Tags and Goals in Global Control: Send the Right Email, Stop at the Right Time

Global Control is simple once you see the parts. Tags tell you who a person is or what they did. Tag actions let one tag add or remove other tags without a long automation. A goal in a workflow is a line in the sand: when a person hits it (for example, they buy), the sequence ends for them or puts them in another workflow. Put these together and you send fewer wrong emails, you keep trust high, and you learn what people actually want.

 

What a tag is (in practice)

Think of each newsletter as a tag (e.g., City-Community, City-Food, City-Cause). Interests are tags too (e.g., Pizza, Weekend Events, Pet Adoptions). Actions can be tags (Clicked-Rib-Recipe, Visited-Register). When a tag fires, you know something useful and you can decide what should happen next.

 

Tag actions: keep it tidy without big automations

When one tag fires, you can add or remove others right away. Example: a reader clicks on food stories this week. Fire Interest-Food and add City-Food newsletter tag if you want to subscribe them to that newsletter too. If they already have a broad tag like General, remove it so you don’t keep sending catch-all emails. Small moves like this keep your list organized as behavior changes.

 

Goals in workflows: stop at the right time

Set a short workflow for one promise (e.g., “try our local card,” “join the food list,” “book the weekend guide”). Pick a goal tag (e.g., Buyer-LocalCard or Booked-Call). When that goal fires for a person, the workflow ends for them. No more “buy now” emails after they already bought. You avoid mixed messages and you keep the relationship calm.

 

Set it up this week (plain steps)

• Name your tags clearly. Use short names you can read at a glance: City-Community, City-Food, Interest-Pizza, Buyer-LocalCard.
  
  
• Make a short workflow for one promise. 3–5 emails is plenty. One topic. One ask. No extras.
  
  
• Choose the goal tag. Pick the single outcome that means “we’re done here” (purchase, booked call, RSVP).
  
  
• Wire easy tag actions. When Buyer-LocalCard fires, remove Prospect-LocalCard. When Interest-Food fires, add City-Food and remove General.
  
  
• Tag clicks you care about. In your issues and articles, tag links that signal interest. Don’t tag every link—only the ones that help you route people.

 

A local example: the pizza week push

You send a short workflow about your “Pizza Week” guide. The emails point to two pieces: a neighborhood list and a chef profile. Clicking either link fires Interest-Pizza. Your tag action adds City-Food (if not already present).

 

The workflow goal is Buyer-LocalCard. When someone buys, the sequence ends for them. The next week, they’re on your food list getting the right pieces, and they’re not getting more “buy now” emails about the card they already have.

 

Another example: cause story and a Saturday drive

Your community list links to a shelter drive on your cause site. A click fires Interest-Pets. Your tag action adds City-Cause.

 

The goal in that workflow is RSVP-Drive. If they RSVP, the emails stop. On Monday, you can send a simple “thank you” to the folks with RSVP-Drive, and a photo recap to the broader list.

 

Keep it human (light rules that help)

• One promise per workflow. Fewer topics keep people reading and lower complaints.
  
  
• Be clear in link text. If a click will add someone to a list (when you use auto-subscribe between publications), say it in plain words.
  
  
• Let people leave one list. Per-publication unsubscribe keeps relationships you’d otherwise lose.
  
  
• Watch pacing when someone’s on two lists. If they join food and community, stagger sends so they don’t see the same story twice in a row.

 

Friday checks (10 minutes)

• Goal hits: how many people met the goal tag this week?
  
  
• Tag growth: which interest tags grew (pizza, pets, weekend)?
  
  
• Over-tagging: do you have too many one-off tags? Merge or retire the extras.
  
  
• Complaints/unsubs: if they rise after a workflow, shorten it or tighten the topic.

 

Simple naming that scales

• Newsletters: City-Community, City-Food, City-Cause
  
  
• Interests: Interest-Pizza, Interest-Brunch, Interest-PetAdoption
  
  
• States: Prospect-LocalCard, Buyer-LocalCard, RSVP-Drive
  
  
• Clicks (optional, short-lived): Clicked-Rib-Recipe-2025-08

 

Pitfalls and quick fixes

• No goal set. Fix: always pick a clear goal tag before you write the first email.
  
  
• Long workflows. Fix: cap at 3–5 messages. If you need more, make a second sequence.
  
  
• Tagging every link. Fix: only tag the links that tell you something you’ll act on.

 

Bottom line

Tags tell you who’s who. Tag actions keep that picture clean as people click and buy. Goals end a workflow at the right moment so you don’t wear out the reader. Put these together and you send fewer wrong emails, you keep trust high, and your local lists get more useful every week.

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