If you’re using Pardot for your marketing automation needs, organizing your prospects into lists is an essential part of your workflow. Lists allow you to segment your audience based on various criteria such as their interests, demographics, and behaviors.

In this article, we will guide you through the process of adding a prospect to a list in Pardot. We’ll cover everything you need to know, from creating a new list to adding a prospect manually or through automation rules. By the end of this article, you’ll have a clear understanding of how to effectively manage your lists and streamline your marketing campaigns in Pardot.

Adding an individual prospect to a list

The first scenario is where you would like to add a single prospect to a segmentation list. Before you begin you will need to have created the list that you want to add the prospect to. Note that you can only add an individual prospect using this method to a segmentation list. 

To create your segmentation list first select Segmentation Lists from the menu.

Next click on the blue + Add List to create your list. 

Now you need to enter the information about your list. In the Name field enter the name you would like to use for your list. It is a good idea to follow a standardized naming convention for your lists, as the number of lists grows, this will make it easier for people within your organization to understand the purpose of a particular list.

Place your list in a Folder and add any relevant tags to your list. Creating an orderly folder structure will make it easier for you to find your lists in the future. Tagging will also make it easier for you, and others in your team, to identify relevant lists.

It is important that you check the CRM Visible box at the bottom of the page. This will allow prospects to be assigned to the list through your CRM. This will be important for the later steps below. Once you have completed all relevant details about your list, click on the blue Create List button.

Now that you have created your segmentation list, you can add an individual prospect to that list. To find the prospect that you want to add to the list, first click on Prospects from the menu.

Now enter the name of your prospect into the Filter field. You can use either the first or last name in order to find a prospect. Pardot will even be able to narrow down which prospect you want to edit, even if you enter only a partial part of their name.

When you find the prospect that you want to add to the list, click on their name. You will then be able to edit the details of your prospect. In order to add them to a list, you need to select Lists from the options available. 

This will provide a list of all of the segmentation lists that the prospect already belongs to. At the top of these lists, is a field where you can add that prospect to a new list. Click on the field which says Select a list to add… you will then be able to locate the correct list from your folder structure.

Once you have added the desired segmentation list, that you want to add the prospect to, you next need to click on the Save lists button. The prospect has now been added to that particular list. 

Adding a prospect to a list using a segmentation rule

Another way of adding a prospect to a segmentation list is to use a segmentation rule. A segmentation rule is appropriate when you want to add a group of prospects to a list. A segmentation rule will add prospects which meet the criteria that you set. A segmentation rule will add prospects at the point in time that you run the rule. 

If you want to add prospects to a list on an ongoing basis you need to use either an automation rule, completion action or a dynamic list. 

First select Segmentation rules from the menu. Then click on the blue + Add Segmentation Rule button.

Now you need to enter the Segmentation Rule Information. This includes the Name of the segmentation rule and tags to categorize your segmentation rule. Once you have entered this information click on the blue Set Rules button.

Now you need to enter the rules for your segmentation rule. These are the criteria which will match your prospects. In the example provided we only want prospects who have a Pardot score higher than 100.

The final step is to add the prospects that met the criteria above to your segmentation list. This is done using Actions. From the first field choose Add prospect to list and then choose the appropriate list. When you added the list you can click on the green Run Segmentation button, in order to run your rule. 

Remember that a segmentation rule only runs at that point in time. If prospects in the future were to meet the criteria set by your rules, they will not be added to the list. 

Using automation rules to add a prospect to a list

Another approach to adding a prospect to a list is to use an automation rule. The benefits of using the combination of a segmentation list with an automation rule, is that you can add prospects on an ongoing basis according to a set of criteria. At the same time because you are using a segmentation list, rather than a dynamic list, you can also add prospects manually to the list. 

In short combining a segmentation list with an automation rule, gives you the automation of a dynamic list but with even more flexibility.

To start you will need to use the steps above to create your segmentation list. Once you have created your segmentation list, you can set up your automation rule, to start adding prospects to that list. 

To create your automation rule, first select Automation Rules from the menu.

Next click on the blue + Add Automation Rules button.

Now you need to title your automation rule by entering the name of your rule in the Name field. Choose a folder for your automation rule and write a short description of the rule for future reference.

Now you need to establish the rules for your automation rule. These are the criteria that you want to use to match prospects. In the example below we have set up the criteria as being prospects whose country is the United States. That means it will match prospects who are recorded as currently being in the United States. It also means that as long as the automation rule is running, that new prospects who are entered into our database, and live in the United States will also match to this rule.

The next step is to choose the Actions. This is what happens to prospects who match the criteria that you have established above. In this case we want to Add prospects to the list. This will be the segmentation list that you have already created. You can add the list from the Choose a List field.

Once you have added your match rules and the action to add the prospect to your segmentation list, then you can click on the blue Create automation rules. 

When you create your automation rule you will be given the option to preview the prospects that have met the criteria that you set. It is a good idea to preview your results first. This will ensure that you are only adding appropriate prospects to your segmentation list. When you are happy with the results that your automation rule is producing in the preview, select the option to resume your automation rule. This will mean that your automation rule is now running. 

Using completion actions to add a prospect to a list

Completion actions can be added to many of the assets that you create through Pardot. This includes:

• Forms
• Form handlers
• Custom redirects
• Files

Whenever you have the option to create a completion action, you can also use this functionality to add a prospect to a list. As with many of the other approaches to adding a prospect to a list you will first need to create a segmentation list, before you create your custom redirect.

Below are a couple of examples of where you could add prospects to a list using a completion action.

Adding prospects to list with a form

Forms are a common place where you may want to add a prospect to a list. After a user completes a form on your website, you may want to add them to a marketing list, that is specific to the content in the form. This is a good way of segmenting your lists and making your marketing emails more focused on the interests of your prospect.

When editing your form, you will have the option to add completion actions. First click on the tab at the top of the screen called Completion Actions.

You will now have the option to add your completion action. From the options under Completion Actions choose Add to list, then from the drop down options choose the list that you want to add the prospect to. Finally click on the green Confirm & Save button.

Adding prospects to a list with completion actions

Another Pardot asset you might want to use to add a prospect to a list are custom redirects. Any URL can be turned into a custom redirect. These are not only a good way of tracking who has clicked on your link, but also to add those prospects to a specific list. When you edit your custom redirect, at the bottom of the page, you will have the option to add a Completion Action. From the drop down menu under Actions choose Add to List. Then from the List field choose the segmentation list that you want to add the prospect to.

Using dynamic lists to add a prospect

The last approach to adding a prospect to a list is to use a dynamic list. Dynamic lists will add or remove a prospect from the list, according to certain criteria. This means that unlike a segmentation rule which only runs once, a dynamic list will continue to collate prospects automatically.

One disadvantage to a dynamic list is that only prospects who meet the criteria will be added or removed from the list. This process is automatic and you cannot manually add a prospect. Before choosing to set up a dynamic list, make sure it is the most suitable option for your needs.

First select Segmentation Lists from the menu.

Now click on the blue + Add List button.

Now enter the List Information. Give your dynamic list a name and place it in an appropriate folder. 

The most important step is to make sure you check the box marked Dynamic List.  If this box is not checked, then the list will be a segmentation list, not a dynamic list.

Once you have completed these steps click on the blue Set Rules button.

Now decide on the Dynamic List Rules. These are the criteria by which prospects will be added to the list. In the example, we have set the criteria as Prospects whose last activity was less than 180 days ago. 

When you are happy with the rules you have set, click the blue Preview button to see which prospects would meet the criteria you have set. Or if you are ready to run the dynamic list, then click on the green Run Rules button.