How to Create Custom Properties in Klaviyo

Custom properties in Klaviyo offer a powerful way to enhance your understanding of contacts and deliver more personalized marketing content. These flexible data fields allow you to capture unique information about your subscribers, from demographic details to product preferences and beyond. Creating and utilizing custom properties effectively can transform your marketing strategy by enabling precise segmentation, dynamic content creation, and deeper customer insights.

What Are Custom Properties in Klaviyo?

Custom properties serve as additional data points assigned to contact profiles in Klaviyo. Unlike default properties such as name, email, and location, custom properties can be tailored specifically to your business needs and marketing goals. These customizable fields give you the freedom to collect almost any information that might help you create more targeted, relevant campaigns.

Custom properties function as extensions of your contact database, allowing you to store valuable information beyond basic contact details. You might use them to track demographic information like gender or age, record customer preferences about email frequency or content interests, or even store responses from surveys and questionnaires. The flexibility of custom properties makes them incredibly versatile for businesses of all types.

Many marketers underutilize custom properties, missing opportunities for deeper personalization. With no limit to the number of custom properties you can add, you have complete freedom to capture virtually any data point that could enhance your marketing efforts. This extensive customization capability allows you to build truly comprehensive customer profiles.

Why Custom Properties Matter for Marketing

Custom properties dramatically enhance your ability to create personalized experiences for your subscribers. The data you collect through these properties enables you to segment your audience with remarkable precision, ensuring your messages reach exactly the right people at the right time.

Personalization drives engagement, and custom properties provide the foundation for truly personalized marketing. When you understand specific details about your subscribers—their preferences, behaviors, and characteristics—you can craft messages that resonate on a deeper level. This targeted approach typically results in higher open rates, click-through rates, and conversions compared to generic messaging.

The marketing landscape grows more competitive every day, making personalization not just beneficial but essential. Custom properties give you a competitive edge by allowing you to deliver experiences tailored to individual subscribers. This level of personalization helps build stronger relationships with your audience and fosters greater brand loyalty over time.

Your subscribers expect relevant content that speaks to their specific needs and interests. Custom properties help you meet these expectations by providing the data you need to create highly targeted campaigns. When subscribers receive content that feels personally relevant, they’re more likely to remain engaged with your brand.

How to Add Custom Properties to Profiles

Adding custom properties to your Klaviyo profiles can be accomplished through several methods, each suited to different scenarios and data volumes. The right approach depends on your specific needs, technical capabilities, and the amount of data you’re working with.

CSV Upload Method for Bulk Updates

The CSV upload method provides an efficient solution for adding custom properties to multiple profiles simultaneously. This approach works particularly well when you need to update a large number of contacts with new information or when you’re migrating data from another platform.

To prepare your CSV file correctly, start by creating a spreadsheet with “Email” (or “Phone Number” if email isn’t available) as the first column. Add columns for standard properties like “First Name” and “Last Name,” then create additional columns for each custom property you want to add. Give each column a clear, descriptive header that reflects the property name.

The mapping process connects your CSV columns to Klaviyo properties during import. Navigate to Audience > Lists & Segments and select the option to import contacts. Upload your CSV file and map each column to the appropriate Klaviyo property. For custom properties that don’t yet exist in your account, simply type the new property name when prompted and click “Create New Field.”

During import, avoid clicking “Subscribe to Email Marketing” to ensure existing profiles maintain their current subscription status. After completing the import, check several contact profiles to verify that your custom properties appear correctly and contain the expected values.

Manual Addition for Individual Profiles

The manual method works best for adding or updating custom properties on a small number of profiles. This approach gives you precise control over individual contact records without affecting your broader database.

Follow these steps to manually add custom properties:

• Navigate to the specific contact’s profile in your Klaviyo account
• Look for the “Custom Properties” section near the profile information area
• Click “Add custom property” to open the property creation dialog
• Enter the property name and value in the appropriate fields
• Click “Add Property” to save the new information to the profile

Manual updates provide immediate results, making them ideal for quick changes or additions to important profiles. This method also allows you to verify the accuracy of each property as you add it, reducing the risk of data entry errors that might occur with bulk imports.

