> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://help.hoopai.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Email list management

> Organize, segment, and maintain your contact list using smart lists, segments, tags, and filters in the HoopAI platform.

Effective list management is the foundation of email marketing performance. The HoopAI platform uses a combination of smart lists, campaign segments, and tags to give you precise control over who receives each message — without duplicating contact records.

## Contacts and the CRM

All email recipients are contacts stored in the CRM. Every contact has a single record regardless of how many lists or segments they belong to. There are no separate subscriber lists to manage — instead, you target contacts using dynamic filters at the time of sending.

Navigate to **Contacts** to view, search, filter, and manage your full contact database.

***

## Smart lists

A smart list is a saved filtered view of your contacts that updates automatically as contact data changes. Smart lists are the primary tool for organizing your audience into addressable groups.

**Smart lists live in Contacts > Smart Lists.**

### Creating a smart list

<Steps>
  <Step title="Open the contacts view">
    Go to **Contacts** and click **More Filters** to open the filter panel.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Apply filters">
    Choose one or more filters from the dropdown. Available filter types include:

    * Tags (has tag, does not have tag)
    * Email engagement (opened, clicked, bounced, unsubscribed)
    * Contact fields (name, email, phone, city, custom fields)
    * Source (where the contact came from)
    * Date created
    * Pipeline stage and opportunity status
    * Do Not Disturb status
  </Step>

  <Step title="Combine filters with AND logic">
    Click **+ Add Filter** to stack multiple conditions. All conditions must be met for a contact to appear in the list. For example: tagged "newsletter" AND city equals "Chicago".
  </Step>

  <Step title="Save the list">
    Click **Save as Smart List**, give it a descriptive name, and click Save. The list appears in the Smart Lists panel and updates automatically as contacts meet or leave the criteria.
  </Step>
</Steps>

<Tip>
  Smart lists are read-only — contacts cannot be manually added to them. Membership is determined entirely by the filter criteria. To manually curate a group of contacts for a one-time send, select them individually in the Contacts view and use Bulk Actions.
</Tip>

***

## Campaign segments

Segments are dynamic contact groups built directly inside the campaign send workflow. Unlike smart lists (which live in Contacts), segments are campaign-specific and constructed during the "Send or Schedule" step.

**Key differences from smart lists:**

| Feature                  | Smart lists          | Segments                              |
| ------------------------ | -------------------- | ------------------------------------- |
| Location                 | Contacts section     | Campaign send screen                  |
| Purpose                  | Saved reusable views | One-time or reused campaign targeting |
| Combines AND/OR logic    | AND only             | AND and OR                            |
| Includes manual contacts | No                   | No                                    |
| Real-time updates        | Yes                  | Yes — generated at send time          |

### Building a segment

When scheduling a campaign, click **Build Segments** in the Recipient field and use the filter builder to define your audience. Add multiple filter groups using **Add OR Filter** to include contacts who meet any one of several criteria.

Pre-built segments are also available for common scenarios such as:

* Contacts engaged in the last 7 days
* Contacts who have not opened any email in 90 days
* Contacts tagged with a specific value
* Contacts in a specific pipeline stage

***

## Tags

Tags are labels applied to contact records to mark behavior, status, interests, or membership. They are the most flexible tool for list segmentation.

**Common tagging strategies:**

* Source tags: `lead-website`, `lead-referral`, `lead-paid-ad`
* Interest tags: `interested-product-a`, `attended-webinar`, `downloaded-guide`
* Status tags: `customer`, `churned`, `vip`
* Engagement tags: `clicked-promo`, `opened-welcome-series`

Tags can be applied manually, via form submissions, via workflow actions, or via trigger link clicks.

To send a campaign to all contacts with a specific tag, select the tag in the Recipient field on the campaign send screen.

