Crafting User-Centric App Experiences with Behavioural Segmentation: Best Practices and Examples

Most mobile product and marketing teams are well aware that irrelevant app experiences (offers, messages, recommendations and more) often lead to uninstalls. Despite this knowledge, many apps continue to struggle with retaining users because their messaging misses the mark. Why does this happen?

A significant reason is the failure to segment app users effectively. By neglecting to understand user behaviour, teams risk delivering experiences that don't resonate, resulting in lost engagement and uninstalls. This blog explores how behavioural segmentation can help solve this problem by ensuring every message is relevant and impactful.

What is Behavioural User Segmentation?

Behavioural user segmentation is the process of dividing users into distinct groups based on their actions, preferences, and interactions within an app. Unlike demographic or geographic segmentation, which categorizes users based on who they are or where they are, behavioural segmentation focuses on what users do.

By understanding these behaviours, product and marketing teams can tailor their strategies to meet users' specific needs and preferences.

Why You Need Behavioural User Segmentation

Behavioural segmentation is critical for delivering personalized, relevant experiences that keep users engaged. Here's how:

1. Enhanced User Experience: By understanding user behavior, you can create app experiences that are highly relevant to each user segment, reducing the likelihood of uninstalls due to irrelevant content.
2. Increased Engagement and Retention: Personalized messaging based on user behavior leads to higher engagement rates. When users feel that an app understands and caters to their needs, they are more likely to stick around.
3. Optimized Marketing Spend: By targeting specific segments with tailored campaigns, you ensure that your marketing budget is spent efficiently, focusing on users most likely to convert.
4. Improved Conversion Rates: Behavioural segmentation allows you to identify and target high-value users with personalized offers, driving higher conversion rates.
5. Data-Driven Decision Making: Insights gained from behavioral segmentation provide valuable data that can inform broader business strategies, from product development to customer service.

To maximize the effectiveness of behavioural segmentation, it's essential to use the right tools that can help you deliver personalized campaigns.

Plotline empowers product and marketing teams to create and deploy in-app stories, tooltips, spotlights, and other UI elements based on behavioural segmentation, ensuring that your campaigns reach the right users at the right time.

If you'd like to explore further, start your free trial with us.

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Types of Behavioural User Segmentation

1. Usage Frequency Segmentation: Users are segmented based on how often they interact with the app. This could include daily users, weekly users, or those who rarely engage. Understanding usage frequency helps in crafting messages that resonate with the user’s level of engagement.
2. Feature Usage Segmentation: This involves categorizing users based on the specific features or functions they frequently use. For example, in a fintech app, some users may only use budgeting tools, while others engage primarily with investment features.
3. Purchase Behavior Segmentation: Users are segmented based on their purchasing habits. This includes first-time buyers, repeat customers, and users who frequently browse but rarely purchase. Tailoring promotions to each of these segments can significantly improve conversion rates.
4. Lifecycle Stage Segmentation: Users can be segmented based on where they are in the customer lifecycle, such as new users, regular users, or lapsed users. This allows for targeted messaging that encourages progression to the next stage.
5. Engagement Level Segmentation: This involves categorizing users based on their interaction level with the app, such as users who engage with notifications versus those who do not. Engaging disengaged users with personalized content can re-ignite their interest.

Behavioural Segmentation Examples Throughout the User Journey

Behavioural segmentation plays a critical role at every stage of the user journey. By understanding and addressing the unique behaviors of users at each stage, you can create more effective and personalized marketing strategies.

1. Awareness Stage

In the awareness stage, potential users are just learning about your app. Behavioral segmentation at this stage involves identifying the behaviors that lead to app discovery. For example, users who frequently engage with content on social media platforms might be more likely to discover your app through ads or influencer partnerships.

Airbnb uses behavioral segmentation to target users who engage with travel content on social media and travel blogs. By analyzing interactions with travel destinations, accommodation reviews, and vacation planning posts, Airbnb serves targeted ads showcasing unique stays and experiences. This approach entices potential travelers to download the app and explore booking options.

2. Acquisition Stage

During the acquisition stage, the goal is to convert interested prospects into app users. Behavioural segmentation helps identify the actions that lead users to download and install the app, such as clicking on an ad, reading a blog post, or signing up for a webinar.

Audible targets users who have shown interest in audiobooks, podcasts, or long-form content through their engagement with free samples, blog posts, or YouTube reviews. By analyzing these behaviors, Audible segments these users and serves ads offering a free trial of its audiobook service. This strategy effectively converts prospects who are already interested in audio content into active Audible subscribers.

3. Onboarding Stage

The onboarding stage is crucial for setting the tone for the user’s experience with the app. Behavioural segmentation during onboarding can focus on how users interact with the app in their first few sessions. Do they explore multiple features, or do they focus on a single function?

Netflix uses behavioural segmentation during the onboarding process by tracking which genres new users explore first. If a user starts with documentaries, Netflix will tailor their recommendations toward more documentaries and related genres, ensuring that the user feels understood and engaged right from the start.

4. Engagement Stage

In the engagement stage, users are actively using the app. Behavioural segmentation here is about understanding which features or content keep users coming back. Some users might engage with your app daily, while others might log in sporadically.

Pinterest segments users based on their engagement with specific types of pins. Users who frequently engage with home décor pins, for instance, receive personalized content recommendations and notifications related to interior design, which increases their time spent on the app.

5. Retention Stage

The retention stage focuses on keeping users active and preventing churn. Behavioural segmentation can help identify early signs of disengagement, such as reduced session frequency or a decline in feature usage.

MyFitnessPal uses behavioural segmentation to retain users by tracking their logging habits. If a user stops logging meals, the app sends reminders and motivational messages, sometimes including tips or content related to their previous entries, to encourage them to continue using the app.

6. Conversion Stage

At the conversion stage, the focus is on driving desired actions, such as making a purchase, upgrading to a premium plan, or completing a goal within the app. Behavioural segmentation helps pinpoint the moments when users are most likely to convert.

Spotify uses behaviorual segmentation to target users who frequently listen to music but haven’t subscribed to a premium plan. By tracking when users skip ads or hit limits on the free plan, Spotify sends targeted offers to upgrade to Premium, often with limited-time discounts, to encourage conversion.

7. Advocacy Stage

In the advocacy stage, users have become loyal advocates who promote your app to others. Behavioural segmentation can help identify these high-value users based on their engagement levels, referrals, and positive reviews.

Starbucks uses behavioural segmentation in its app to identify users who frequently purchase drinks and refer others to the app. These advocates receive special rewards, such as free drinks or double reward points, incentivizing them to continue spreading positive word-of-mouth.

5 Best Practices for Behavioural User Segmentation

1. Start with Clear Objectives: Define what you want to achieve with behavioural segmentation. Whether it's increasing engagement, reducing churn, or improving conversion rates, having clear goals will guide your segmentation strategy.
2. Collect Comprehensive Data: Ensure you’re collecting data from all relevant touchpoints within the app, including in-app behaviours, interactions with notifications, and purchase history.
3. Use AI and Machine Learning: Leverage AI and machine learning tools to analyze user behaviour patterns and automate the segmentation process. These technologies can identify patterns that may not be immediately apparent, leading to more accurate segmentation.
4. Test and Iterate: Behavioral segmentation is not a one-time task. Continuously test your segments and the messaging strategies associated with them. Use A/B testing to refine your approach and adapt to changing user behaviours.
5. Personalize Across Channels: Ensure that your behavioural segments are used across all marketing channels, not just within the app. Consistent personalization across email, push notifications, and social media will reinforce your messaging.