If you’re running B2B campaigns and just blasting the same message to every contact, you’re probably wasting your time (and budget). Segmentation isn’t some fancy “growth hack”—it’s just common sense. The right message to the right people. That’s how you get opens, clicks, and actual leads instead of unsubscribes.
This guide is for marketers, sales ops folks, and anyone sick of vague advice about “personalization” that doesn’t actually tell you what to do. I’ll show you, step by step, how to use People to segment your B2B audience in a way that’s practical and keeps you out of the weeds. I’ll also flag what to skip, what actually works, and how to avoid getting buried in data you don’t need.
Step 1: Get Your Data into People (Without Losing Your Mind)
You can’t segment what you don’t have. Before you do anything clever, make sure your data is reliable.
- Import your lists: Bring in contacts from your CRM, spreadsheets, event sign-ups, whatever. People can import CSVs, connect to most CRMs, and handle basic deduplication.
- Clean up duplicates: Before you start slicing and dicing, kill the duplicates and obvious junk. If you’re sending to the same person twice, you’ll annoy them and mess up your stats.
- Standardize fields: Make sure “Company Size” means the same thing in every record. Don’t have “50-100”, “51–100”, and “mid-size” all mixed together.
Pro Tip: Don’t wait for perfect data. Good enough is fine to start. You can always clean as you go.
Step 2: Decide What Actually Matters for Segmentation
Here’s where most people mess up: they build 27 “hyper-targeted” segments and end up with no one in each bucket. Instead, focus on things that actually move the needle.
Ask yourself: - Who buys from us, really? (Not who you wish bought from you.) - What are the top 2-3 ways our customers are different? - What data do we actually have for most records?
Common B2B segmentation fields: - Industry or vertical - Company size (by employee count or revenue) - Job title or seniority - Geography (if it matters) - Tech stack (if you sell software)
What to ignore: Don’t bother segmenting by things you don’t have on at least 50% of your audience. Don’t get sucked into “firmographic enrichment” tools unless you can prove they’ll pay off.
Step 3: Build Segments in People (Keep It Simple)
Now you’re ready to actually create segments in People. Here’s how to do it without creating a monster.
- Go to the Segments section.
- Set your filters. For example:
- Industry = SaaS
- Company size = 51–200 employees
- Title contains “VP” or “Director”
- Save the segment with a clear name. (“Mid-Market SaaS VPs” beats “Segment 4”.)
- Preview your segment. Make sure you have enough people in each group to make it worth targeting.
Don’t overdo it: If a segment is smaller than 50 people, it’s probably not worth a separate campaign—unless you’re running high-touch ABM.
Pro Tip: Revisit your segments every month or so. As you get more data, tweak your filters. Don’t let old segments get stale.
Step 4: Map Segments to Campaigns that Actually Make Sense
Segmentation isn’t magic. If you don’t have a different message for each group, you’re just making work for yourself.
- Start with one or two segments: For example, “Small SaaS CEOs” vs. “Enterprise IT Directors.”
- Write copy for each segment: Don’t just swap out the company name. Talk about the problems that group actually cares about.
- Pick offers that feel relevant: A whitepaper on “Scaling SaaS” isn’t going to impress an enterprise CIO. But “Reducing IT Headaches at Scale” might.
What not to do: Don’t create a dozen campaigns just because you can. More campaigns = more things to manage, test, and break.
Step 5: Use Dynamic Content (But Don’t Get Carried Away)
People lets you personalize emails and landing pages with dynamic fields. This sounds cool, but it can go off the rails fast.
- Personalize only what matters: First name, company name, maybe a nod to their industry. Don’t get cute (“We saw you’re based in Topeka!”).
- Test your merge fields: Broken personalization is worse than none at all.
- Use fallback values: For when you don’t have the data—otherwise you get “Hi ,”.
Pro Tip: Sometimes basic segmentation beats fancy personalization. Don’t try to fake relevance with a badly-placed {{industry}} tag.
Step 6: Monitor Performance by Segment (and Actually Act on It)
If you don’t check what’s working, what’s the point? People gives you reporting by segment, so use it.
- Compare open and response rates by segment. If one group is tanking, don’t just blame “deliverability.”
- Look for patterns: Are certain industries or titles responding better? Maybe you’ve found your sweet spot.
- Cut what’s not working: If a segment never converts, let it go. Focus on where you’re winning.
Avoid analysis paralysis: Don’t drown in dashboards. Pick 2-3 metrics that matter (like reply rate, meetings booked) and stick with them.
Step 7: Iterate, Don’t Overengineer
Nothing in B2B marketing is set-and-forget. The best teams run simple experiments, keep what works, and drop what doesn’t.
- Start with broad segments. Split later if you see big differences.
- Talk to sales: They’ll tell you which segments are actually worth your time.
- Keep your segments tight: More isn’t always better. You want “actionable,” not “exhaustive.”
Honest Takes: What Works, What Doesn’t
- Works: Segmenting by company size, industry, and real buying role. Messaging that actually speaks to pain points.
- Doesn’t: Overly clever segments (“CMOs who like dogs in Texas”) or relying on enrichment tools that make your database look bigger but not better.
- Ignore: Any advice that says “personalize everything” or “build micro-segments.” You don’t have the time, and neither does your audience.
Wrapping Up
Segmentation doesn’t have to be complicated. Start with the data you have, pick a couple of meaningful segments, and see what happens. Don’t build a segmentation empire on day one—you’ll just end up with a mess. Keep it simple, keep it useful, and adjust as you learn. You’ll get better results, and keep your sanity.