Allow Fixed-Number Split in Journey Split Shapes
complete
M
Michael Humphrys
Title
As a campaign manager, I want to configure the split element in a journey by a specific number of people instead of a percentage, so that I can control the volume of messages (e.g., SMS) based on budget constraints.
Context
Currently, Ortto’s journey split element only allows traffic to be divided based on percentage (e.g., 50% left / 50% right). However, in some campaigns—particularly those involving cost-per-message limits such as SMS—we need to cap the number of participants going down a specific path based on an absolute number (e.g., 4,000 people), not an estimated percentage.
This limitation requires a manual, error-prone workaround:
Forecast how many people will reach the split
Calculate the correct percentage to approximate the desired number (e.g., 4000)
Adjust the percentage repeatedly as real traffic deviates from estimates
User Story
As a digital campaign manager
I want to define a fixed number of people who go down a specific branch in a journey split
So that I can stay within message budget limits (e.g., 4,000 SMS sends) without complex manual calculations or ongoing monitoring
Acceptance Criteria
The split element should offer an option to specify "number of people" instead of (or in addition to) percentage
The system should allow defining a fixed cap (e.g., 4,000) for one branch; once the cap is reached, all additional contacts are automatically routed down the other branch
The UI should clearly show how many people have passed through each branch and how close the capped path is to its limit
Optional: Alert or trigger when the fixed limit is reached
Business Impact
This improvement:
Reduces the risk of exceeding SMS budget
Improves control and accuracy of campaign execution
Saves time by eliminating manual estimates and adjustments
Supports compliance and financial planning where message cost limits exist
Log In
Peter Bartlett
marked this post as
complete
Pleased to announce we now support "total count" split shapes in your Journeys!
You will notice the new option when editing your existing split shapes or adding a new split shape, enabling you to set total count limits for your paths.
The first X contacts to enter the spit shape will go down the first path, then repeating for each extra path you add, and then once all other paths are complete, all future contacts to reach the split shape will continue to go down the final path.
Also worth noting, the rules for when we reset the counters on your paths when editing an existing split shape (ie it has been live and contacts have already been passing through the paths):
We WILL RESET the path counts when:
- Changing from a % split to a Total count split
- Changing from a Total count split to a % split
- Changing the ratios in a % split
We WILL NOT RESET the path counts when:
- You are changing the counts in a Total count split.
^ This allows you to choose to allow more contacts to enter down a previously full path by increasing the count, or to stop contacts entering a path that previously had more room by decreasing the count.
Thanks for raising this request, and please reach out to our support team if you have further questions about it.
Photo Viewer
View photos in a modal
Peter Bartlett
marked this post as
under review