Update Your Existing List

Provided courtesy of www.GrowthPanel.com

Your house list is an extremely valuable resource if it is updated and cleaned regularly. You may also have
plenty of customer data, but it may not be stored in a single location.

Many companies have a great deal of valuable prospect data stored in different places and managed by
different groups. Your data is more valuable if it’s clean and you can access all of it.

Various organizations have published data about how many businesspeople modify their business card each
year. Estimates range from 20% to as high as 72%. If it’s 50% and you haven’t updated your file in six
months, 25% of your records could have some piece of incorrect information – and that can mean
undeliverable mail and wasted money.

If you’re planning a large campaign and you’re not sure whether your list is up-to-date, do a test to a small set of
records. Measure the response rate and the undeliverable rate – then assume that the undeliverable rate will hold true
for your entire list. If it’s awful, develop a plan to clean/ standardize/append your data.

Build Your Own List

Here is a basic manual process that works for a manageable amount of data in typical sources – for example,
a CRM database, an accounting file and employee contact/email files.

STEP NOTES
Identify all the sources of data
Main prospect database
you may have
Contact files owned by individual salespeople

Email files from various employees

Accounting data

Document the “file layout” for
A layout = a document that lists the fields that are used, the
each file order of those fields, and the type of data in each field

Identify any other fields you may
For example:

need in your new master file

Record ID – a unique number for each record

Account type – customer, prospect, partner, vendor, etc.

Account owner or sales rep and/or account manager

Source (enter where this record came from)

Last modified date – the date the record was last modified

Industry

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 STEP
Format each of the individual
files so that the fields all match
Document the tests you can do
to eliminate duplicates
Double-check all fields that
you’ll use to find duplicate
records; make sure they are
formatted in the same way
Create a master merge file
Document the number of
records in each of the files
you’re going to merge
Merge the files
Begin testing for duplicate
records
If there are too many records for you to efficiently complete the last step, here’s an alternative process:
Additional steps to automate the
merge/purge
Create a “duplicate flag” field
Update Your Existing List
NOTES

For example, if one file stores an address in a single field and
another stores it in three or four, choose one format and
make the two files consistent.

Name each of the fields so that they match each other – it
will be easier when you’re merging.

Use the “File purge checklist” later in this exercise.

When you load the data, an easy “duplicate check” is to look
at the phone number, fax number, company name and URL
for the records. You may have additional data that can be
used to find duplicate records.

For example, if one file uses parenthesis around area codes
and another uses dashes, the same phone number may not
match and you’ll be left with duplicate records.

If you’re going to load your file into a CRM system, it may be
easiest to merge/purge your data into a master file before
you load it – the data may be easier to manipulate in a
program that you’re very familiar with.

Use the “file merge checklist” below

When you’re finished, enter the final record count. It should
match the sum of the number of records in the source files.

When you find duplicates, review the data in each of the
duplicate records and put it in one primary record, then
delete the duplicates.
Notes
It will store a value (i.e. YES) for those records you think are
duplicates
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 Additional steps to automate the
Notes
merge/purge
Go through each of the searches
and enter the selected value
(YES) in the duplicate flag field

Find all duplicates Search for the value you entered in the duplicate flag field

Export all of those records or `This file will become your new working file for merging the
save a copy of the file and delete duplicates
all but the flagged records

Delete the duplicates from the When your duplicate file is cleaned up, you’ll just re-import those
original master file clean records back into the master

Seek help in automating the For example, someone who knows Access or FileMaker Pro could
merge/purge process build a series of tables to help automate the process and produce
a single clean file

Import the new clean file back

into your master

Mail processing vendors can also provide merge/purge and de-dup services to your entire list or on a mailing by mailing
basis.

File Merge Checklist

Use this table to keep track of the files you’re merging and the number of records in each. When you merge
each file individually, make sure all of the records have successfully imported then check Yes.

# of records Successfully
Filename Source of data
before merge merged?
Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Sum of merged records (A)

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 # of records Successfully
Filename Source of data
before merge merged?

Final record count in master file (B)

Do A & B match?

If A does not match B, go back and search for each “source” type and check the number of records. If you’re
using a CRM program as your master, the program may have automatically merged or overwritten matching
records.

