BlueConic uses filtering to determine which customers or visitors belong to a segment. With segment filters you can shape how your multidimensional customer segments are defined and used. BlueConic segment filters come in three types: text, range, and date filters.
How to use text filters
Text filters assign profiles to a segment based on whether they have (or don’t have) specific values for a Text profile property.
Select a Text profile property in the Select Condition menu.
The text filter appears on the right, displaying values found in visitor profiles.
Choose values to include in your segment.
Click Add value to enter a new value (lowercase only).
Save the segment—profiles matching the selected values will be included automatically.
Text filter operators
Text filters have operators that you can use to define whether or the selected values should be included or excluded, and the relationship between the selected values. By default, BlueConic uses "contains any of."
Select the word "contains" to open a selection menu with other options:
Contains any of: Matches profiles with at least one selected value (e.g., "Favorite Sport" contains "nba" or "golf").
Does not contain any of: Matches profiles excluding selected values (e.g., "Favorite Sport" does not contain "nba" or "golf").
Is empty: Matches profiles without a value for the property.
Has a value: Matches profiles with any value for the property.
Contains all: Matches profiles with all selected values (e.g., "Favorite Sport" contains both "nba" and "golf").
Does not contain all: Matches profiles that do not have all selected values at the same time (e.g., "Favorite Sport" does not contain both "nba" and "golf" together).
How to use range filters
A range filter segments profiles based on whether their numeric profile property values fall within or outside a defined range.
Select a numeric profile property in the Select Condition menu.
The Range filter appears on the right, where you can:
Set minimum and maximum values (leaving them blank includes all values).
Filter profiles where the property is empty (no value) or has a value.
Negate the range by clicking "in range" to switch to "not in range."
A line graph displays the distribution of values across all profiles, with the selected range highlighted.
Save the segment—profiles matching the selected values will be included automatically.
How to use date and time filters
A date and time filter segments profiles based on specific date and time conditions.
Select a date-based profile property in the Select Condition menu.
The Date and time filter appears with its configurations. The property's date settings can be set to:
In range: The date value for this property must be within a specified timeframe that you define. (This is the default option.)
Not in range: The date value for this property must not be within a specified timeframe that you define.
Is empty: This property does not have a date value.
Has a value: This property must have a date value.
Save the segment—profiles matching the selected values will be included automatically.
When the date setting is either in range or not in range, a dropdown appears underneath with fixed-date and relative-date options to define the range further.
Fixed-date options
Whenever you select “Between,” “After,” or “Before” from the dropdown, selectors for both date and time appear next to it, allowing you to choose a specific hour on a particular date.
Relative-date options
Whenever you select “Within last” or “Within next” from the dropdown, fields open for you to input an exact number of days or hours from the current date/time (all based on UTC). There are three different time measurements to choose from:
Calendar days (UTC): The number of full days–i.e., from 12:00 AM to 11:59 PM–before or after the current date/time (in your local time zone).
Days (24 hours): The number of 24-hour increments before or after the current date/time (in your local time zone). This is the default option.
Hours: The number of full hours before or after the current date/time (in your local time zone).
When the system does its calculation for any of these options, times are always rounded down to the hour for the most optimal segmentation. As a result, any daily or hourly range you set will include extra rounding time.
Preview the date and time
To help you better understand these calculations, when you leave or click outside these input fields, a preview immediately appears to the right of the time measurement dropdown with the exact date/time range that would be used (in your local time zone).
FAQs
What happens to text filters if data is unavailable?
BlueConic pre-populates common choices for certain filters, such as "high," "medium," and "low" for Engagement.
How can I improve performance with large datasets?
Uncheck View profile counts to display only property values without loading counts, speeding up segmentation. You can toggle this setting anytime.
How do values load for properties with many options?
Values load progressively in blocks of 40. The first 40 appear immediately, with additional values loading as you scroll. A "Select first XX values" option updates dynamically based on the number of loaded values.
How are fixed-date filters calculated?
