User segments — partner-only or VIP-only content

Ref: C13 · Track: Knowledge Base Admin · Time to complete: ~6 min

Why this matters

"Show this article only to partners" is a useful sentence. User segments are how you get there. A segment is a named group of users; an article (or section) can be restricted to one or more segments.

Without segments, your access options are limited to "everyone / signed in / staff". With segments, you can carve up your audience however you need.

The building blocks

A user segment is defined by one or more rules combining:

• User tags — arbitrary labels on user profiles (e.g. partner, vip, beta).
• Organisation tags — labels on the org record (e.g. enterprise, reseller).
• Organisations — specific organisations by name.
• Signed-in status — everyone / signed-in only.

A user matches the segment if their profile or org satisfies the rules.

Creating a segment

In Guide admin → Settings → User segments:

1. Click Add segment.
2. Name it clearly (e.g. Enterprise customers, Resellers, Beta testers).
3. Set the rules: - Signed-in only? (almost always yes for restricted content) - Which user tags? - Which org tags? - Which specific organisations?
4. Save.

Once a segment exists, it's available when you set article/section visibility to "Custom".

Common segment designs

Partner portal

• Signed-in: yes
• Org tag: partner
• Name it: Partners
• Use for: partner onboarding, co-marketing materials, MDF programs, joint playbooks.

VIP customers

• Signed-in: yes
• User tag: vip
• Name it: VIP
• Use for: escalation paths, named contacts, direct numbers.

Beta program

• Signed-in: yes
• User tag: beta-q2-2026
• Name it: Beta Q2 2026
• Use for: beta-only release notes, feedback channels. Retire the segment when the beta ends.

Enterprise tier

• Signed-in: yes
• Org tag: tier-enterprise
• Name it: Enterprise customers
• Use for: plan-specific feature docs.

Applying a segment to content

You can apply segments at two levels:

• Section level — default for everything in the section (e.g. a whole "Partner portal" category).
• Article level — per-article override.

When setting visibility: 1. Choose Custom: user segments. 2. Select one or more segments. 3. Save.

A user sees the article if they belong to any of the listed segments (OR logic).

Getting users into segments — tagging

Segments don't assign themselves. Users need tags. You can tag users in three ways:

Manually

On the user profile in Support, add tags (e.g. partner). Tedious at scale.

In bulk

From the users list, select users → add tag.

Automatically

Use triggers and automations (Admin Center) to apply tags based on events: - "When ticket created from an org tagged partner, add user tag partner-contact." - "When user is added to organisation Acme Corp, apply user tag vip."

Tag at the org level where possible, and let users inherit via org-tag rules in the segment. It's easier to audit one org tag than 100 user tags.

Audit and maintenance

• Review segments quarterly. Names and rules drift (old tags, retired programs).
• Retire segments whose content has been republished. If you re-released a beta feature to GA, the beta segment is no longer needed — move the content to an open segment or public, then delete the old segment.
• Watch for empty segments. A segment with zero matching users = gated content nobody can see. Track via the Users tab filtered by tag.

Gotchas

• Segments don't drive ticket forms or triggers. They only control Guide (help center) content. For ticketing logic, use org/user tags directly.
• Changing a segment's rules re-evaluates live. Users who stopped matching lose access immediately; users who newly match gain access.
• Deleting a segment frees the articles. Articles restricted only to a deleted segment become "Custom with 0 segments" = effectively invisible. Re-point them first.
• Nested segments aren't a thing. You can't say "Segment A AND Segment B must both match". Express combined rules inside a single segment's rule builder.
• A non-signed-in user can never match. Always pair segments with Signed-in = yes.

Quick check — have you got this?

• You want partner-only release notes. What's the minimum setup?
• A user has tag vip and is in an org tagged enterprise. Segment needs vip. Do they match?
• You delete the "Beta Q1" segment. What happens to articles restricted to it?

Related articles

• C05 — The book — managing all your content
• C12 — Controlling access at the article level
• C20 — Global KB settings: require sign-in, unsafe content, GA