Segmenting by purchase behavior means splitting your email list by what each customer did in your store: when they last bought, how often, how much they spent and what. For a small shop, four or five properties per contact are enough to build the segments that matter: never bought, bought once, repeat buyers and the ones who drifted away.
The data you need
| Property | Example | Used for |
|---|---|---|
| last_order_at | 2026-09-14 | Recency, replenishment, win-back |
| order_count | 3 | Frequency, first-time vs repeat |
| total_spent | 214.90 | Customer value |
| categories | "dog,treats" | Interest |
| subscribed_at | 2026-03-02 | List age, welcome flow |
Store them on the contact and update them on every paid order (your backend or a small script listening to your store platform's webhooks).
How do you segment customers after a purchase?
Group customers by what they did after the order: bought once, bought again, received the order, left a review, or went quiet. Each group gets a different email: a review request after delivery for first-time buyers, a replenishment reminder for repeat buyers, a win-back message for those who went quiet. Start with three segments (first order, repeat order, no order in a long time) and add more only when each one has its own email.
RFM in one table
| Recency | Frequency | Profile | What to send |
|---|---|---|---|
| Up to 60 days | 3+ orders | Loyal | New arrivals, early access, no aggressive discounts |
| Up to 60 days | 1 order | New buyer | Post-purchase, second order |
| 60 to 180 days | 2+ orders | At risk | Reminder, replenishment, offer |
| Over 180 days | any | Lapsed | Win-back, then pause |
| No orders | - | Subscriber | Welcome, first purchase |
The day thresholds depend on your purchase cycle: a store selling something that runs out in 30 days has much shorter cycles than a furniture store.
Why it also protects deliverability
Sending one campaign to the whole list, including people who ignored you for months, drives complaints and drags down sender reputation. Keeping lapsed contacts out of regular sends helps every other email you send.
The full guide, with ready-made segments, engagement as the second axis and common mistakes, is on the Pidgely blog: https://pidgely.com/blog/purchase-behavior-segmentation/
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