B testing templates - Unproven segment performance

5. Sales Rule Usage

Combine Segments with Other Conditions:

Conditions (ALL):
- Customer Segment: matches "VIP Tier"
- Cart Subtotal: greater than $100
- Shipping Country: equals "US"

Use Priority for Overlapping Rules: - Higher priority segments get precedence - Prevent discount stacking issues

Troubleshooting

Segment Not Matching Expected Customers

Check: 1. ✅ All conditions are configured correctly 2. ✅ Operators match intent (equals vs. greater than) 3. ✅ Segment has been refreshed recently 4. ✅ Website scope is correct 5. ✅ Test with a specific customer ID manually

Debug Query:

-- Check segment conditions
SELECT conditions_serialized FROM customer_segment WHERE segment_id = 1;

-- Check matched customers
SELECT COUNT(*) FROM customer_segment_customer WHERE segment_id = 1;

Segment Refresh Failing

Common Causes: - Invalid SQL in complex conditions - Missing required data (deleted products, etc.) - Database connection issues - Memory limit exceeded for very large segments

Check Logs:

tail -f var/log/customer_segmentation.log
tail -f var/log/exception.log

Performance Issues

Symptoms: - Segment refresh takes >5 minutes - Admin panel slow when viewing segments - Cron jobs timing out

Solutions: 1. Add database indexes (see Performance section) 2. Simplify conditions (reduce nesting) 3. Increase PHP memory (php.ini: memory_limit = 512M) 4. Run refresh manually during off-peak hours

Advanced Usage

Programmatic Segment Membership Check

$customerId = 123;
$segmentId = 1;
$websiteId = 1;

$isInSegment = Mage::getResourceModel('customersegmentation/segment')
    ->isCustomerInSegment($segmentId, $customerId, $websiteId);

if ($isInSegment) {
    // Customer is in segment
}

Real-Time Segment Evaluation

For real-time checking without refresh:

$segment = Mage::getModel('customersegmentation/segment')->load($segmentId);
$customer = Mage::getModel('customer/customer')->load($customerId);

if ($segment->validateCustomer($customer, $websiteId)) {
    // Customer matches segment conditions right now
}

Bulk Segment Export

Export all segment members:

$segment = Mage::getModel('customersegmentation/segment')->load($segmentId);
$customerIds = $segment->getMatchingCustomerIds();

foreach ($customerIds as $customerId) {
    $customer = Mage::getModel('customer/customer')->load($customerId);
    // Process customer
}

Migration from Other Platforms

From Magento 1 Enterprise

Maho's segmentation is based on (and compatible with) Magento 1 Enterprise Edition:

• Conditions: Nearly identical condition types
• Database schema: Compatible structure
• Export/Import: Can migrate segment configurations
• Enhancements: Email automation is new in Maho

Migration Steps: 1. Export segment conditions from M1EE 2. Recreate segments in Maho admin 3. Test conditions with sample customers 4. Enable and configure email automation (new feature)

From Magento 2

Magento 2 has similar segmentation:

• Concept mapping: M2 segments → Maho segments
• Conditions: Similar but syntax differs
• Rebuild required: Manual recreation needed
• Test thoroughly: Condition logic may differ

Integration Points

REST API (Future)

Programmatic segment management (planned):

// Future API endpoint
GET    /api/rest/segments
POST   /api/rest/segments
PUT    /api/rest/segments/:id
DELETE /api/rest/segments/:id
POST   /api/rest/segments/:id/refresh
GET    /api/rest/segments/:id/customers

External CRM Sync

Sync segment membership to external CRM:

// Custom observer example
public function syncSegmentToCrm(Varien_Event_Observer $observer)
{
    $segment = $observer->getSegment();
    $customerIds = $observer->getMatchedCustomers();

    // Push to your CRM
    $this->crmClient->updateSegment($segment->getName(), $customerIds);
}

Further Reading

• Email Automation
• Sales Rules & Promotions
• Developer Guide: Customer Segments

Support

Need help with customer segments?

• 💬 Discord Community
• 🐛 GitHub Issues
• 📧 Contact the Maho team

Unlock the power of precision targeting with Maho Customer Segments! 🎯