For all types of businesses and organizations, the database for your marketing data, client or customer list is one that is vital to ensuring that your efforts thrive. However, over time it can become filled with outdated or useless information.
There are a number of reasons for this, mostly having to do with customers or clients moving, changing contact information and not having accurate or complete records and so forth. On average, a database will decay by upwards of 40% a year depending on a number of factors.
Cleaning up the data base is a task that few people look forward to doing for obvious reasons that start with the fact that it can take up valuable time and it can be rather boring as well. However, there are five good reasons why you should clean up your database and doing so on a regular basis will bring your company or organization some valuable advantages.
Five Reasons to Clean up a Database
Get Rid of Duplication:
One of the most cost-saving measures about cleaning up your database is to reduce the duplication of entries. Not only is it costing your business or organization more money, when a client or customer sees two or more mailings that are identical, they become less likely to respond. So, you are not only saving on costs, but also keeping your customers and clients happy as well.
Reduce the Cost of Mailing:
It’s a pretty obvious fact that the fewer items you send in the mail which are the same, the less it will cost your company. This means that your database is cleaned of duplication and old, outdated information that otherwise would be unnecessarily increasing your expenditures.
Increase Response:
Getting one mailing instead of two or more and having them sent to the right address will help increase your overall response. The more that customers respond, the more profit or donations that your business or organization will receive. This is one of the most important aspects of having an accurate database for your needs.
Compliance:
Being legally compliant is a very important aspect of your efforts, especially when it comes to addresses that you should no longer mail. A customer who thought their name was removed from your database only to see more mailings from your company will not only be unhappy, they may take legal action as well.
Accuracy:
One of the most underappreciated aspects of cleaning up your database is now you have a much more accurate view of your customers. Depending on the information that you’ve gathered, you will have a much better sense of the average age, gender, and location of your customer base. This means that you can target those who better fit the type of customer that is most likely to purchase your products or services. Plus, for non-profit organizations it means a better understanding of the type of person that might donate to your cause.
By cleaning up your database on a regular basis, you can gain a considerable number of advantages that will let you market your products or services more effectively.