How to segment your audience in Supersend for targeted B2B outreach

If you’re using cold outreach to connect with businesses, you already know that “spray and pray” doesn’t cut it. Targeted messages—sent to the right people—work better, annoy fewer prospects, and waste less of your day. That’s where audience segmentation comes in.

This guide is for anyone using Supersend who wants to actually get replies from B2B leads, not just “open rates.” Whether you’re a founder doing your own outreach, or you’re wrangling lists for a sales team, here’s how to get segmentation right (and what to skip).

Why bother segmenting your audience?

Let’s be honest: most outreach emails are treated like spam because, well, they feel like spam. The fix isn’t sending more of them—it’s sending smarter ones. Segmentation means splitting your list into smaller, more focused groups based on things like industry, company size, job title, or even technology stack.

Why it’s worth the effort:

Higher reply rates: Messages hit home when they actually make sense to the reader.
Less unsubscribes: People don’t mind hearing from you if you’re relevant.
Easier to personalize: It’s way simpler to write a good email when you know who you’re writing to.

But don’t go overboard. Over-segmenting burns time without adding much value, especially if your lists are small. The goal is relevant, not creepy.

Step 1: Get your data in order

Supersend isn’t magic—it’s only as good as the data you feed it. Before you even think about uploading lists, make sure your contacts are clean and have enough detail to segment meaningfully.

Here’s what matters:

Basic contact info: Name, email, job title, company, website.
Firmographics: Industry, company size, location.
Custom fields: Anything else you care about (e.g., tech stack, funding round, pain points).

Pro tip: If you’re buying lists, double-check them. Most are riddled with junk. The best segmentation in the world can’t fix garbage data.

Use Google Sheets or Excel to tidy up columns.
Remove obvious duplicates and “info@” emails.
Fill in missing info where you can (LinkedIn is your friend).

Step 2: Import your contacts to Supersend

Once your spreadsheet is clean, it’s time to get it into Supersend. The process is pretty straightforward:

Log in and head to the “Contacts” section.
Hit “Import CSV.” Upload your list. Supersend will prompt you to map your columns to its fields.
Map your fields carefully. Make sure things like “job_title” or “industry” end up in the right place.
Double-check your import. Scan a few records to make sure nothing’s wonky.

If you use custom fields (like “Pain Point” or “CRM System”), create those in Supersend first so you can map your data properly.

What to ignore: Don’t fuss over every single field. Focus on the ones that actually inform how you’ll segment and personalize.

Step 3: Decide on your segmentation criteria

This is where most people get stuck. What should you actually segment on? Here’s the honest answer: it depends on what you’re offering and who you want to talk to.

Some practical segmentation ideas for B2B:

Industry: Tech, SaaS, manufacturing, etc.
Company size: Solo, SMB, mid-market, enterprise.
Job title/function: Founders, HR, IT, marketing, sales.
Region: US, EMEA, APAC, or more granular.
Tech stack: Using Salesforce? Shopify? AWS?
Pain points: If you know their challenges, group by that.

Don’t overthink it: Start with 2-3 segments that actually change your messaging. For example, you probably don’t need to split “CTOs at 49-person companies” from “CTOs at 51-person companies.” That’s splitting hairs.

Step 4: Create and manage segments in Supersend

Supersend doesn’t use “segments” in the same way as some marketing tools, but you can easily group contacts using tags, filters, or lists.

Here’s how:

A. Tagging contacts

During import, you can add a “Tag” column (e.g., “HR Leaders,” “NYC SaaS,” “E-commerce”).
After import, select contacts and batch-apply tags from the Supersend interface.

B. Filtering contacts

In the Contacts dashboard, use filters (e.g., filter by “industry: SaaS” or “location: UK”).
Save common filters as Smart Views for faster access.

C. Creating static lists

You can select contacts and add them to a static list for specific campaigns.
This is handy for short-term campaigns (like an event invite).

What works best? Tags and filters scale well. Lists are useful for ad-hoc campaigns but can get messy if overused.

Step 5: Build targeted campaigns for each segment

Now for the fun part: actually sending better emails.

Choose your segment. Use tags, filters, or lists to select your audience.
Write tailored messaging. Don’t just change the first name—reference their industry, job role, or challenges.
Use merge fields. Supersend supports dynamic fields like {{company_name}}, {{industry}}, etc. Use them, but don’t force it.
Keep it short and real. Nobody reads long cold emails. Get to the point and show you did your homework.
Test and tweak. Run small batches first. If you’re getting crickets, change something.

Pro tip: Don’t try to personalize every line. Focus on one or two details that actually matter to your segment.

Step 6: Analyze and adjust

Segmentation isn’t set-and-forget. The best teams check what’s working and adjust as they go.

Track reply rates and positive responses by segment.
Kill segments that underperform. Not every idea pans out—ditch what’s not working.
Merge or split segments as needed. If two groups respond the same, combine them. If you see big differences, consider splitting further.

What to ignore: Obsessing over open rates. Focus on replies and meetings, not vanity metrics.

Common mistakes to avoid

Over-segmentation: More segments = more work, not always better results.
Wasting time on tiny segments: If a group has 10 people, just personalize by hand.
Personalization that’s obviously fake: “I see you breathe oxygen at {{company_name}}!”—nobody’s fooled.
Letting lists get outdated: Segmenting stale data wastes everyone’s time.

Wrapping up: Keep it simple, then iterate

Audience segmentation in Supersend is about sending smarter, not more. Start with a couple of meaningful groups, tune your messaging, and see what lands. Skip the fluff and only get fancy once you know it’s working.

You’ll get better replies, less spam complaints, and—best of all—more actual conversations. Keep it simple, keep it honest, and keep improving. That’s really all there is to it.