File Purge Checklist

Use this table to list the search criteria for finding duplicate records in your merged table. When you find
them, don’t delete all of them – first, you need to make sure the main record has all of the data contained in
the second, third, fourth duplicate; then delete the duplicates, not the first one.

Search criteria (list all of the tests # of records Data merged into # of records deleted
you can use below) found one master (don’t delete the original,
record just the dupes)
Matching company names Complete

Matching phone numbers Complete

Matching fax numbers Complete

Matching URLs Complete

Matching email addresses Complete

Matching contact first + last name Complete

Other Complete

Other Complete

Total records deleted

List Maintenance

If you’re using a house list, it is important to update and correct your addresses on a regular basis. It can save
you costly wasted postage for “bad” addresses (UAA, Undeliverable-As-Addressed), possibly qualify your
mailing for a presort/automation rate discount, speed up delivery time, and save you production costs by
reducing the number of pieces you need to send out.

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If you haven’t done a mailing before or it’s been more than 180 days since your last one, it is recommended
that you complete one of the five options for meeting the United States Postal Service (USPS) First Class
Move Update requirements. These options allow you to “clean” your list, depending on your chosen option
either manually or automatically, to get the most up-to-date address information. Also, using one of these
methods could qualify you for a discounted postage rate.

These options are more relevant to B2C direct mail, but can be applicable to B2B direct mail.

Type Description Benefits Disadvantages

Ancillary Service Return Service Requested- an ASE
You will only pay
There could be
Endorsements which returns undeliverable mail for addresses that fees associated
with a new updated address or need to be with receiving
reason for delivery. You must updated. updated address
manually update information in information.
your database.
You will receive
updated address
You may need to
Temp-Return Service Requested- information, manually update
an ASE which forwards the keeping you in your list which can
mailpiece at no charge. You will touch with take time
not receive any updated address customers you’ve depending on the
information. already number of “bad”
established a addresses you
Address Service Requested- an relationship with. have.
ASE which forwards the mailpiece
at no charge. You will receive
Mailing list
updated address information for a remains in-house.
small fee.

Meets the USPS
Change Service Requested- an ASE First Class Move
which throws away the mailpiece Update
instead of forwarding or returning requirement.
it. You will receive updated
address information for a small
fee.

Address Change Provides change-of-address (COA)
Mailing list can be
There could be
Service information or reason for scheduled for fees associated
nondelivery electronically via CD- regular (weekly, with receiving
ROM or Postal Service website. monthly, etc.) updated address
maintenance information.

You will receive
Requires mail

updated address vendor
information, cooperation.

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 Type Description Benefits Disadvantages
keeping you in
touch with
Requires additional
customers you’ve and specific
already address notations
established a and the use of an
relationship with. approved ASE.

You may need to

Available for all manually update
classes of mail. your list which can
take time

Mailing list depending on the
remains in-house. number of “bad”
addresses you

Meets the USPS have.
First Class Move
Update
requirement to
receive
discounted
postage.

National Change An address correction service
You can update
Usually charged
of Address provided by USPS certified your entire per address
(NCOA) licensees. These vendors match database or checked, so
your computerized mailing list with mailing list at one depending on the
the USPS national change of time. size of your list,
address data providing current, process can be
standardized, and ZIP+4 coded
Increases expensive.
addresses. likelihood that
mailpiece will be
Only available
received by through USPS
intended certified licensees
recipient. limiting choice of
vendor.

Since addresses
were checked
You will need to
before mailing, send your list out
return postage to the USPS
and corrections approved vendor.
should be
minimal.

Meets the USPS

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 Type Description Benefits Disadvantages
First Class Move
Update
requirement to
receive
discounted
postage.

FASTForward Available through USPS certified
Cuts down mailing
Updated address
licensees, this process checks your list preparation information is not
addresses against the USPS time. applied to your
permanent change of address mailing list or
database. If a “bad” address is
Meets the USPS database.
found, the correct address and bar First Class Move
code is automatically imprinted on Update
Mailpiece must be
the mailpiece. requirement. automation-
compatible.

Only available
through USPS
certified vendors
limiting choice of
vendor.

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