Collecting Data Through Forms and Preferences

Forms offer a direct way to gather custom property data from your subscribers. By including additional fields in your signup forms, you can collect valuable information while building your list.

When designing signup forms, consider what information would be most valuable for your marketing efforts. Add fields for relevant custom properties, but be careful not to request too much information at once, as this can reduce completion rates. Focus on collecting the most important data points initially, then gather additional information over time.

The Manage Preferences page provides subscribers with a way to update their information and preferences. This self-service approach not only keeps your data current but also empowers subscribers to control what information they share with you. Include fields for key custom properties on this page, making it easy for subscribers to provide and update their information.

Hidden fields capture information without requiring direct input from subscribers. These fields can collect data like the URL of the signup page, campaign source, or referral information. While invisible to users, hidden fields provide valuable context about how subscribers found and interacted with your brand.

Leveraging Custom Properties for Segmentation

Segmentation transforms your marketing from broad, generic messaging to precisely targeted communications. Custom properties provide the detailed data needed to create highly specific segments based on exactly the criteria that matter most to your business.

Creating Powerful Customer Segments

Effective segmentation starts with identifying the most relevant characteristics for your marketing goals. Custom properties allow you to segment based on virtually any data point you collect, from demographic information to behavioral patterns and preferences.

Basic demographic segmentation uses custom properties like age, gender, location, or occupation to group subscribers with similar characteristics. This foundational approach helps tailor messaging to different demographic groups, ensuring content resonates with their specific perspectives and needs. For example, you might create a segment of female subscribers in their 30s living in urban areas.

Preference-based segments group subscribers according to their stated interests, preferences, or needs. These segments rely on custom properties collected through forms, surveys, or preference centers. You might segment subscribers who prefer casual clothing styles versus those interested in formal wear, allowing you to send highly relevant product recommendations to each group.

Behavioral segmentation uses custom properties that track actions and interactions with your brand. These properties might record purchase history, browsing behavior, or engagement patterns. For instance, you could create a segment of subscribers who have purchased a specific product category in the last 30 days, then target them with complementary product recommendations.

Dynamic Flows Based on Custom Properties

Flows in Klaviyo become significantly more powerful when enhanced with custom properties. These automated sequences can use custom property data to deliver personalized experiences that respond to individual subscriber characteristics and behaviors.

Custom properties enable conditional branching within flows, creating different paths based on subscriber data. For example, a welcome flow might send different content to new subscribers based on their stated interests or how they joined your list. This branching ensures each subscriber receives the most relevant introduction to your brand.

The “Update Profile Property” action within flows automatically modifies custom properties based on subscriber actions or time-based triggers. This powerful feature keeps your data current without manual intervention. For instance, after a subscriber completes a purchase, you could update a “Last Purchase Date” property or add the purchased category to a list-type property tracking their interests.

Trigger-based flows can be initiated based on changes to custom properties. When a property reaches a certain value or changes in a specific way, you can automatically start a targeted flow. This might include sending a special offer when a loyalty points property reaches a threshold value or initiating a re-engagement sequence when an engagement score property drops below a certain level.

Best Practices for Managing Custom Properties

Effective management of custom properties ensures your data remains organized, accurate, and valuable for your marketing efforts. Following these best practices will help you maintain a clean, useful database that supports your marketing goals.

Naming and Organization Strategies

Consistent naming conventions form the foundation of effective custom property management. Establish clear rules for how properties should be named and formatted, then apply these rules consistently across your account.

1. Use descriptive, intuitive names that clearly indicate what information each property contains. Avoid abbreviations or codes that might be confusing to team members.
2. Maintain consistent capitalization and formatting in property names. Remember that Klaviyo treats “favorite_color” and “Favorite_Color” as entirely different properties.
3. Document your naming conventions and share them with everyone who works with your Klaviyo account. This documentation should include examples and explanations of your naming rules.
4. Group related properties using consistent prefixes. For example, all properties related to product preferences might start with “Pref_” while demographic information starts with “Demo_”.
5. Regularly audit your custom properties to identify and merge duplicates or remove obsolete properties that are no longer in use.

