Audience Pulse

Turn user activity data into actionable insights with tier-based reports and AI-powered recommendations.

About Audience Pulse

Audience Pulse applies the Recency, Frequency, Monetary (RFM) method and assigns users to tiers based on the following:

• How recently they performed an event
• How frequently they performed an event
• The amount of time or money they spent related to an event

Events are analyzed across all channels for a user. Each event is evaluated on the channel where it occurred. Activity from all connected channels together provides a holistic view of user engagement.

Two reports display the tier data:

• The Distribution report shows the relative size of each tier at a single point in time, so you can see how your audience is spread across tiers and gauge overall user activity.
• The Transitions report shows how users move between tiers from one week to the next, so you can see how well you are retaining users and how effective your campaigns are.

Both reports also list the user count, audience percentage, and median monetary value for each tier.

At first, each report looks back over the analysis window from the current date and again from one week prior. For example, with a 30-day window, you see the past 30 days through today and the past 30 days through a point seven days ago. Analysis regenerates weekly, so reports stay up to date and you gain more weeks for tracking tier transitions.

A project supports up to three models at a time. In each model, choose the events and properties used for Recency, Frequency, and Monetary analysis, such as purchases, cart adds, or time with editorial content. When reports are ready, save tier or transition selections as SegmentsA reusable audience group you create by selecting unique or shared user data. and use them for more targeted campaigns.

Events to analyze

You can use a different event for Recency, Frequency, and Monetary to tailor analysis to your business goals and how users interact with your channels. Select any Custom EventEvents that indicate that a user performed a predefined action, such as adding an item to a shopping cart, viewing a screen, or clicking an Unsubscribe button. Custom Events can trigger automation, including Sequences and Scenes. You can code them into your app or website, or send them to Airship from an external source using the Custom Event API. Custom Events contain properties that you can use to personalize messages. in your project or a Default Event.

For Monetary, you must also select an event property so analysis can use a numeric value, not only an event count. With that property, you can track metrics such as purchase amount, content consumption duration, or any other relevant numerical data.

All channels are supported, but Default Events are limited to the following:

• App: app_open or message_center_read
• Web: web_click or web_session
• Email: email_click, email_open, email_unsubscribe, or email_bounce
• SMS: short_link_click

See Events and the Events Reference.

Analysis window

Each model uses an analysis window you choose to fit your user lifecycle. Only users with at least one event occurrence during that window are included in the analysis.

Segments

After analysis completes for a model, create SegmentsA reusable audience group you create by selecting unique or shared user data. from selections in its Distribution or Transitions reports. Use those Segments to reach users by current tier or by how tier membership shifts between analysis runs.

Segments update weekly when analysis regeneration is complete, and segmentation data is evaluated at send time. If you schedule a message that targets an Audience Pulse Segment, the scheduled message automatically uses the latest Segment criteria. “Scheduled” includes recurring messages.

You have the option to save a Segment with its current values only instead of letting it update weekly.

Use cases:

• Personalization — Different tiers can represent users at different stages of using your app or different levels of interest in your product. Use Segments based on tiers to tailor messaging to each group. For example, reward your top tiers and incentivize the lower ones.

• Engagement — Transitions between tiers are opportunities to provide specific content based on engagement level. Create Segments based on transitions to reach users when tier membership changes, including the direction of movement and the tiers involved. For example, create a re-engagement campaign for users moving down tiers to help retain them, or send a message suggesting users share your app or write a review when they transition into the top tier.

Analysis, tiers, and tagging

For each Recency, Frequency, and Monetary category, users are divided into groups: top, middle, and bottom thirds. The groups are in relation to all the other users in the category. Here are a few examples to illustrate:

• A user who visited the app the most recently will fall into the top third of the Recency category, because they are in the top 33% of recent visitors. A user who opened the app the furthest back in time in the analysis window will be in the bottom third.
• Users who opened the app more times than the bottom two thirds of the audience will fall into the top third of the Frequency category. Users who opened the app fewer times than the top two thirds of the audience will land in the bottom third.
• A user who spent the most time in the app will fall into the top third of the Monetary category. A user who spent the least time in the app will land in the bottom third.

Each third has a value: 3 for top, 2 for middle, and 1 for bottom. Each user is represented by a combination of these distributed values. For example:

• A user at the top third for Recency, middle for Frequency, and top for Monetary is represented as 323.
• A user at the top third for Recency, bottom for Frequency, and middle for Monetary is represented as 312.

Users are assigned a tier based on their distribution.

Tier descriptions and distributions:

When assigned a tier, TagsMetadata that you can associate with channels or Named Users for audience segmentation. Generally, they are descriptive terms indicating user preferences or other categorizations, e.g., wine_enthusiast or weather_alerts_los_angeles. Tags are case-sensitive. describing the tier and analysis window date are assigned to users. Tags are added at the Contact level.

