August 25, 2011
In Direct Marketing, A Clean List Makes All The Difference
A June report out of the U.K. confirmed that a bad list in direct marketing is bad business. The organization’s 2011 annual report noted that complaints about charities’ direct mail fundraising tactics increased by 86 percent in 2010. Granted, the 9,462 complaints regarding direct mail fundraising were miniscule considering that more than 146 million pieces of mail were delivered. Still, those who were angry complained.
The Fundraising Standards Board (FRSB) noted that the most common complaint about direct mail was related to inaccurate data that resulted in the wrong people getting contacted. Following a close second was the frequency of the appeals.
Marketers who use direct mail understand the waste of money and resources associated with poor data hygiene. Address integrity is only the beginning of data hygiene. It’s essential to suppress files you don’t want to mail, including the DMA pander file, privacy protector files, state suppression files, university student addresses, prison addresses, and deceased files.
In addition, direct marketing “must-dos” include taking steps to enter data correctly to begin with – then keeping it updated as addresses change.
As a reminder, we invite you to check in with a previous posting on the EUS Marketing Blog from November 2010, Undeliverables Can Cost An Ugly Penny. Pay Now or Pay Later.