Updating and Maintaining Property Data

Keeping your custom property data current and accurate requires ongoing attention and systematic processes. Outdated or incorrect information can undermine your segmentation and personalization efforts.

The most effective approach combines automated updates with periodic manual reviews. Set up flows and integrations to update properties automatically whenever possible, supplemented by regular data quality checks to catch and correct any issues.

Consider these strategies for data maintenance:

• Implement regular data validation processes to identify and correct formatting inconsistencies
• Use preference centers to encourage subscribers to update their own information
• Set up automated flows to refresh time-sensitive properties at appropriate intervals
• Establish a schedule for comprehensive data reviews to identify and address quality issues
• Create documentation for your team explaining how each property should be formatted and used

Data type consistency proves crucial for reliable segmentation and personalization. Ensure each custom property maintains a consistent data type across all profiles—whether text, number, boolean, or list. Mixing data types within the same property can cause unexpected behavior in segments and dynamic content.

Using Custom Properties in Dynamic Content

Dynamic content transforms static, one-size-fits-all messaging into personalized communications tailored to each recipient. Custom properties provide the data foundation that makes this personalization possible, allowing you to create emails and other content that adapts automatically to subscriber characteristics.

Personalizing Email Content

Dynamic content blocks use custom property values to display different content to different subscribers within the same email campaign. This powerful capability allows you to create a single email template that delivers personalized experiences to each recipient.

The lookup filter serves as your primary tool for inserting custom property values into email content. This filter retrieves the value of a specified property from the recipient’s profile and displays it in your email. For example, the code {{ person|lookup:'Favorite_Color' }} would display the subscriber’s favorite color, assuming that property exists in their profile.

Default values provide a fallback when a custom property is missing or empty for certain subscribers. By specifying a default, you ensure your email still makes sense even when data is incomplete. For example, {{ person|lookup:'Favorite_Color' default:'blue' }} would display “blue” for any subscriber without a favorite color property.

Conditional blocks take personalization further by showing or hiding entire sections of content based on custom property values. These blocks use if/then logic to determine what content each subscriber should see. For instance, you might show different product recommendations to subscribers based on their stated preferences or past purchase behavior.

Advanced Personalization Techniques

Beyond basic insertion of property values, custom properties enable sophisticated personalization strategies that can significantly enhance the relevance and impact of your marketing communications.

List-type properties store multiple values for a single property, creating opportunities for complex personalization. For example, a “Purchased_Categories” property might contain a list of all product categories a subscriber has purchased. You can then reference this list to display relevant recommendations or content based on their purchase history.

Mathematical operations with numeric properties allow you to create dynamic calculations within your content. If you track points, credits, or other numeric values as custom properties, you can perform calculations to display personalized information. For instance, you might calculate and display how many more points a subscriber needs to reach the next loyalty tier.

Personalized recommendations become more powerful when driven by custom properties. By tracking preferences, past purchases, or browsing behavior in custom properties, you can generate highly relevant product or content recommendations. These personalized suggestions typically drive higher engagement and conversion rates than generic recommendations.

Integrating Custom Properties with External Systems

Custom properties become even more powerful when connected to your broader technology ecosystem. Integration with external systems allows you to synchronize data across platforms, creating a more complete view of your customers and enabling more sophisticated marketing strategies.

API Integration for Advanced Users

The Klaviyo API provides programmatic access to custom properties, allowing developers to create, read, update, and delete property data through code. This capability enables seamless integration with your other business systems and automated data management.

API integration offers several key advantages:

• Real-time data synchronization between systems
• Automated property updates based on events in other platforms
• Ability to implement complex business logic for property management
• Scalable solutions for high-volume data processing
• Custom workflows tailored to your specific business needs

The Update Profile endpoint specifically handles modifications to custom properties. This endpoint supports various operations including setting property values, appending values to list-type properties, removing specific values from lists, and completely unsetting properties when needed.

For list-type properties, the API provides special operations that maintain data integrity. The append operation adds new values to an existing list without affecting current values, while unappend removes specific values without clearing the entire list. These operations give you precise control over complex property data.

