Jimmy Kim explains why SMS segmentation fails when copied from email. SMS is immediate and moment-based, so segments should focus on recency and time-of-day triggers, not 90-day windows. A segment like "engaged in the last 14 days, likely to act Tuesday at 6 p.m." works; "hasn't purchased in 90 days" doesn't.
I think that most brands are segmenting SMS exactly the same way they segment email, and I don't think that's the right way to do it.
This is a good one. I'd almost argue that they aren't doing any of that segmentation right now, but I want you to explain what you think brands do.
Sure. So with email segmentation, it's built around behavior over time. So let's call it engaged over 30 days, someone browsed but they didn't purchase. Maybe you have a last customer, any type of those types of things, right? It's a long timeframe. Whereas with SMS segmentation, I think it needs to be built more around like immediacy, kind of the recency, the time of day, and kind of event-based type stuff. Sure. with email, right? You might send a lapsed customer some kind of win back to people who haven't bought, let's say, in the last 90 days. That works because they have time to read the email when it's convenient. SMS in 90 days, too broad of a segment here. And engaged with email in the last 14 days and it's a Tuesday at 6 p.m. It needs to be just more specific.
Yeah, because, well, we all know SMS hits in that moment, right?
Right. Where SMS is a moment-based channel, your segmentation therefore needs to reflect when someone is most likely to take a specific action you want them to take.
