Overview

After identifying predictive high-value signals, the next step is converting those signals into structured audience tiers inside BlueConic. You could even consider applying specific logic to the tiers related to the type of activation you want to do (i.e. onsite activation vs paid media vs CRM)

By completing this process, you will have:

A tiered audience framework (e.g., VIP, High Value, Growth Potential, At-Risk Valuable)
Clear, measurable criteria for each tier
Segments that can be activated across channels and optimized over time.

Before you begin

Ensure the following prerequisites are met:

You have a ranked list of predictive signals from the prior AI Agent output.
The required properties and/or rollups exist in your tenant (e.g., revenue, purchase frequency, recency, engagement, predictive scores).
You can create and save segments in BlueConic.
If your tiering depends on time-based behaviors (e.g., “last 12 months”), confirm that the relevant timeline events or rollup properties are available.

Step 1: Review and Categorize the Signals

From your previous AI Agent output, pull the signals that consistently differentiate value. Typical signal categories include:

Revenue indicators (e.g., lifetime revenue, subscription value)
Frequency indicators (e.g., transaction count, repeat purchase behavior)
Recency indicators (e.g., time since last purchase, time since last visit)
Engagement indicators (e.g., click depth, content affinity, email interaction)
Predictive scores (if available) (e.g., predicted value, churn risk)

Group signals into logical clusters so you can design tiers around patterns, not single metrics:

Value
Recency
Intent / Affinity
Risk

Step 2: Decide on a Tier Structure

Select a tier model that matches your business objectives and activation strategy.

A common four-tier structure includes:

VIP
High Value
Growth Potential
At-Risk Valuable

Adjust tiers based on your model (e.g., subscription vs. commerce vs. publishing) and what you intend to do differently for each tier. Ensure each tier is designed to drive a distinct action (e.g., protect revenue, grow share, re-engage, prevent churn).

Step 3: Define Measurable Criteria for Each Tier

Using your ranked signals, translate insights into clear, testable rules.

Example Structure

Tier 1: VIP (Top 5%)

Example criteria:

Top customer value decile
High lifetime revenue
High expected future purchases

Tier 2: High Value (Next 10–15%)

Example criteria:

Multiple purchases
Recent transaction
Above-average revenue

Tier 3: Growth Potential

Example criteria:

Single purchase
High engagement score
Moderate predicted value

Tier 4: At-Risk Valuable

Example criteria:

Previously high revenue
Long recency gap
Declining engagement (i.e. visits, email)

Design tiers using signal combinations wherever possible. This reduces noise and makes movement between tiers measurable.

Step 4: Create the Segments in BlueConic

Navigate to Segments.
Create a new segment for each tier.
Add profile property rules and behavioral conditions based on your tier criteria.
Save each segment and use clear naming conventions.

Example naming:

VIP — High Value
High Value — Active
Growth — Engaged
At-Risk — Previously High Value

Where possible, ensure tiers are mutually exclusive to avoid activation conflicts.

Step 5: Apply Tiering to Existing Broad Segments

If you currently use broad segments such as “Active Customers”, convert them into a tiered model. Recommended approach:

Duplicate the existing broad segment or use it as your base segment
Layer in tier-specific rules
Validate audience size and overlap
Activate by tier across channels

This ensures your existing segmentation strategy becomes more precise without starting from scratch.

Step 6: Build and Activate Your Tiered Audiences

Once tiers are defined and segments are created, begin activating the audiences through your channels (e.g., onsite personalization, email, paid media, CRM sync). Leverage BlueConic Lifecycles for each of your unique campaign to ensure profiles are only associated with one stage of the specific campaign, and that they can dynamically move between them to ensure the right marketing pressure is applied

Historically, tiering required significant manual work before activation:

Working through a data dictionary created by someone else
Determining which properties were populated and trustworthy
Interpreting unclear property definitions
Iterating through trial-and-error segments to approximate meaningful tiers

With the AI Agent, data inventory, validation, and signal classification are accelerated. Instead of spending hours locating and interpreting fields, you start with a ranked set of signals that are already tied to a measurable outcome. The human role remains essential.

You validate business relevance, apply context, refine thresholds, and ensure tier logic supports your strategy. The AI surfaces what matters; you decide how to operationalize it. This human-in-the-loop approach shifts time away from manual discovery and toward optimization:

Testing tier movement over time
Tuning thresholds based on performance
Improving activation and measurement by tier

Optional: Use the AI Agent to Suggest Tier Definitions

If you want the AI Agent to propose tier logic based on your signal set, use the prompt below.

Example Prompt

Using the previously identified predictive signals, propose a 4-tier audience structure (VIP, High Value, Growth Potential, At-Risk Valuable) with measurable criteria for each tier).

Provide: