Setting Goals in Customer.io
A goal is the action you want your audience to take during a campaign—such as purchasing a pass or becoming a subscriber. When you set a goal in Customer.io, you define the conversion criteria for a broadcast or campaign.
Clear goals help you:
- Track performance and measure conversions
- Prevent users from receiving additional messages once they've taken the desired action
- Optimize your messaging over time based on real behavior
When you set a goal in Customer.io, you define the conversion criteria for a broadcast or campaign. The conversion criteria can be one of (and only one of) the following:
- An event you want people to perform (ie:
pass_issued) - A segment you want people to join (ie:
active_subscription) - A segment you want people to leave (ie:
active_pass)
You’ll also define a conversion window—up to 90 days—during which Customer.io will track whether someone completes the goal after being sent, opening, or clicking a link in a message.
If the person meets the conversion criteria within that window, the conversion is recorded and attributed to the campaign. If they don’t—either because they didn’t take action or did so outside the window—no conversion is recorded.
Why Goals Matter:
- Track performance and measure what’s working
- Stop over-messaging—users exit the campaign once they convert
- Optimize over time by learning which messages lead to meaningful action
Setting clear goals is especially important for campaigns with a specific outcome in mind—like turning new student trial users into paying subscribers. When goals are properly configured, you can confidently evaluate the success of your campaign and make improvements for future sends.
What Happens After Someone Meets a Goal?
Once a user meets your defined goal, they exit the campaign automatically—as long as you’ve selected the option, they match the conversion criteria. This prevents them from receiving further emails that may no longer be relevant.
Tip: Always double-check that “exit when goal is met” is turned on in campaign settings. Without it, users will continue receiving messages even after they’ve converted.
Goals in a Broadcast:
The first place you can create a goal is inside a broadcast (a 1x newsletter). Here you can choose to Define goal or Skip goal. If you don’t have a purchase you want your customers to make OR you have more than 1 call to action, you might choose to skip creating a goal. However, if you have a clear action you want your customers to take, say purchasing a specific offer, it's encouraged to include a goal!
Goals in a Campaign:
In the campaign builder, click Set goal once you click the top-left block.
Then, you'll want to choose the conversion criteria (aka, the goal). You can choose from the following:
- Performs Event
- Enters Segment
- Leaves Segment
In the example below, we chose to add a segment that was previously created. The goal for this campaign is to have any customer become an active subscriber.
Directly below your Conversion criteria, you'll want to adjust the Conversion window. Choose whether conversion is counted on send, open, or link click.
Link click gives more reliable attribution
Finally, you'll want to set the Exit criteria to determine if a person should leave your campaign early. Some conditions allow people to exit early when they match the conversion criteria (most common).