Running multiple models

You can run up to three models at a time in a project. Each model has its own event configuration, analysis window, Distribution and Transitions reports, and Segments.

Multiple models give you parallel analyses that stay independent:

• Compare settings — Try different events or analysis windows without losing existing data, and keep the model that works best for your goals.
• Different segments, different goals — Different parts of your audience may drive different outcomes. Run separate models and create Segments from each. For example, run one model for purchase value, one for app engagement, and one for content consumption.
• Multiple business goals — Evaluate several goals at once, such as revenue, engagement, and retention, each with its own model.
• Understand tier value — See the median monetary value of users in each tier. The value is shown in the Distribution and Transitions reports and feeds AI recommendations.

Add models and generate tiers

Add a new model and start analysis:

1. Go to Audience, then Audience Pulse.
2. Select Add model, or Generate Audience Pulse if you have no models yet.
3. Enter a name for the model so you can distinguish it from others.
4. Select events to measure for recency, frequency, and monetary value. They are set to app_open by default.
5. For the Monetary event, select an event property for the time or monetary amount the user spent on the event, such as the property named Time in app. The menu includes all properties with numeric or ANY values.
6. For Analysis window, select a time period that matches your user lifecycle.
7. Select Start. Analysis and tier generation will begin.

The processing time for generating the tiers can vary depending on the size of your audience and the analysis window. You can leave the page during this process.

Manage models

Go to Audience, then Audience Pulse to view and manage your models. The list includes the model name, events, analysis window, status, and date range.

To change the name, select the more menu icon () for a model, then Edit. Enter a new name, then select Update.

To delete a model from your project, select the more menu icon () for a model, then Remove. Removal does not affect your remaining models.

Access reports and create Segments

To access the Distribution and Transitions reports, go to Audience, then Audience Pulse, and select a model name.

If analysis has not yet completed, In progress appears in the date range column. After selecting the model name, the only available action is Stop, which will stop analysis and remove the model from your project.

Distribution

The Distribution report shows the relative size of each tier, plus user count and audience percentage. Hover over a tier to see its description, median monetary value, and monetary event property.

To create a Segment from tiers:

1. Select one or more tiers, and they will appear in a list in the sidebar. To remove a tier from the list, select the remove icon () or select it again in the report. Multiple tiers are handled as a boolean OR. Select the sidebar icon () to collapse or expand the sidebar.
2. Select Create segment from selections.
3. Enter a Segment name.
4. (Optional) Enter a description.
5. (Optional) Disable Update weekly to save the Segment with the current values only. You cannot change this behavior later. See Segments.
6. Select Save Segment.

Transitions

The Transitions report shows the tiers in columns for two selected weeks, and each tier’s user count and audience percentage. Connecting lines indicate the movement of users between tiers from one week to the next. Hover over a tier to see its description, median monetary value, and monetary event property.

High volume transitions are highlighted. These are the top 30% of transitions by number of users who moved between tiers. Uncheck Show important transitions to remove highlighting.

Select new dates to update the displayed transitions. Select a tier in either column, and all transitions into and out of that tier will be listed in the sidebar, with the number of users in each transition group.

To create a Segment from users who transitioned between tiers for your selected dates:

1. Select tiers to add them to the sidebar list.
2. Select the tier name in the sidebar to include all transition groups or select individual groups. Repeat for additional tiers. Multiple transitions are handled as a boolean OR. Select the sidebar icon () to collapse or expand the sidebar.
3. Select Create segment from selections.
4. Enter a Segment name.
5. (Optional) Enter a description.
6. (Optional) Disable Update weekly to save the Segment with the current values only. You cannot change this behavior later. See Segments.
7. Select Save Segment.

AI recommendations

AXP Agentic & Generative AI

For AXP Enterprise plans, apply AI analysis for deeper insights into audience activities and get actionable recommendations to build more effective, targeted campaigns. Recommendations use tier median monetary value from your models to surface insights.

To access your recommendations in Audience Pulse, select AI Insights. A drawer will expand and display summary cards for five recommendations. Select a card to see the details:

• Why this matters describes the discovered trend and the importance of addressing it.
• Recommendations provides the recommended course of action and implementation instructions. Recommendations can include messages, experiences, JourneysA continuous user experience of connected Sequences, Scenes, and/or In-App Automations., and experiments.

If there is an error in processing, you can select Generate new recommendations.

For even more relevant recommendations, add your brand’s homepage URL for analysis. Homepage text provides context to ensure insights are a better fit for your brand. The industry setting for your project is also taken into account.

To edit your industry and URL, select the dropdown menu () next to your project name, then Project details. The current values are processed each time AI recommendations are run.

Manage saved Segments

Go to Audience, then Segments to view and manage your saved Segments. See Manage Segments.