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B2BM
April 2009
46
Data Q&A
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Go to www.b2bm.biz/blog/q-a
Q: Data is a company’s best asset, but
what is best practice in terms of keeping
it fit for purpose? What steps should
companies take to maintain its viability?
A: Marcus Harding, business There are two schools of thought about contact using their preferred medium.
development manager, Theorem UK this, and importantly they both have result Contact details can be kept current through
In order to benefit from campaign data, and cost implications: regular use of the data in campaigns,
marketers should keep three main things in 1. Ongoing management provided a mechanism is included for
mind: Working your data in communications is a updating details when changes occur. It is
• Handle data once – Currently, data is great way to introduce a ‘self updating’ important to conduct regular validation
handled and managed by different teams in process that ensures your data is clean, exercises using third party databases
various ways, which often leads to data accurate and current. Obviously each including the appropriate suppression files,
corruption. To improve quality and communication must provide ample and companies should also ask data owners
efficiency, an organisation must develop opportunities to update details, record opt- to supply updates that have arisen from
and maintain a specific set of practices that ins and monitor campaign effectiveness. their own maintenance checks.
allow data to be handled a minimal amount 2. Ad-hoc updating
of times by selected teams. Retrospective updating allows you to batch A: Adele Pett, head of direct, SMP
• Keep it clean – Getting the most out of amend/update data records by referencing Companies that manage data are more
data involves analysing it in different industry data files in order to update often than not likely to find problems with
contexts and assimilating it to other certain customer/prospect attributes. consistency. For example, if data is
decision points. If the process is not These files are unlikely to be 100 per formatted in different ways, this creates
organised, data can be unintentionally cent complete or accurate, and it must be subsequent problems when trying to
altered, which leads to inaccuracies. For considered that they are built to cover all consolidate the sources.
long-term viability, an organisation needs sectors and not specific to your industry. Also, if data isn’t updated on a regular
to develop ways to maintain the integrity Ongoing management means you are basis, it quickly loses accuracy and
of its data. keeping in contact with your customers becomes out of date. Furthermore, if these
• Recycle – The most efficient use of data more regularly and therefore have challenges aren’t addressed, it can cause
can only be accomplished once an communication costs associated. significant headaches for companies that
organisation has developed a set of This approach often increases sales, will only increase as databases are
practices that ensure data is handled once which makes the whole process self- aggregated or expand.
and kept clean. If this is the case, the financing. The quality of data should always be
resulting information can be put to any The advantages of having an up-to-date defined in the context of being fit for a
number of uses across different practices set of data and potentially increased sales, particular use. This depends upon the
like finance, operations, marketing, etc. in my opinion, far outweighs the outlay. application of the data and the
characteristics of quality that are required
A: Daryl Swinden, MD, Global DM A: Simon Lawrence, for this purpose.
Two issues arise: CEO, Information Arts Data quality also heavily depends on the
Firstly, the problem often lies in the There are several aspects to keeping data company’s expectations of what they define
application – is this a billing system? Is it a current and fit for purpose. to be useful information and whether it
marketing database? Or perhaps it is trying The process starts with a definition of meets their criteria.
to do a bit of everything? what the data is – for example, does it
For example, too many companies are include details of prospects or existing
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The responses listed here
reliant on a billing system to store their customers? Then, you need to define what
were posted on B2B Marketing
marketing data. It’s a bit like a sports car and the data will be used for. Will it be used to
Online. To view additional
an SUV: both have individual qualities but generate leads, carry out analysis or
you wouldn’t go off-roading in a sports car! communicate with your customers and
responses or unedited versions –
Secondly, is the data contained up-to- prospects? or to add your own – go to
date and relevant? In most cases, it will be the latter and
www.b2bm.biz/blog/best-practice-qa/
By far the most effective way of ensuring as a result keeping the basic contact
To propose a question for the
your database is fit for purpose and viable is details current and compliant will be the
to keep using it! Business data decays at key requirement.
B2B Marketing best practice blog,
such a rate that never has the phrase ‘use it This will ensure organisations can
email the editor at
or lose it’ been more appropriate. deliver the right information to the correct
joel.harrison@b2bm.biz
Respond NOW to next month’s question:
How can data modelling help B2B marketers to enhance the effectiveness of their campaigns?
What kind of companies is it relevant for, and what factors should they consider when seeking to use it?
B2BM APRIL 09 – www.b2bm.biz
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