Overview
In this lesson, you'll learn how to create Segments, apply them to analytics reporting, and uncover what behaviors are associated with higher user retention. Once you know what behaviors make loyal users, send reengagement campaigns to dormant users encouraging them to take those same actions.
Why it matters
Product Managers and Marketers often use “personas” to deeply understand their user base. They want to know what users are doing and why to understand the hooks and habits that motivate key behaviors.
Even small insights can have a significant impact. Maybe users that share content are 2X more likely to retain long term - in which case, you can design experiences that encourage greater sharing. Maybe users that purchase the most expensive items are acquired on weekends.
You most likely have some intuitive concept of what constitutes a “power user” and you may have hypotheses similar to the above that you want to test. Use segment analysis to help power such insights.
How-to guide
The following steps will walk you through creating Segments and understanding what keeps active users engaged.
Step 1: Navigate to the Segments screen
To really understand the behavior of a loyal user, create groups of users called Segments and apply them to your analytics reporting. The focus is on identifying which behaviors cause users to convert, have high LTV, and return to your app time and again.
Segments are groups of users you build for filtering within your analytics reports. They are users who have (or have not) performed certain Events. You can define a Segment by selecting one or more user actions as Events. Use associated Dimensions to further hone in on a specific group of users.
Once you build a Segment, you can filter your charts by any Segment to see results for only that group of users.
Step 2: Build a few key Segments
To start the investigation, think about how you could group users together to see how they differ from each other. A media app might create Segments for Big Spenders & Shoppers, Loyal Magazine Readers, Sports Fans, you get the idea.
Once you’ve decided on these common characteristics or behaviors, create Segments for each group. Let’s walk through creating a few examples:
A Segment called NEWS JUNKIES may include all users who have at least one Session with your app per week, have read more than five in-app articles, and have selected topics of interest. You could further refine this Segment with Custom Dimensions like:
- Favorite reading categories
- Age
- Income bracket
- Job role
- Family size
- Employment industry
A Segment called LOYAL READERS may include all users who have clicked on a push message in the last month, have an average Session length of at least four minutes (indicating they spend time reading the publication) but have not visited your app in the last seven days. You could further refine this Segment with Custom Dimensions like:
- Favorite magazine section (i.e. which app screens they spend the most time on)
- Gender
- Interests
- Favorite authors
- Subscription type
Step 3: Apply Segments to various analytics reports
Once you’ve created a few Segments, compare how Session length, funnel completion, retention, and LTV vary between each group in each dashboard report.
Navigate to the Engagement screen and apply a filter for the first Segment. Use filters to compare the average Session length between the two groups. Next, navigate to the Funnels screen. The filter is sticky so the last filter you applied in Session Length will automatically be applied. Switch between funnels and compare which Segment had the highest funnel completion rates.
Complete these same steps in the Retention and LTV reports to better understand what actions drive loyalty to your app.
Key takeaways
- Companies with the best mobile engagement use Segments to understand what actions make a loyal user.
- Once you know what actions drive loyalty, use engagement campaigns to drive dormant and at-risk users to complete those behaviors and increase overall user loyalty.