Overview
When sending multiple broadcasts to your audience, you may want to exclude contacts who already received a previous message. This prevents message fatigue, respects your audience's experience, and ensures you're only reaching new contacts or those who need follow-up communications.
This guide will walk you through creating exclusion segments and explain common scenarios where this feature is invaluable.
Why Exclude Previous Broadcast Recipients?
Excluding previous recipients helps you:
Avoid message fatigue: Don't overwhelm contacts with duplicate or similar content
Manage WhatsApp limits: Stay within platform messaging limits by targeting only new audiences
Improve engagement rates: Fresh audiences are more likely to engage with your content
Create targeted follow-ups: Segment audiences based on who did or didn't receive previous communications
Maintain brand reputation: Show respect for your audience's time and inbox
Common Scenarios for Exclusion
Scenario 1: Sequential Campaign Messages
Situation: You're running a multi-part campaign where each broadcast builds on the previous one.
Use Case: You sent a product announcement to your entire list. Now you want to send a follow-up with additional details, but only to people who didn't receive the first broadcast (perhaps they subscribed after the first message went out).
How to exclude: Create a segment that excludes contacts who received the first broadcast, ensuring only new subscribers get the complete information.
Scenario 2: Re-engagement Campaigns
Situation: You want to re-engage inactive contacts without bothering those who recently interacted with you.
Use Case: You're sending a special offer to win back dormant customers, but you don't want to send it to people who already received your recent promotional broadcast.
How to exclude: Exclude contacts who received broadcasts in the last 7-30 days, focusing only on truly inactive segments.
Scenario 3: Event Reminders
Situation: You're sending multiple reminders for an upcoming event.
Use Case: Your first broadcast went to everyone who registered. Now you want to send a "last chance to register" message, but only to people who haven't registered yet and didn't receive the first invitation.
How to exclude: Create a segment excluding those who received the first invitation and those who have already registered.
Scenario 4: Announcement Cascading
Situation: You're rolling out announcements to different audience segments over time.
Use Case: You announced a new feature to premium customers first. Now you want to announce it to standard customers, but you need to exclude premium customers who already got the news.
How to exclude: Exclude the segment that received the premium announcement before sending to your broader audience.
Scenario 5: Delivery Boost Management
Situation: You're using Spur's Delivery Boost feature and want to avoid sending to those who already received and read your message.
Use Case: Delivery Boost continues retrying message delivery for up to 72 hours. You want to send a new broadcast but exclude those who received your previous boosted broadcast to avoid overlap.
How to exclude: Create a segment excluding contacts who received (delivered status) the previous broadcast within the last 3-7 days.
Scenario 6: A/B Testing Cleanup
Situation: You split-tested two different messages and now want to send a unified follow-up.
Use Case: You sent variation A to one segment and variation B to another. Now you want to send a follow-up only to people who didn't receive either test variation.
How to exclude: Create a segment that excludes both test groups, targeting only the untouched remainder of your list.
Scenario 7: Customer Journey Stages
Situation: You're nurturing leads through different stages of the customer journey.
Use Case: You sent an educational series to new leads. Now you want to send a more advanced series, but only to contacts who've progressed beyond the introductory stage and haven't received the advanced content yet.
How to exclude: Exclude contacts who haven't completed the initial series and those who already received the advanced broadcasts.
How to Create an Exclusion Segment
Follow these steps to create a segment that excludes previous broadcast recipients:
Step 1: Navigate to Segment Creation
Go to Database in your Spur dashboard
Click on Segments
Click Create Segment
Step 2: Set Up Your Filters
Configure your segment with these filters:
Filter 1: Message Sent
Select Message Activity as your filter type
Choose WhatsApp Sent
Set condition to "at Least Once"
Set time frame to "In the Last [X] Days" (commonly 7 days)
Filter 2: Message Delivered (Optional but Recommended)
Add an AND condition
Select Message Activity again
Choose WhatsApp Delivered
Set condition to "at Least Once"
Set time frame to "In the Last [X] Days" (same as above)
This ensures you're excluding people who not only were sent the message, but actually received it.
