Groups are commonly used to trigger flows and campaigns, build broadcast audiences, and track eligibility over time. Because contacts can belong to multiple groups, group membership is a flexible way to organize contacts without changing their core profile data.
Quick setup checklist
Use this checklist to understand groups, create one, and start using groups in flows and segmentation.
Contact groups act as labels or containers that help you organize contacts for messaging and automation. Depending on how they are created and maintained, membership can be:
- Manual (you add/remove contacts yourself or via flows)
- Dynamic (Smart Groups update automatically based on a search query)
Key characteristics
- Contacts can be added to or removed from groups over time
- Groups can be used for flows, campaigns, and broadcasts
- A contact can belong to multiple groups at once
[CAPTURE 1: Contacts page showing groups list]
You can create contact groups from the Contacts section. Once created, you can start adding contacts manually or via flows.
[CAPTURE 2: Create new contact group interface]
For the full step-by-step guide, see: Creating a Group: Manual Procedure via the Contacts Tab.
In a flow, you can update group membership automatically using group actions. This is useful for tracking progress and segmenting contacts based on responses.
Common group actions
- Add contact to a group
- Remove contact from a group
Typical reasons to use group actions
- Track who completed a step or program
- Segment contacts based on answers (e.g., eligibility, interests, location)
- Control who should receive future broadcasts or campaigns
[CAPTURE 3: Flow editor with Add/Remove group actions]
You can reference a contact’s current group memberships using:
@contact.groups
This variable returns a list of all groups the contact currently belongs to, and it can be used in:
- Message text
- Conditions and expressions
- Split logic and routing
[CAPTURE 4: Flow expression referencing @contact.groups]
Contact groups are commonly used to:
- Identify contacts who completed a flow (completion tracking)
- Track opt-ins or opt-outs (subscription management)
- Control campaign eligibility (only contacts in a specific group receive campaign events)
- Segment contacts by status, role, or behavior
If you need groups that stay updated automatically based on criteria, consider using Smart Groups created from a contact search query.
Common issues
A contact is not in the expected group
Possible causes
- The flow action was not reached
- The group action was misconfigured
Fix
Verify that the contact passes through the “Add contact to a group” action in the flow.
A contact appears in multiple groups
Explanation
Contacts can belong to multiple groups at the same time.
Fix
Remove the contact from any groups that should no longer apply.
@contact.groups is empty
Possible cause
The contact does not currently belong to any groups.
Fix
Ensure the contact has been added to at least one group (manually or via a flow action).