Third-Party Tool Connections

Many businesses use various specialized tools alongside Klaviyo. Connecting these tools to update custom properties automatically creates a more integrated, efficient marketing ecosystem.

Form and survey tools like Typeform or SurveyMonkey can feed responses directly into custom properties. This integration automatically captures valuable customer feedback and preferences without manual data entry. Ensure your forms include an identifier field (typically email address) so Klaviyo can match responses to the correct profiles.

E-commerce platforms naturally complement Klaviyo’s marketing capabilities. While standard integrations with platforms like Shopify automatically sync basic purchase data, you can extend this integration to capture additional information as custom properties. This might include product categories, average order value, or specific product attributes that influence future marketing.

CRM systems often contain rich customer data that can enhance your email marketing. Bidirectional integration between your CRM and Klaviyo ensures custom properties stay synchronized across both platforms. This integration might update properties related to sales interactions, customer service history, or account status.

Maximizing Your Custom Property Strategy

Creating a cohesive, strategic approach to custom properties will help you derive maximum value from your data while avoiding common pitfalls. A thoughtful strategy ensures your properties support your marketing goals while remaining manageable and useful.

Planning Your Property Framework

Strategic planning prevents the chaos that can result from haphazard property creation. Before adding numerous custom properties, develop a framework that outlines what data you’ll collect and how you’ll use it.

Start by identifying the specific marketing goals you want to support with custom properties. Whether you’re focusing on improved segmentation, more personalized content, or better customer insights, clarify how each property will contribute to these objectives. This goal-oriented approach prevents collecting data simply because you can.

Map your customer journey and identify key touchpoints where you can collect valuable data. Consider what information would be most useful at each stage, from initial awareness through purchase and retention. This journey-based approach ensures you gather the most relevant information at appropriate moments.

Create a data dictionary documenting each custom property, including its name, purpose, format, and how it should be used. This resource helps maintain consistency across your team and serves as a reference for anyone working with your Klaviyo account. Update this documentation regularly as you add or modify properties.

Measuring Impact and Optimizing

The true value of custom properties emerges when you measure their impact on your marketing performance. Regular analysis helps you identify which properties deliver the most value and where you might need to adjust your approach.

Track key performance indicators for campaigns and flows that leverage custom properties for segmentation or personalization. Compare these results to similar campaigns without personalization to quantify the impact. Look for improvements in metrics like open rates, click-through rates, conversion rates, and revenue generated.

Conduct regular audits of your custom properties to identify those that provide the most value. Some properties might prove more useful than anticipated, while others might see little use. This analysis helps you refine your property strategy, focusing on the data that truly drives results.

Test different approaches to using custom properties in your marketing. Try various segmentation strategies, personalization techniques, or data collection methods to determine what works best for your audience. These experiments help you continuously improve your custom property implementation.

Take Your Klaviyo Marketing to the Next Level

Custom properties transform Klaviyo from a basic email platform into a sophisticated marketing engine that delivers truly personalized experiences. By implementing the strategies and techniques outlined in this guide, you can harness the full potential of custom properties to create more effective, engaging marketing campaigns.

The power of custom properties lies in their flexibility and versatility. These customizable data fields adapt to your specific business needs, allowing you to collect and leverage exactly the information that matters most for your marketing goals. Whether you’re a small business just starting with email marketing or an enterprise with complex segmentation needs, custom properties provide the foundation for more targeted, relevant communications.

Your journey with custom properties should evolve alongside your business and marketing strategy. Start with the basics, collecting fundamental information that supports your immediate goals. As you grow more comfortable with custom properties, gradually expand your approach to include more sophisticated data points and personalization techniques. This progressive implementation ensures you can manage your data effectively while continuously improving your marketing results.

Remember that the most successful custom property strategies balance ambition with practicality. While you might be tempted to collect every possible data point, focus on quality over quantity. Prioritize the properties that directly support your key marketing objectives, and ensure you have clear plans for how you’ll use each property you create. This focused approach will yield better results than attempting to collect and manage too much information at once.