You’d never send an email campaign without cleaning and refining your marketing data first. Direct Mail and data for Doordrop Campaigns should be no different. Let us check the health and quality of your mailing list before your next campaign to ensure you drive the best results possible.
What’s involved in our free data health check?
Our free data health check is just like a mini data audit. You’ll receive an easy to understand report which shows the number of records that would benefit from a range of data cleansing options. Rest assured this is a non-obligatory GDPR-compliant service which only indicates the health and quality of your data.
The process of our free data health check
- We set up a completely secure SFTP file transfer site for you to send your data over to us.
- We will then run your data against numerous checks including:
- Postcode and address correction – to ensure your mail reaches the correct address
- Deduplication of data – to help reduce waste and improve reputation
- Interactive correction of failed records – in some instances it’s possible to update or improve records that have failed
- Movers and forwarding addresses – to ensure your direct mail campaign still reaches your customer at the right time and right address.
- Deceased Screening – This is easily one of the most damaging ways direct mail can affect your mailing & brand. So we make sure any deceased files are removed – giving less wastage and a better brand experience.
- Afterwards you receive a report detailing how many records are flagged against each check, alongside our recommendation on the ideal next steps for great campaign performance.
- You decide on which elements of the report you would like to be actioned at cost. Please note – at no point are you obligated to have any data cleansing completed after receiving your data audit report.
- If you do decide to go ahead with any data cleansing, your data will be run against the requested suppression files and flagged, ready to be updated on a master file for mailing. A copy of the data and flags can be returned to you via the secure SFTP site.
How important is data for marketing?
Data is imperative to any business often described as fueling a business. Which is how the phrase “Data is the new oil” became commonplace after being published by The Economist in 2017.
Since then it has even been argued by Doug Laney, a Data and Analytics Strategy Innovation Fellow at West Monroe that data is far more valuable than oil.
Data and oil have similar qualities; they can both be acquired, refined, stored, piped, fueled, and on occurrence spilt. However, it is in seeing and understanding the essential differences that highlights the importance of data.
Oil can be depleted whilst data has infinite uses, it’s multi-purpose with the potential to grow and multiply. It is these qualities that make data invaluable and the core of any business.
Which is why we strongly urge our customers to check the quality and quantity of their greatest resource. The difference it can make to campaigns is outstanding.
What data-driven marketing can deliver
Data driven marketing is utilising data insights to segment, target and optimise marketing efforts & communications to drive desired outcomes.
Data can improve marketing campaigns in a variety of ways including:
Data can help you reach your target audience
Whether you plan on doing a blanket mailing to all in your data or analysing and segmenting your data first. It’s always beneficial to remove the goneaways or deceased records from your data. Not only will you save money, remove the chance of your brand being seen as a nuisance but you will also ensure your mail reaches your audience to give clear results.
Data can boost your ROI
Your data can improve your ROI by better communicating with your customers to drive the sales. Ensure you deliver the right message to the right audience at the right time – after all, this is what marketing is all about. This data driven customer experience will improve your ROI and see improvements in your campaign performance.
Data can improve your testing
There are many ways to test your direct mail campaigns. Some commonly used marketing testing methods are:
- A/B testing: Also known as split testing is where one or two elements are adjusted (like Headlines or CTAs) to see which drives the better results.
- Multivariate testing: Is where you test multiple adjusted elements against the original to see which elements and design work better.
- Usability testing: Is where you test a product/service on real people in a smaller volume to see how they interact with the product/service. Using your findings to improve the design and experience to your wider audience. This can be invaluable when marketing to an older target audience. For example, checking if it’s easy to read, if the messaging resonates with them, if the format is easy to follow. Discover more insights and ways to connect with seniors to drive results here.
- Content testing: Content testing focuses on the usability of the piece such as readability and understanding rather than your audience’s personal likes.
Whenever you implement testing it’s the data that tells you what is effective, what to change and improve and what your audience responds best to. It is this data that drives better responses and allows you to apply your learnings to future communications.
Data fuels personalisation in marketing
There are different levels of personalised direct mail that can be achieved, from name, offers, products, imagery through to product pricing bands. Get familiar with the different ways you can personalise direct mail on our dedicated personalisation page.
Personalisation helps to improve the customer experience, brand engagement, response rates and delivery of the campaign.
Drive a better customer experience through data
On a daily basis your customer will be bombarded with a variety of online and offline adverts. Cut through and stand out by delivering a tailored, considered direct mail piece which makes them feel understood and listened to. Deliver relevant content that they have shown interest in and help develop a loyal customer – one, who will be more likely to do repeat business.
Data can deliver effective upselling and cross selling
Seeing your existing customers’ transactional data can help identify other products/services which they are likely to engage and respond to. Targeting customers – through your data – with these additional products can help increase revenue and sales.
Your existing customer data is invaluable as studies have shown that existing customers are 60-70% more likely to buy over new prospects which are around 5-20% likely. The same study also documented that existing customers are more open to trying new products by 50%, and have an increased spend of 31% over new customers.
What is upselling and cross selling?
Upselling and cross selling are sales techniques to improve the customer spend by suggesting additional products or upgraded options, based on their spend or shown interest.
An example of cross selling:
Your customer brought a BBQ, they are likely to be interested in a BBQ cover or BBQ tongs. This would be cross selling relatable, complimentary items.
An example of upselling:
Would be if your customer had a BBQ in their basket or on their wishlist. You could advertise a higher end BBQ or latest BBQ model to them. Suggesting a different BBQ model which costs 25-40% more than what they had initially been prepared to pay.
Your data is the fuel to every campaign, make sure you are not trying to get customers through your sales funnel with your hands tied behind your back. It is well worth your time, in knowing the health of your data, as well as how you could improve your data further. Start your next direct mail campaign here with your free data health check on us!
