How to Segment Contacts Who Received a Particular Email in Mautic

Have you ever sent an email campaign, only to realize you made a mistake? Maybe there was a typo, or worse missing information, or even worse a broken link. Perhaps you've found yourself needing to send important updates or clarifications only to those who received the original email.

If you've ever been in this situation, you know that this issue quickly goes beyond just correcting an error. A misstep in your email communication impacts your reputation, and ultimately might affect your bottom line. Thus, this can be a stressful situation.

In a case like this you know that you sent out an email. But what you don't know is: Who got it? Especially, if you managed to abort sending your queued emails.

There's one thing you definitively don't want to do: Broadcast your corrections to those who didn't receive your flawed email in the first place.

How do you handle this?

Segment Contacts After They Received a Specific Email

Mautic offers a solution for this problem. But it isn't that obvious:

You can segment contacts who received a particular email.

Here are the steps how to do it:

1. Create a new segment in Mautic.
2. Add a filter to that segment: Was sent a specific email
3. Configure the filter to match the email in question. In this case the LTNS No. 6 - How to start from scratch email.

After creating the segment you can use it to either

• create a broadcast email, which you'll send to those contacts, or
• create a full-blown campaign (segment as contact source) to address the issue with some sort of personalization.

If you've never been in this kind of situation, you might wonder what the fuzz is all about.

Here are some use cases when you might need this technique:

Use Cases

1. Error Correction: If you made a mistake in the email you sent, you may need to send a corrected version or an apology to those who received the flawed email. Some common errors:
   - Missing Information like the date and time of an event.
   - Technical Glitches like wrong or broken links.
   - Incomplete Emails that got sent prematurely or without final revision.
2. Extended Offer: Suppose you sent an email with a special offer that expired too soon, or you decided to extend the offer period. You'll need to inform the recipients of the original email about this extension.
3. Additional Information or Update: If new information related to the content of the original email arises after it's sent, you might need to send an update or additional information only to those who received the initial email.
4. Clarification: If an email sent out has caused confusion or misinterpretation among recipients, a clarification email would be necessary to clear up any misunderstandings.

So, what's next?

Prepare Yourself for the Inevitable Mistake

No one is perfect. Every one makes a mistake at some point.

Instead of being afraid to make mistakes, make sure you're prepared. How?

Create a segment like the one above and a campaign or an empty email using. Connect those with the segment by setting it as their contact source. Don't publish any of them yet.

In case of emergency, all you've got to do is:

• Change your segment to filter for the email in question.
• Write the email you need to send.
• Publish the segment, and broadcast the email.
• Personalize with your campaign if you want or need to.

Use those lessons to inform your future campaigns. If a situation arises where you need to target recipients of a specific email, remember the power of segmentation by email reception.

Stay tuned to Audienture for more insights and practical tips on email marketing and marketing automation.

Happy marketing!