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Posts Tagged ‘data cards’

Mailing list quality vs. data card quality — what’s the difference?

Thursday, July 9th, 2009

It's simple. A data card is the marketing document that describes a mailing list.

A quality data card does not guarantee a quality mailing list, but you can have a top quality list that is neglected from a marketing perspective (i.e. a poor quality data card). First impressions count, and the data card is most often the first impression that a broker or mailer receives when researching new test lists for a direct marketing campaign.

To be blunt – you wouldn't serve a T-bone on a trash can lid, would you?

I'm not sure everyone thinks this way when it comes to data cards. The t-bone steak represents a quality mailing list with an exceptional test-to-continuation ratio. The trash can lid represents a neglected data card for that same mailing list. Think about this analogy from the perspective of a list broker or mailer.

You select a mailing list of active subscribers that matches your customer profile. The mailing list is marketed by a credible list manager with industry knowledge, a proven track record for customer service, and a diverse portfolio of quality response list titles. Futhermore, the mailing list you selected is known for its success in delivering above average response rates and lifetime value. You are ready to add this list title to your client's new test recommendation.

Not so fast! You notice that the data card has not been updated in over 6 months. Furthermore, you are ordering a monthly hotline so you have no idea what range the counts will be in.

Needless to say, you're likely to question the validity of the information. You may wonder if the mailing list is still available for rental, or you may find out that the owner of the data card is no longer the list manager because they lost the business to a competitor and never deactivated their version of the data card. That's obviously not something the former list manager would want to promote in the public domain, but it happens.

A ranking of list managers by data card quality is published quarterly.

Tags: data cards, direct mail, list broker, list manager, Mailing Lists, marketing, quality
Posted in Customer Success Stories | Comments Off on Mailing list quality vs. data card quality — what’s the difference?

The Quest for Better Mailing List Information

Thursday, May 21st, 2009

Direct Magazine just published an article by Lee Kroll of Kroll Direct Marketing called "The Quest for Better Data Cards."

Mr. Kroll first speaks of the importance of data cards:

Let's all agree that the datacard is still the most effective sales tool that list owners and managers utilize to promote their mailing lists and direct marketing services to list brokers and mailers.

Mr. Kroll suggests that data cards deserve the attention of senior management and should not be relegated to a junior person in the back room:

The datacard writing and update process should be a "top-down" task, not a "bottom-up" task. It takes "real" industry leaders to demand higher quality datacards to be created and maintained.

He cites problems that result from inaccurate and incomplete data cards:

Surprisingly, there are some list management companies that intentionally leave critical information off their datacards, and believe that if a broker needs additional information that they will call the list manage, so the manager will have an opportunity to upsell or cross-sell the broker. The reality is that today, the broker doesn't have time to play that game and needs vital information at their fingertips without having to make multiple requests for basic information that should already be provided.

It is also very frustrating when a broker reviews a datacard only to find that there are a significant number of excellent selections, offered but no quantities listed. The broker has no idea of whether or not that particular mailing list will ultimately provide enough records for the client's specific parameters or meet the minimum order quantity.

Let me tell you… maintaining an electronic data card database is not easy.

But with 20 years of experience, mIn and NextMark have invented technology and efficient procedures that enable us to produce the most complete and up-to-date database available today. You see the proof in our mailing list search tool, list research system, and audited data card database that contains more than 60,000 active listings (and more than 90,000 data cards overall).

As Mr. Kroll observed, data cards and good mailing list information is absolutely critical to making good decisions about circulation plans and to the results of your direct mail program. Experts agree that 40% or more of your success depends on your choice of mailing lists! That's why we've worked so hard to build and maintain this database.

Despite years of continuous innovation, we are still finding new ways to improve. For example, our next software release will connect data cards to data. This technological leap has far-reaching business implications. Not the least of which is making it easier to maintain the counts on a data cards and enriching the data card with in-depth profile information (actual screen shot):

This new profile will be available early June along with NextMark Select in NextMark version 7.0. We'll be showing off the new technology at the FastForward and DM Days Conferences (let us know if you want a personal demonstration).

And we certainly won't stop there… our quest to enable you to "Reach Your Market" by delivering you "Customers On-Demand" will keep us busy with new innovations for many years to come.

Tags: data cards, Direct Magazine, Kroll Direct Marketing, Lee Kroll, list research system, mailing list search tool, Mailing Lists, mIn, NextMark
Posted in Service Improvements | Comments Off on The Quest for Better Mailing List Information

DeMartine on 1Q09 Data Card Quality Report

Tuesday, April 7th, 2009

Chris DeMartine, Director of Business Development at NextMark, discusses the recently published first quarter 2009 Data Card Quality Report. Chris' comments include some tips for getting high scores.

Tags: Data Card Quality Report, data cards, Mailing Lists, marketing, NextMark
Posted in Industry Observations | Comments Off on DeMartine on 1Q09 Data Card Quality Report

An example of showing respect in data card video

Monday, April 6th, 2009

Last week, I posted a tutorial on what to include in your data card video. In that tutorial, I recommended

"Your list owners and everyone else will appreciate it when you treat the people on the list with great respect. You should honor them – don’t treat them like data."