Step 3: Apply the Exclusion
Save your segment
Return to your broadcast settings
In the "Don't Send to" field, select your newly created exclusion segment
You'll see a message: "Please select a segment, or: Create New Segment"
Choose your exclusion segment from the dropdown
Step 4: Verify Your Audience
Before sending, check:
Your main audience size
The exclusion segment size
The final broadcast audience (main audience minus exclusions)
This helps you confirm the right people are being targeted.
Best Practices
Timing Considerations
For promotional broadcasts: Exclude recipients from the last 7-14 days
For transactional updates: Exclude recipients from the last 24-48 hours
For educational series: Exclude recipients from the last 30-60 days depending on content frequency
Combining Multiple Exclusions
You can create segments with multiple exclusion criteria:
Exclude contacts who received Broadcast A OR Broadcast B
Exclude contacts who received any broadcast in the last X days
Exclude contacts based on engagement (or lack thereof) with previous broadcasts
Naming Conventions
Use clear, descriptive names for your exclusion segments:
✅ "Received Product Launch - Nov 2024"
✅ "Excluded: Week 45 Promotion Recipients"
✅ "Already Got: Holiday Sale Announcement"
❌ "Segment 1"
❌ "Test"
Regular Maintenance
Review and archive old exclusion segments monthly
Update segment criteria as your campaigns evolve
Document which broadcasts used which exclusion segments
Important Considerations
Delivery Boost Compatibility
Note: When using Delivery Boost, you cannot simultaneously use Split Broadcast Across Days. If you need to exclude previous recipients while using Delivery Boost:
Disable Delivery Boost temporarily
Set up your exclusion segment
Use Split Broadcast if needed for large audiences
Re-enable Delivery Boost for future broadcasts after the current one completes
WhatsApp Limits
Remember that WhatsApp has daily sending limits per number (typically 100,000 messages/day). Excluding previous recipients helps you:
Stay within these limits
Maintain good quality ratings
Avoid being flagged for spam
Message Status Tracking
Only exclude based on messages that were:
Sent: The message left your system
Delivered: WhatsApp confirmed delivery to the recipient
Read: The recipient opened the message (most restrictive)
Choose the status that makes sense for your use case. "Delivered" is usually the best option as it confirms the message reached the user.
Troubleshooting
"Segment is too large"
If your exclusion segment is very large, consider:
Narrowing the time frame
Adding additional qualifying criteria
Splitting your broadcast into smaller, more targeted campaigns
"No contacts match this segment"
Check that:
Your filters are correctly configured
The time frame includes the period when the previous broadcast was sent
You're using the right message activity type (WhatsApp Sent vs. Delivered)
"Overlapping audiences"
If contacts still receive duplicate messages:
Verify your exclusion segment is properly selected in broadcast settings
Check that the segment has refreshed with recent data
Ensure your time frames don't have gaps
Advanced Tips
Creating Reusable Exclusion Templates
Set up template segments you can reuse:
"Excluded: Last 7 Days Activity"
"Excluded: Last 30 Days Activity"
"Excluded: This Month's Broadcasts"
Update these monthly or as needed.
Automating Exclusions with Tags
Combine exclusion segments with contact tags:
Tag contacts when they receive specific broadcasts
Create exclusion segments based on these tags
Provides more granular control than time-based filters alone
Multi-Level Exclusions
For complex campaigns, create hierarchical exclusions:
First level: Exclude anyone who received any message this week
Second level: Exclude specific campaign recipients
Third level: Exclude based on engagement behavior
Summary
Excluding previous broadcast recipients is essential for:
Maintaining positive customer relationships
Optimizing message delivery and engagement
Staying within platform limits
Running sophisticated, targeted campaigns
By following this guide and understanding the various scenarios where exclusions are valuable, you can create more effective broadcast campaigns that reach the right people at the right time with the right message.
Need Help?
If you have questions about setting up exclusion segments or need assistance with your broadcast strategy, contact the Spur support team or check out our other knowledge base articles on broadcast best practices.