If you’re drowning in B2B customer data but your outreach still feels generic, you’re not alone. Most teams collect a pile of info—industry, company size, old sales notes—and then blast the same emails anyway. That’s not just a missed opportunity; it’s a waste of everyone’s time (yours included). This guide is for people who want to actually use their data—without a degree in data science or hours lost to clunky tools.
Below, I’ll walk through how to segment your B2B customer data using Kleo, so you can reach the right people with messages that actually matter to them. I’ll call out what’s useful, what’s hype, and where to keep things simple.
Why Segment B2B Customers, Anyway?
Before you dive in, it’s worth asking: is this even worth the effort? For B2B, segmentation isn’t just about “personalization” for its own sake. It’s about:
- Not wasting time on leads that’ll never convert.
- Sending messages that actually get replies.
- Giving your sales or CS team some sanity back.
If you’re running outreach and everyone gets the same email, you’re just adding to the noise. But if you break your list into meaningful groups—based on things like company industry, revenue, tech stack, or pain points—you can talk to each group like you actually know them.
Step 1: Get Your Customer Data into Kleo
First things first: you can’t segment what you don’t have. Kleo isn’t magic—it needs clean(ish) customer data to work. Here’s the honest truth: garbage in, garbage out.
How to get started:
- Export your data: Pull your customer or lead list from your CRM, a spreadsheet, or wherever it lives.
- Identify key fields: At a minimum, you’ll want: company name, contact name, email, industry, company size, and any columns that show how they’ve interacted with you (e.g., last purchase, product used, status).
- Clean up the mess: Duplicates, missing emails, weird formatting—fix what you can. Don’t obsess, but don’t skip this.
- Import into Kleo: Use Kleo’s import tool (CSV upload or direct CRM integration) and map your columns to its fields. If you hit a snag, Kleo’s docs are pretty clear, but don’t expect miracles with truly messy data.
Pro tip: Don’t try to import every custom field or ancient tag from your CRM. Start with what you’ll actually use for outreach. You can always add more later.
Step 2: Define Segments That Actually Matter
Here’s where most folks get lost. It’s tempting to create a dozen segments based on every possible data point. Don’t. You’ll just end up confusing yourself. The trick is to start simple and build only what you’ll actually use.
Common B2B segments worth considering:
- Industry: Tech, finance, healthcare, etc.
- Company size: By employee count or revenue.
- Lifecycle stage: New leads, active customers, at-risk accounts.
- Tech stack: What tools or platforms they use (if you have this info).
- Engagement: Opened last email, attended a webinar, etc.
How to set up segments in Kleo:
- Navigate to Segments: From the dashboard, find the “Segments” or “Audience” section.
- Create a new segment: Give it a clear, boring name (“SaaS companies, 50-200 employees” is better than “Super Growth Group”).
- Set your filters: Use Kleo’s filter builder—choose fields, conditions (equals, contains, greater than, etc.), and stack filters as needed.
- Preview the results: Always see who ends up in your segment. If it looks too small or too broad, adjust your filters.
- Save and sanity-check: Save your segment and double-check a few records. Make sure the logic matches what you’d expect.
What to skip: Don’t bother segmenting by minor details (like favorite webinar snack) unless you have a real reason. And don’t waste time on segments so tiny you won’t actually use them.
Step 3: Build Outreach Campaigns for Each Segment
Now the fun part—actually sending something different to each group. Kleo lets you create campaigns tied to segments, so you can tailor messaging for each.
Here’s how to do it:
- Pick a segment: Start with one or two of your highest-value segments.
- Draft your message: Write an email (or sequence) that speaks directly to their challenges. For example, if you’re emailing healthcare companies, reference regulations or pain points they care about.
- Personalize with merge fields: Pull in company names, contacts, or recent activity using simple placeholders. Don’t overdo it; nobody likes a “personalized” email that reads like it was written by a robot.
- Schedule or send: Choose when to send or trigger based on an event (like signing up or going dark for a month).
- Track results: Open rates, replies, clicks—see what’s working. Don’t get obsessed with vanity metrics, but do pay attention if nobody’s biting.
Pro tip: Quality beats quantity. It’s better to send 50 truly relevant emails than 500 generic ones.
What doesn’t work: Don’t fall for the “hyper-personalization” hype if you’re just swapping out first names. If your segment is too broad (“all CEOs”), your message will still be ignored. Focus on real differences between groups.
Step 4: Iterate and Refine
Segmentation is not a set-it-and-forget-it job. Your list will change, people will move roles, and what matters to your segments will shift.
Keep it fresh:
- Regularly review segments: Once a month, spot-check who’s in each group. Does it still make sense?
- Prune unused segments: If you haven’t run a campaign for a segment in 3+ months, archive or merge it.
- Add new data: As you collect more info (e.g., from sales calls or product usage), consider adding fields that might help future outreach.
- Ask for feedback: If you get replies, pay attention to what resonated (or didn’t). Sometimes what you think matters to a group isn’t what actually lands.
Reality check: No tool—including Kleo—will magically fix bad data or lazy messaging. But if you use it to organize your data and send more relevant emails, you’ll see a difference.
What’s Useful in Kleo—and What to Ignore
What works:
- Simple filter builder: It’s easy to create and adjust segments without an IT person.
- Direct integrations: Pulls from common CRMs and data sources, which saves time.
- Campaign triggers: You can automate some outreach based on events (like churn risks).
What’s overhyped:
- AI suggestions: Don’t expect Kleo to read your mind or “find hidden patterns” that magically boost sales. Use your own brain first.
- Prebuilt segments: These are sometimes too generic to be useful. Always edit or build your own.
What to ignore:
- Too many metrics: If you find yourself lost in dashboards, refocus on whether people are actually replying or buying.
- ‘Next-best-action’ popups: Take them with a grain of salt—they can be helpful, but shouldn’t replace your own judgment.
Wrapping Up: Keep It Simple, Iterate Often
Segmentation is a tool, not a religion. Don’t let perfect be the enemy of good enough. Start with basic segments, send a few targeted messages, and watch what happens. If it works, do more; if not, adjust and try again. Kleo can help keep things organized, but it’s your understanding of your customers that actually moves the needle.
Keep it simple, don’t overthink it, and remember: nobody ever replied to an email just because it had their company name in the subject line. Give people something that matters, and you’ll stand out—no “AI-powered” magic required.