12 Tips on Using Databases

1.     Your database is an extremely important asset, so take very good care of it. Maintain your list in-house by staff who care about the data. It is  too precious to outsource and they will not appreciate its value like you will.

2.       Before you begin your database work, make sure that you know the answer to... Who are your most important customers? How many are there? What characteristics have they? What other prospects have similar characteristics?

3.       The 4 activities that are essential for a healthy growing database are:

• Capturing a regular stream of new names in the target sectors you have identified
• Storing the information in a manner which is easy for people to access and manage
• Collecting valuable information that you can use to customise your marketing messages
• Keeping the current information correct.

4.       Tips on acquiring a steady stream of names:

• Use a newsletter. On the reply card/sheet ask for details of colleagues that would be interested in receiving it. (Also by using a reply card which contains the details you have on your database, this will help you clean your database. Ask them to send in any changes.) 
• People have a tendency to collect and keep business cards of prospects and these details don't get included in the database. To prevent this from happening at the end of every month, have people photocopy the cards they have collected and send it to you. 
• Systematically ask your current customers and contacts for referrals and always ask their permission to use the name of the person making the referral. If you use a sheet, tests show leaving space for 3 names works best. Ask "Do you know someone else that might profit from this course/our services? If so, please write their details below. We will be pleased to send them a brochure and they will appreciate your thoughtfulness in suggesting it."  
• Use the faxshot to collect and clean data.
• Have an opt-in box on general mailings that says "I am not interested at the moment but I maybe interested in the future so please add me to your mailing list for future information." (Readers Digest found that "maybe" or "mail me later" over time yields a far greater response because you can capture many more warm names.)
• When you mail include some free valuable information for people who provide quality information e.g. Report of x secrets/tips on how to do/avoid something. If you are worried that the leads will be poor quality, a small charge. This will cost you money but increase the response. This is very useful if you are using a list that you have rented for a one-off use because now the names are yours to re-use without further cost.

5.       Tips on your system. Make it:

• Find customers by a range of selection parameters e.g. contact names, company names, numbers, etc
• Select, sort and do counts by appropriate fields
• Create output to a variety of formats e.g. mailmerges, labels, email addresses, etc
• Easily produce frequently used reports e.g. an analysis of response and conversion as a result of specific marketing activities/events
• Easily update fields. It maybe important for you to also add when the update was done and who did it.   

6.       Tips on what information to store:

• Key data - address, phone(s), fax, email, secretaries name, billing address (if different)
• If they are:
  • Suspects i.e. you have flagged them as targets but they have not approached you yet
  • Prospects i.e. you have been communicating both ways and there is interest (they have responded positively), but they have not bought yet
  • Customers and sub-categorize those which are of high value i.e. the 20% which generate 80% of your revenue, mid value and low value
  • Influencers i.e. don't buy what you have to offer but are in a position to influence others
  • Strategic partners: Other people in the industry you are or would like to be jointly marketing with
• Other i.e. past staff, investors.
• For the source of the contact information - how was the data first acquired
• For customers you need to know what they have purchased
• For key contacts personal data such as birthday, career history, etc
• Data about the organisation e.g. turnover, number of staff, number of staff that might be interested in your courses, frequency of purchase, purchasing history
• Flag if a key contact e.g. for training courses in large organisations this is likely to be the Training Manager, Line Manager, Attendee and the Fund Holder 
• For referrers i.e. customers or influencers who have told people to approach you 
• With the move to permission based marketing, make sure that you know contacts have requested information
• Marketing events and communications they have received
• Your remarks (free text)
• Flag those that have "Opted out" and asked to be taken off mailings
• Plus any information that is pertinent to what you offer.

7.       Tips on keeping it current:

• Plan for 20%-30% of your records to need updating every year.
• Stagger your mailings if it makes the maintenance process more manageable e.g. send out your newsletter in monthly batches.
• Don't get behind with updates. If there is a back log, bring in outside help that you can closely supervise.
• When adding in data that you have purchased consider how data will be merged and duplicates purged. What fields will you use to de-duplicate? Telephone and fax numbers are useful because often company names are abbreviated. NB: Flag records that keep on appearing on different databases that you buy/bring in. You are likely to get higher responses from this contacts because they are more active

8.       If you are specifying a new contact management system, consider how you will use the database. This will determine what information you collect and if and how it will interface with other systems you have. Focus on the primary uses and critical uses. How big it will be? Is it going to be a 'flat' database (one single record per contact) or 'relational' database (one company record with multiple contact records attached to that company)? What hardware will it run on? Who will be allowed to do what function? Do people need remote access from their portables and how will their updates be added? Should you use an off the shelf package that you can customise or have one built for you? Who will support it - internally and externally? How will the data be cleaned for the various preference services - Mail, Fax and Telephone? (If you do large mailings consider the requirements of the Post Offices re. Mailsorting to qualify for postal discounts.) 

9.       Have a "warnings" file for people who have been very vocal in wanting to be excluded, bad debtors or details of your competitors.

10.   If you are buying in a list, agree with the supplier that you will only pay for names that you do not already have i.e. have a 'net names' deal. (Ironically the more names that you have on your database that are on your list, the better the list will be.) Always ask for and check out samples of data on a list before you buy them

11.   Please have a system in place that will process leads quickly!! Research suggests that 45% of leads are never followed up. Desk qualify leads the moment they arrive and indicate if it is hot, warm or cool and have a different set of actions depending on the response. Responding to a lead within 3 days can double your response!!

12. Make sure that you are registered under the Data Protection Act if you maintain personal information about individuals on computer. (The DPS telephone no is 01625 545745.)

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