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Boost B2B Contact Data Quality With Data Appending

October 12, 2017
11:35 AM

As a child, I always wondered why ‘fill in the blanks’ was an integral part of our primary learning system. Initially, I thought that just learning it all up in the sequence it was taught to us would do the trick. But then as I grew up, I realized that whenever there was missing or wrong information the whole concept seemed to be hazy & came into focus only when the correct words in the correct sequence were placed.

Similarly, most of the data- that is a primary asset to B2B marketers, is rendered useless if it is incomplete or outdated. The simplest solution to deal with such inconsistencies & enhance the quality of B2B contact data is Data Appending.

How data empowers your business

Being from the business community, we know for a fact that data is fundamental for any business but even more critical is the quality of the data. A recent study has shed light upon interesting facts about how most businesses in the U.S. deal with their data sets. More than 95% agree that data is important to power business opportunities. This isn’t all! Most businesses aim to leverage high-quality customer data to get a single customer view. This single customer view in turn helps to supercharge marketing campaigns & accelerate the conversion rate.

When we talk about business opportunities, the first thing that every businessman focuses on is making money or revenue. Data is an important tool to increase the revenue inflow & in the process serve customers efficiently. At this point, you may ask exactly how we draw this inference! Well, the fact is that most marketers accumulate lead & customer data and utilize this data to run campaigns. During these campaigns too, the data accumulation continues so as to track customer purchase behavior. The result of such tracking is- Vital insights that can help target products & services specific to a certain buyer persona & in turn increase the probability of driving profits.

Do we really require data appending?

With the growing diversity in products & services, tracking & maintaining customer data is indeed an overwhelming task. Hence, data that doesn’t go through comprehensive data enhancement processes such as data integration, Data Appending, validation, Data Cleansing, etc, will surely not be effective enough. B2B Contact Data is not just restricted to fields such as job title, name, phone number, email address, etc., it also covers the changes in the job position & includes important insights into the changing preferences of individuals.

Undelivered mails, hard email bounces, and incorrect phone numbers are expensive both in terms of money as well as time. Moreover, a high email bounce rate can damage the sender’s reputation significantly. In addition to all the basic marketing channels, social media also plays a leading role in garnering engagement. Social media appends, thus can transform your marketing strategy & can help achieve better campaign results. Thus, with Data Appending, an outdated or incorrect data set can be easily converted into a precious contact record.

Data appending can help

Seamlessly integrate various marketing channels.
Reach out to customers on the preferred platform.
Comprehensively understand customer purchase behavior.
Discover marketing influencers.

Data Appending - The process

Data Appending can be done either from an existent updated database to the client’s database or if no relevant data exists it can be added freshly from verified data sources such as directory listings, trade shows, business forums, etc. Updating missing or outdated records consist of the following steps:

Field matching

In the case of field matching, data pertaining to respective fields are located and matched for data relevancy. The fields that are commonly matched & are an integral part of email lists & contact lists include Name, job title, Phone number, email address, social media profile information, mailing address, etc.

Data appending

Once the fields are matched to the information, accurate & verified data is then added to the missing fields within the client list. In the case of outdated or incorrect records, Data Append Process constitutes adding the updated information to the client data set.

Most of the B2B contact data is stored in the form of excel sheets for easy perusal & updating. Data Appending services which are an important requisite for any business to function involve 6 main steps:

Collecting incomplete data files from clients.
Collating the client file with our master database.
Appending accurate responsive information.
Confirmation of opt-in messages.
Verification & validation by data experts.
Complete, updated & verified file is returned to the client.

Types of data appending services

Data Appending can be classified into different types depending on the kind of information that is appended. There are multiple fields that hold critical importance in terms of the information they provide & the marketing tactics they assist in. There are a large number of data service providers out there to choose from, but once you have chosen the one that provides accurate & verified data it is important to list out which type of data you want to be appended to your database.

The main types of B2B Data Appending services provided by top data service providers include:

Contact appending services

Full contact appending constitutes appending complete contact information right from names to designations to their geographic location. Getting to know these details about your target audience can give you the upper hand in determining which products or services they would be interested in.

Email appending services

Missing or incorrect email addresses are replaced with updated & verified ones to enhance the responsiveness of your marketing database.

Social media profile appending

Social Media platforms have become the most sought-after marketing channel. So having social media profile information of your vital contacts can help supercharge your multichannel marketing strategy.

Phone appending

Reaching wrong numbers is really annoying for the prospects and a real waste of time for marketers. Appending verified phone numbers is a real plus to a contact database and can prove beneficial to your telemarketing initiatives.

More benefits of data appending

Laser-focused targeting, delivering personalized content, & reaching clients at the right time are essentials to build stronger business relations & design successful marketing campaigns. Being equipped with verified & updated records play a pivotal role in achieving these goals in the easiest possible way.

So, it is clear that Data appending has numerous advantages, let’s examine these to understand them better:

Reduced Marketing Costs

With intact data sets and accurate information, designing targeted campaigns becomes not only easier but also adds value to the campaign outcomes.

Larger ROMI

Marketing data that is devoid of errors is an investment in itself. Once you have taken care of your data especially dealt with missing fields & incorrect information, it’s a surety that success is near. With accurate marketing data at hand, marketers can leverage valuable insights derived from the data to run campaigns that reach exactly the people they are expected to & win deals that bring in ROI like never before.

Better Segmentation & Personalization

Segmenting your audience is definitely a good idea if you are aiming to establish your brand in the target market. Personalization of email & social media messages adds to the advantages of segmentation by assisting in customer acquisition & retention. Email Appends & Social Media Appends can definitely improve the marketing value of your data, thus adding to the profit margin.

Maximize Campaign Reach

With complete & updated data records, you will have a wide variety of information for use in designing better-targeted marketing campaigns. Accurate and verified data related to fields such as demographics, job titles, contact numbers, email addresses & social media information can help you reach a larger audience segment through multiple channels of communication & marketing, thus aiding you in expanding your business globally.

Build Trust With Better Data Quality

Clean, verified & intact data records are true revenue boosters for B2B marketers. High-quality data helps in reducing email bounce rate, increasing deliverability & most importantly boosts the sender’s reputation. Apt personalization of emails & content can help build brand trust exponentially.

Concisely, it can be said that as important it is to have a rich database to support your business initiatives it is equally important to maintain data quality.

Data Appending is just one of the ways to avoid inconsistencies in your data sets but is still an essential technique.

So, if you aim to build a water-tight marketing strategy that will prove to be a sure revenue-winner then data appending most definitely must be a part of your To-do list!