1. Obey the law
Since the Data Protection Act became legislation in 1998, there have been strict rules governing the collection, storage and use of data in the UK. Many people who are new to data management assume that the rules are complicated and so ignore them.
In so doing they are running a grave risk of personal and corporate prosecution.
Each situation is different and so it is always wise to obtain legal advice, but broadly speaking there are just four areas in which you need to be careful when it comes to data protection.
Firstly, gain consent to use new data for specific purposes and then only use it for those purposes.
Secondly, as Emma Shipp, managing partner at law firm Sprecher Grier Halberstam LLP, explains: Don’t use data in an electronic marketing campaign unless you have complied with e-privacy regulations. These require prior opt-in in some circumstances and opt-out in others. You should also check data against the Telephone and Fax Preference Services.
Thirdly, don’t keep data for longer than is necessary to fulfil the purpose for which it was collected. Lastly, do not provide personal data to third parties for processing on your behalf without obtaining commitments from them that they will comply with your processing instructions especially in relation to disclosure and security.
2. Keep it clean
Sue Walters, business analysis manager is responsible for Experian’s National Business Database. Her top tip for managing inhouse B2B data is: Invest in address management. If you get the names and addresses of your customers correct, they’ll never notice, but get them wrong and they will never forget.
Keeping your data clean is certainly important. It is also very hard work. However, that can be minimised through organising your data well, by knowing what you have and where you have it. Using the taxonomy offered by the content providers is often a good way to start. Another approach is to use the Companies House registration number, as it is recognised by most data providers as an industry standard and allows data to be cleansed and enhanced much more rapidly.
3. Don’t relax
Business data decays at a frighteningly rapid rate and so it must be continually maintained. If you relax and assume that your data will clean itself, very quickly you will find that your direct marketing campaigns have become less effective and your reputation among existing and potential customers is beginning to decline.
According to information provider Conduit, B2B data is subject to an annual 22 per cent decay rate purely due to staff turnover. That is just those contacts who leave their jobs. When you consider how many people take maternity leave, move to new jobs within companies, relocate overseas and so on, it is not surprising that many people find their B2B data decaying by up to 30-40 per cent each year.
4. Get help
There is so much work to do that it often makes sense to outsource some of it. Specialist consultants can also bring a wealth of useful expertise. Simon Jones, head of data at Liquid Communications, offers this advice: Talk to some experts before you start. It’s cheaper to pick some brains to get ideas as to what will work best, rather than asking how to fix something.
However, as with any procurement job, it is highly advisable to prepare thoroughly. There are many consultants out there who are much more interested in their own profits than in your data. Jones advises companies to have a clear idea of their requirements, and to build a complete picture of the true cost of the task. Consider what tools and resources you will need to deploy in order to build, maintain and run your database.
Jones concludes with these words of caution for those who are beginning to outsource their data management. Don’t spend lots of money on a big customer relationship management system from a man in a posh suit, he says.
5. Love your data
Every company needs to have one person who is responsible for the data. However, that person ought to be supported by a culture within which data is important. In too many companies data is seen as someone else’s job, as the function of another, less interesting department or team of people.
Andrew Freeman, director of CRM Technologies a database management company which works with McAfee, Sun Microsystems and Sport England urges companies to: Treat data as their most valuable business asset. Control access to it. Make sure everyone understands its worth. Create business goals and objectives around it. Whatever you do, don’t allow everyone to assume it is someone else’s responsibility, or just let it grow without an ongoing maintenance plan. It should be treated as a key business asset at board level.
6. Keep it simple, stupid!
Contrary to the views of too many direct marketers, you can have too much data. We have seen how time-consuming and costly it is to keep data accurate and up-to-date. It pays therefore to keep only the data which is actually useful. Companies that refuse to discard their hard-earned data tend to end up with poorly-focused campaigns and eventual data meltdown.
Annalie Vickers, content director for EMEA at OneSource Information Services, says: Make sure you are managing the right sort of content. There’s a wealth of B2B data out there, but which specific data actually helps the business? Having too much data is as bad as not having enough. It will also be more expensive to manage. Spend some time thinking about the specific nuggets of data that are useful to specific business processes, and buy only those ones.
7. Be ethical
The final piece of advice comes from Simon Davis, managing director of data management company MarketDeveloper, and until recently a board member of the B2B committee of the Direct Marketing Association. He says: For both your sake and the sake of the industry in general, do not do anything unethical in any aspect of your data handling and use. Direct marketing can be a very powerful tool if used well, but there is considerable scope for failure. I believe that Elizabeth France, the UK’s first information commissioner, summed it up well when she said: ‘Collect data fairly, store it professionally and use it fairly, and you will not go far wrong.’