***

## Importing contacts

To add contacts to your CRM in bulk:

<Steps>
  <Step title="Prepare your CSV">
    Create a CSV file with column headers that match the contact fields in the platform (First Name, Last Name, Email, Phone, etc.). Custom fields are supported.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Go to Contacts > Import">
    Click the Import button in the Contacts section and upload your CSV file.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Map fields">
    Match each CSV column to the corresponding contact field. Unmapped columns can be skipped or assigned to custom fields.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Apply tags and opt-in status">
    Tag all imported contacts with a source tag. Confirm that the contacts have provided consent to receive email marketing. Set their email marketing status to opted in.
  </Step>
</Steps>

<Note>
  Only import contacts who have explicitly consented to receive email from you. Importing purchased or scraped lists will damage your sender reputation and may result in sending suspension.
</Note>

***

## Managing opt-in status and DND

Every contact has a **Do Not Disturb (DND)** setting that controls whether they can receive email. When a contact unsubscribes, the platform automatically sets email DND to on, preventing future campaigns from reaching them.

To view or change a contact's email DND status:

1. Open the contact record
2. Go to the **DND** tab
3. Toggle email DND on or off and document the reason for any manual change

Manually re-enabling email for a contact who has unsubscribed should only be done with documented consent from the contact.

***

## Preference management

Preference Management allows contacts to opt out of specific communication categories rather than unsubscribing globally. You can create categories such as Newsletters, Promotions, and Event Updates — each treated as a separate subscription.

**How it works:**

* Create preference categories under **Settings > Preferences**
* Associate a category with each email campaign during the send step
* Contacts who opt out of a specific category are automatically excluded from campaigns in that category
* Contacts can still receive emails in other categories

<Note>
  Preference Management must be enabled from your account settings and is irreversible once activated. Review the feature requirements carefully before enabling it for your account.
</Note>

***

## List hygiene

Maintaining a clean, engaged list protects your sender reputation and improves deliverability.

**Recommended hygiene practices:**

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Remove hard bounces">
    Contacts that produce hard bounces have invalid email addresses. Create a smart list filtered by bounce status and review it after each campaign. Remove or suppress these contacts to keep your bounce rate below 2%.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Sunset unengaged contacts">
    Every 3–6 months, identify contacts who have not opened or clicked any email in that period. Send them a re-engagement campaign. If they remain inactive, remove them from your marketing list by applying a suppression tag or disabling email DND.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Validate new imports">
    Before sending to a newly imported list, run email address validation to confirm addresses are active and formatted correctly. This prevents a spike in bounces from a single import.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Monitor unsubscribe rates">
    An unsubscribe rate above 1% on a campaign suggests a mismatch between content and audience expectations. Review your targeting, content, and sending frequency.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Use double opt-in">
    Double opt-in requires subscribers to confirm their email address before being added to your list. This eliminates typos, bot signups, and contacts who did not intend to subscribe. Enable double opt-in in your form settings.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

***

## Bulk actions

From the Contacts view, you can select multiple contacts and take bulk actions:

* **Send email** — send a one-time email to the selected group
* **Add tag** — apply a tag to all selected contacts
* **Remove tag** — strip a tag from selected contacts
* **Add to workflow** — enroll selected contacts in an automation
* **Export** — download the selected contacts as a CSV
* **Delete** — permanently remove contact records

***

## Frequently asked questions

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="How do I send to multiple smart lists or tags at once?">
    When sending a campaign, the Recipient field accepts multiple smart lists and tags simultaneously. Select all the lists and tags you want to include. The platform deduplicates contacts automatically so no one receives the email more than once.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can I exclude a segment from a campaign?">
    Yes. On the campaign send screen, use the Exclusion List option to specify contacts, tags, or smart lists that should be excluded from the send — even if they appear in the included list.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="What happens if a contact is in multiple lists?">
    Contacts are deduplicated at send time. If a contact matches multiple included segments or tags, they receive only one copy of the email.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="How do I see all contacts who have unsubscribed?">
    In the Contacts view, apply a filter for DND status = Email Enabled: Off, or filter by the Unsubscribed email activity. Save this as a smart list to monitor it over time.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Is there a contact or list size limit?">
    There is no built-in cap on the number of contacts you can store. Sending limits depend on your email service provider and subscription plan. Use batch scheduling for large sends to manage delivery rate and inbox placement.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>