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Integration Guide

How to Segment Intercom Users by Referral Activity with GrowSurf

Use GrowSurf-synced Intercom custom data to build referral-aware audiences and reuse them across Intercom messages.

Want the full setup walkthrough?

Use these docs for exact setup steps, supported fields, and troubleshooting.

GrowSurf syncs referral fields onto the matching Intercom contact, including the participant's share URL, referral status, counts, and milestone text.

That makes Intercom a strong place to build referral-aware audiences for first-time sharers, active referrers, and customers who are close to earning the next reward.

Integration Steps

Connect Intercom in GrowSurf and choose the tag you want to sync

Intercom tag selection in GrowSurf
Choose the Intercom tag GrowSurf should apply while it adds or updates synced participant contacts.

In Campaign Editor > 4. Options > Integrations, connect Intercom, authorize the account, select the Intercom tag you want GrowSurf to use, and save the integration.

Verify the GrowSurf attributes on a synced contact

Check a participant who already exists in both tools and confirm the Intercom contact has the GrowSurf fields you plan to segment with, such as growsurf_referral_status, growsurf_total_referral_count, and growsurf_next_milestone.

Build referral-focused audiences in Intercom

Intercom audience rule builder using multiple filters
Use Intercom's audience rules to turn synced GrowSurf data into reusable referral segments.

In Intercom Contacts or in a message's audience builder, add filters that use the GrowSurf data already on the record.

  • Create a new-participant audience for people who have a share URL but no awarded referrals yet.
  • Build a milestone audience from growsurf_next_milestone or the referral-count fields.
  • Create a success audience for customers whose referral status already reflects awarded credit.

Reuse the same audiences across Intercom

Once the filters are stable, use those audiences in outbound messages, banners, lifecycle nudges, or support follow-ups so each referral ask goes to the right customer.

Spot-check the segment against GrowSurf

Before you send anything at scale, compare one or two records in GrowSurf and Intercom to make sure the same participant is landing in the right audience for the right reason.

Tips

Connect before importing

The Intercom sync only starts after the integration is enabled, so connect first if you want imported participants to receive GrowSurf attributes going forward.

Use count fields for thresholds

The numeric referral-count fields are the cleanest way to build thresholds such as zero referrals, one referral, or customers who are close to the next milestone.

Refresh the contact before assuming the sync failed

Intercom can take a few minutes to show newly updated custom data, so refresh the contact and wait briefly before troubleshooting.

FAQ

Can I segment Intercom contacts by referral status?

Yes. GrowSurf syncs growsurf_referral_status onto the Intercom contact, which makes it usable in audience filters and message targeting.

Do I need to keep a separate referral database in Intercom?

No. GrowSurf remains the referral system of record, and Intercom simply uses the synced fields for targeting and personalization.

Should I save a segment or use message-level audience rules?

Use a saved segment when several campaigns should share the same logic. Use message-level audience rules when the filter only matters for one outbound message or series.

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