The quick answer
You don't send a campaign straight to a saved search. You build a dynamic group from it. Save a contact search whose criteria return the people you want, then go to Lists > Relationships > Groups > New, choose Dynamic and Contact, and pick the search. Write a Campaign marketing template, create a marketing campaign, and on its Events subtab add an E-mail line with the group as Target Group, the template, a subject in Title, a subscription and the status Execute. Save, and NetSuite sends at the event's date and time. The group takes its members from the search, so the audience follows your data instead of a list someone built once.
The screenshots show sample data. Person and company names are fictional. Use your own criteria, template and values when following the steps.
Before you start
In this example, Kestrel Ridge Cycles is inviting its dealers and distributors to a Dealer Demo Day. Nadia Ferreira runs marketing and uses the Administrator role. The account has 7 contacts, and only the ones with the contact Category Dealer or Distributor should get the email.
Campaign email needs the Marketing Automation feature. The sender address has to be set up and authorized under Setup > Marketing > Email Addresses before a template can use it. Each contact needs a usable email address and a subscription status that allows the event's subscription. Test with a small internal group before you send to real customers.
01. Check who the email is for
Go to Lists > Relationships > Contacts and read the Category column. Ben Okafor and Carla Mendes are Dealer. Devin Hale and Ellen Sato are Distributor. Felix Grant (Press), Gwen Porter (Supplier) and Hugo Lindqvist (Consultant) shouldn't get the invitation.
02. Save a contact search
Go to Reports > Saved Searches > All Saved Searches > New and choose Contact. On the Saved Contact Search form, type the Search Title Dealer and Distributor Contacts and check Public so colleagues who maintain groups built on it can use it.
On the Criteria subtab, choose the filter Category. In the popup, keep any of, select Dealer and Distributor, and click Set. The criterion reads Category is any of Dealer, Distributor. Click Add, then Save.
The search now shows in the saved searches list as a Public Contact search.
03. Create a dynamic group from the search
Go to Lists > Relationships > Groups > New. On Create Group, choose Dynamic, set What kind of members would you like to include? to Contact, and click Continue. The saved search has to be the same record type as the group, so a contact group needs a contact search.
On Create Dynamic Contact Group, type the Name Demo Day Dealer Invite. The Members subtab says No records to show, because the group has no search yet.
In Saved Search, choose Dealer and Distributor Contacts. The Group Members list fills with the 4 contacts the search returns: Ben Okafor, Carla Mendes, Devin Hale and Ellen Sato, each with Global Subscription Status Soft Opt-In. Click Save.
You can't add or remove members of a dynamic group by hand. To change who's in it, change the search. A static group is the opposite: it holds whoever you add, and you keep it up to date by hand.
04. Write the email template
Go to Lists > Marketing > Marketing Templates > New. Some accounts also list Marketing Templates under Documents > Templates. On Select Type, click Campaign, then on Select Template Layout click Blank (Scriptable).
Type the Name Dealer Demo Day Invite. It's for internal use, not the subject line. On the Template subtab, keep Create Template From at Text Editor and type the message: Join us on October 15 to ride the 2027 lineup. Reply to save your spot.
On the Marketing subtab, choose events@kestrelridgecycles.com as both From Email Address and Reply to Email Address. Leave Track Outgoing Email checked so NetSuite can count opens and clicks where tracking is supported. Mail clients that block images or rewrite links make those counts approximate. Click Save.
The template opens with a confirmation and the body on its Template subtab.
05. Schedule the campaign email
Go to Lists > Marketing > Marketing Campaigns > New. Type the Title Fall Dealer Demo Day and choose the Category E-Mail. In this account, Manager and Start Date 09/30/2026 fill in; check them in yours.
On the Events subtab, the E-mail sublist has one open line. Choose Target Group Demo Day Dealer Invite and Template Dealer Demo Day Invite. The template has no subject, so type the Title You're invited: Dealer Demo Day. That's the subject line of the email. Choose Subscription Marketing. Channel is E-mail.
Change Status from Not Started to Execute. The note above the sublist says it plainly: events in Not Started or Planning will not be sent. Keep Date 09/30/2026 and Time 11:00 am, which NetSuite filled with the next full hour. Click Add, then Save.
06. Confirm what's scheduled
The saved campaign's E-mail line shows the group, the template, the subject, Marketing, E-mail and the status Scheduled to execute on 09/30/2026 11:00 am. The exact wording can differ by release. What matters is that the event is scheduled, not Not Started or Planning. The event runs at that date and time, in the time zone your account uses for scheduling.
Check the result
- The group Demo Day Dealer Invite is Dynamic, uses the saved search Dealer and Distributor Contacts, and lists 4 members.
- The template Dealer Demo Day Invite sends from events@kestrelridgecycles.com with Track Outgoing Email on.
- The campaign's E-mail line has the group, the template, the subject in Title and Subscription Marketing.
- Its status reads Scheduled to execute on 09/30/2026 11:00 am.
Click the Demo Day Dealer Invite link. The group opens with its 4 members, the dealers and distributors who'll get the email if their subscriptions allow it.
The group is the candidate audience, not a promise of four emails. Before sending, NetSuite applies the event's subscription and each member's opt-out, email address and bounce status, and can drop duplicate addresses. After the event runs, the campaign's Statistics subtab shows counts such as sent, opened and clicked through when tracking is on. The recording ends before the send, so check the status and statistics after the scheduled time rather than assuming it went out.
Common questions
How do I send an email blast to a saved search in NetSuite?
Build a dynamic group from the search and target the group. Save a contact search with your criteria, create a Dynamic Contact group that uses it, then add an E-mail event to a marketing campaign with the group as Target Group, a campaign template, a subject in Title, a subscription and the status Execute.
What's the difference between a dynamic group and a static group?
A dynamic group takes its members from a saved search, so contacts join or drop out as their records start or stop matching. A static group holds the members you add, and it only changes when someone edits it.
Why can't I add members to my dynamic group?
Its members come from the saved search, so there's nothing to add by hand. Change the search criteria, or the contact data the search reads, such as the contact's Category. If you need a hand-picked list, use a static group instead.
Where do I set the From and Reply-to address for a marketing email?
On the campaign template's Marketing subtab, in From Email Address and Reply to Email Address. The addresses have to be set up and authorized under Setup > Marketing > Email Addresses before they show up there.
What does Track Outgoing Email do on a marketing template?
It lets NetSuite record opens and click-throughs for emails sent from the template, where tracking is supported. Those counts show on the campaign's Statistics subtab after the event runs. Image blocking and privacy features in mail clients mean the numbers are never complete.
Why wasn't my campaign email sent?
Check the event's Status first. NetSuite doesn't send events left at Not Started or Planning; only Execute schedules the send. Also check the date and time on the line, since the event waits until then.
What does the Title field mean on a campaign E-mail event?
It's the subject line of that email. The template's Name is only for internal use, and the campaign's own Title is the name of the campaign, so the event's Title is what recipients see.
Why did some group members not receive my campaign email?
The group is the candidate audience. NetSuite skips members who opted out of the event's subscription, have no valid email address or have bounced, and it can drop duplicate addresses. Because the group reads the saved search, members who stopped matching the search before the send are also left out.