This article covers how to send a mass email to a Contact List and how to use the Create Segment tool when you need more control over who receives it.

For a standard send to a single list, no segmentation is needed. The Create Segment tool is for situations where you want to combine multiple lists, remove duplicates, or narrow the audience before sending.

The Create Segment tool lets you combine one or more contact lists into a new, deduplicated contact list. If a contact appears on more than one of the lists you select, they will only appear once in the new list.

This is the primary way to deduplicate contacts across multiple contact lists in VipeCloud. You can also optionally narrow the segment before it is created - removing or including contacts based on engagement history, list membership, or contact field values.

This feature works entirely with contact lists and is separate from filter views. Filter views are rules-based and update automatically as contact data changes. Everything described in this article creates static contact lists only. Your original contact lists are never modified.

Important: VipeCloud does not automatically deduplicate when you send to multiple contact lists directly. If a contact appears on more than one list and you send to all of those lists without creating a segment first, they will receive the communication multiple times - once for each list they are on. Creating a segment first is the correct way to prevent this.

If your goal is simply to merge two or more lists into one without duplicates, no additional configuration is needed.

VipeCloud will create a new contact list containing all contacts from the lists you selected. Any contact that appears on more than one of the selected lists will be included only once. Your original lists are not changed.

This is the recommended workflow any time you need to send to multiple lists without risking duplicate sends.

Use this method when you want to combine lists and also narrow the result before a new list is created. All filtering options are optional - use only what applies to your situation.

The new contact list will process in the background. Refresh the page if it does not appear immediately.

Excludes contacts who also appear on one or more lists you select. This is the most commonly used option.

Use this when you want to suppress contacts who have already received a specific communication. For example, if you sent a campaign last month to a list called "March Outreach," select that list here and those contacts will not be included in the new segment - even if they are on one of the lists you are combining.

You can select multiple suppression lists. Any contact found on any of the selected lists will be excluded.

Excludes contacts based on how they have previously interacted with your emails. Expand Remove by Engagement and check any of the following:

You can check multiple options. Any contact matching at least one checked condition will be excluded. Note: Reply data requires Inbox Sync to be active.

Includes only contacts who have interacted with your emails in a specific way. This is the inverse of Remove by Engagement - use it when you want to send to engaged contacts only. Expand Include by Engagement and check any of the following:

You can check multiple options. Only contacts matching at least one checked condition will be included. Note: Reply data requires Inbox Sync to be active.

Limits the segment to contacts who match specific field values. Use this when you only want to reach a subset of the combined lists based on data stored on their contact records - for example, contacts in a specific city, or contacts with a particular custom field value.

Expand Filter by Contact Fields and add one or more rules. You can use any standard field or custom field in your account. Multiple rules narrow results further - contacts must match all rules to be included.

Use this method when you are actively setting up a mass email and want to narrow your audience on the fly before sending. The resulting list is also saved to your Contact Lists for future use.

Sending to multiple lists without using Filter Contact Lists. If you select multiple lists and click Preview Send without using Filter Contact Lists, contacts on more than one list will receive the email multiple times. Always use Filter Contact Lists when sending to multiple lists.

Skipping Apply Filters during a mass email send. When using the Filter Contact Lists modal during a send, you must click Apply Filters before clicking Save and Preview Send. If you skip this step, the engagement options will not be applied.

Not refreshing after clicking OK. The segment processes in the background. If you do not see it immediately, refresh the page and check the Contact Lists table.

Expecting the segment to update automatically. The resulting contact list is static. Changes to the original lists after the segment is created are not reflected. Recreate the segment when you need a current version.

Using reply options without Inbox Sync. Reply data is only available if Inbox Sync is active. The Replied option will not reflect accurate data if Inbox Sync is off.

How do I merge two contact lists without duplicates?

Select both lists in the Contact Lists table using the checkboxes, click the X Selected dropdown, choose Create Segment from Selected, give the new list a name, and click OK. No additional configuration is needed. The result is a single deduplicated contact list.

What happens if I send to multiple lists without creating a segment first?

Contacts who appear on more than one of the selected lists will receive the email multiple times - once for each list they are on. VipeCloud does not automatically deduplicate when sending to multiple lists directly. Always create a segment first, or use the Filter Contact Lists option during a mass email send, to ensure each contact receives the communication only once.

How do I remove contacts from a list if they are already on another list?

Use the Remove if on Other Lists option in the Create Segment modal. Select the list you want to suppress contacts from, and any contact found on that list will not be included in the new segment.

If I add contacts to a list after scheduling a send, will they receive it?

It depends on the send type. For series, the current version of the contact list at the time each step fires is used - contacts added to the list after launch will receive future steps if they are on the list when those steps send. For scheduled mass emails, the contact list is also evaluated at the time of sending, so contacts added after scheduling but before the send time will be included. Note that the email template itself is locked at the time of scheduling - changes to the original template after scheduling will not affect what goes out.

Is this the same as a filter view?

No. Filter views are rules-based and update automatically as contact data changes. Everything in this article works with contact lists only. The result is always a static contact list - it does not update automatically and it does not create or modify any filter views.

Will this change or delete my original contact lists?

No. Creating a segment only creates a new list. Your original contact lists are not modified.

What happens if the same contact is on multiple selected lists?

They will appear only once in the new segment. Duplicates are removed automatically.

Are unsubscribed or bounced contacts included?

No. Contacts who have unsubscribed, bounced, or been suppressed are automatically excluded regardless of any other settings.

Can I use both Remove by Engagement and Include by Engagement at the same time?

Yes, but the options interact. Remove conditions are applied after include conditions, so a contact excluded by Remove by Engagement will not appear in the final list even if they qualified under Include by Engagement.

Does the list created during a mass email send get saved?

Yes. The new contact list is saved to your Contact Lists automatically and can be reused for future sends.