Fixed-date filters use the local time zone of the user configuring the segment, based on their browser settings, but are stored in UTC for consistency across users. When another user views the segment, the date/time is converted to their local time zone. For example, a condition set for December 1 at 5:30 AM (CET) in Amsterdam will appear as November 30 at 11:30 PM (EST) for a user in New York. Time selection is in one-hour increments (e.g., 12:00, 1:00, etc.), except in time zones with 30- or 45-minute offsets (e.g., Eucla, Australia, UTC +8:45), where options display as 12:45, 1:45, etc.
How are relative-date filters calculated?
Relative-date filters segment profiles based on timeframes before or after the current date/time, using one of three methods:
Calendar days (UTC) – Starts at 12:00 AM UTC and ends at 11:59 PM on the selected number of days.
Days (24 hours) – Counts rolling 24-hour periods from the start of the current hour.
Hours – Counts full-hour increments from the start of the current hour.
For example, a condition set to "Within last 2 calendar days (UTC)" at 10:55 AM on November 4 includes profiles from November 2, 12:00 AM to November 4, 10:59 AM. Meanwhile, "Within last 2 days (24 hours)" would include profiles from November 2, 10:00 AM to November 4, 10:59 AM. BlueConic rounds times to the start of the current hour for optimal segmentation.
If I select a date and leave the time blank, what time is chosen?
After selecting a date, the time defaults to 12:00 AM (or 0:00, depending on your account's locale settings). If you don't manually select a different time, 12:00 AM will be used.
How is a full hour defined?
A full hour begins precisely at the :00 minute mark and extends to the :59 minute mark. Technically, it ends at :59:59.999, but for simplicity, we refer to it as the :59 mark.
How does BlueConic handle segmenting on the last hour?
BlueConic segment filters, powered by Solr, round down date and time values. Therefore, when you segment on the last hour, the segment will include all date and time entries that fall within that entire hour, from the :00 to the :59 mark.
What is UTC, and how does it affect time calculations?
UTC, or Coordinated Universal Time, is a global time standard that does not observe daylight saving time or any other seasonal time adjustments. This ensures consistent time calculations regardless of local time zone changes.
What are some relative-date filter examples?
Current time | Date condition | Start time | End time |
2024/03/02 11:55:57 441 | Within last 0 calendar days (UTC) | 2024/03/02 00:00:00 000 | 2024/03/02 11:59:59 999 |
2024/03/02 00:00:00 001 | Within last 1 calendar days (UTC) | 2024/03/01 00:00:00 000 | 2024/03/02 00:59:59 999 (i.e., almost spans 25 hours) |
2024/03/02 11:55:57 441 | Within next 2 calendar days (UTC) | 2024/03/02 11:00:00 000 | 2024/03/04 23:59:59 999 |
2024/03/02 11:55:57 441 | Within last 1 days (24 hours) (i.e., the last 24 hours) | 2024/03/01 11:00:00 000 | 2024/03/02 11:59:59 999 |
2024/03/02 11:55:57 441 | Within last 2 days (24 hours) (i.e., the last 48 hours) | 2024/02/28 11:00:00 000 | 2024/03/02 11:59:59 999 |
2024/03/02 11:55:57 441 | Within next 1 days (24 hours) (i.e., the next 24 hours) | 2024/03/02 11:00:00 000 | 2024/03/03 11:59:59 999 |
2024/03/02 11:55:57 441 | Within next 2 days (24 hours) (i.e., the next 48 hours) | 2024/03/02 11:00:00 000 | 2024/03/04 11:59:59 999 |
2024/03/02 11:01:57 441 | Within last 1 hour | 2024/03/02 10:00:00 000 | 2024/03/02 11:59:59 999 |
2024/03/02 11:55:57 441 | Within next 1 hour | 2024/03/02 11:00:00 000 | 2024/03/02 12:59:59 999 |
2024/03/02 11:55:57 441 | Within next 2 hours | 2024/03/02 11:00:00 000 | 2024/03/04 13:59:59 999 |