Here's a good example from RMI where they honor the Car and Driver subscribers.

See the full data card here: http://lists.nextmark.com/market?page=order/online/datacard&id=198033

Tags: data cards, Mailing Lists, marketing, NextMark, RMI, videos
Posted in Service Improvements | Comments Off on An example of showing respect in data card video

ePostDirect renovates website with MarketMax Pro

Monday, December 22nd, 2008

ePostDirect recently completed a website overhaul with the help of MarketMax Pro, which made the data cards piece of this project a snap. They gave us their design template and we did the rest of the implementation. Besides the nice look of the website, they now get instant website publishing, new search and category tools, and built-in search engine optimization. They'll get more exposure for their mailing lists. And it's cheaper than the old system. Can't beat that!

Tags: data cards, ePostDirect, Mailing Lists, MarketMax Pro, NextMark
Posted in Customer Success Stories | Comments Off on ePostDirect renovates website with MarketMax Pro

Edith Roman website activated with MarketMax Pro

Wednesday, December 17th, 2008

Edith Roman Associates just renovated their website. Our MarketMax Pro service was used for the data cards section for the mailing lists they manage. Now, their list managers can update their data cards instantly. The new search engine makes it easy for website visitors to find the lists they need. And the data cards will be accessible through Google, Yahoo, and others through built-in search engine optimization.

I think their design is a nice one. Very professional and simple – just my style. Check it out.

Tags: data cards, Edith Roman Associates, Mailing Lists, MarketMax Pro, NextMark
Posted in Customer Success Stories | Comments Off on Edith Roman website activated with MarketMax Pro

TGIF Advertising – Dip Into The Down Time

Thursday, March 20th, 2008

I'm so glad it's Friday! Is that just because you are ready to crash from a long week of problem solving and managing expectations? Or is Friday the only business day when you are able to carve out some time to do what you do best? After speaking with a few list brokers, I believe we've got something in common here.

"There is no better day than Friday when it comes to doing list research," according to Donna Belardi, President of Belardi/Ostroy. "I've been making new test recommendations for 20 years, and the best ones are created on the days with the least interruptions."

Rather than rely soley on insights from industry veterans, take a look at some recent results from the NextMark CTA program. As indicated in the following graph, there is little variation between business days in regards to the number of impressions. The coefficient of variation for impressions is only 10 percent. What does that mean? Simply stated, about 90 percent of the search activity is consistent throughout the week.

Therefore, it makes more sense to look at the number of firms who are advertising on a given weekday and target your audience when your message will stand out the best.

If you're wondering about click-through rates, then take a look at the next graph. The number of data card pageviews, for the same list management advertising campaign, reflects a similar pattern. The coefficient of variation is a little higher at 12 percent, but that is insufficient to disprove the hypothesis that Friday's are not so bad after all. So what's the take-away in all of this? How should this affect my advertising decisions when the reality is that Monday through Friday are 'almost' (10 – 12 percent) equal in regards to reaching my target audience of list brokers?

Again, all you need to do is look at the when your competitors are advertising and promote your list titles on the days of the week when your message will stand out the best.

For some reason, list managers seem to prefer Wednesday for search engine marketing, at least with NextMark. Surprisingly, only a few have decided to avoid the traffic and stand out in the crowd. Why would this be happening? Although we've consistently shared this message with list managers, we just recently ran the numbers to back it up. We wanted to wait until we had a valid test sample to do that properly. Now that we've quantified a few of our assumptions, it's time to spread the word.

List research is happening Monday through Friday with little variation, so spend your list marketing ad dollars wisely and take advantage of the open opportunities while they last. Based on this simple study, you might want test your next campaign on a Friday. I'm so confident that this will work for you that I'll guarantee it. If you sign up for NextMark's Contextually Targeted Advertising Program and do not get at least 1,000 top ranked impressions on at least one given Friday (holidays excluded), then I will personally send you a $100 gift card to T.G.I. Fridays. Either way, you'll be able to 'Dip Into The Down Time'.

Tags: data cards, list management, list marketing, list promotion, Mailing Lists, SRDS, tgif, tgif advertising
Posted in Industry Observations | Comments Off on TGIF Advertising – Dip Into The Down Time

Would You Serve A T-Bone On A Trash Can Lid?

Wednesday, February 27th, 2008

Of course not (maybe to a junk yard dog), but I'm not sure everyone thinks this way when it comes to data cards. The t-bone steak represents the winning combination of a world-class list manager and a quality mailing list with an exceptional test-to-continuation ratio. The trash can lid represents a neglected data card for that same mailing list. Take a step back and embrace this analogy from the perspective of a list broker or mailer. You select your favorite list research tool from the browser– we'll use the Mailing Lists Search Tool for this example, since that is a free tool in the public domain. Here's what happens:

You find a brand name mailing list of active subscribers that matches your customer profile. This mailing list is marketed by a credible list management firm with superior industry knowledge, a proven track record for customer service, and a diverse portfolio of top notch response list titles. Futhermore, the mailing list you selected is known for its success in delivering above average response rates with consistently high payup rates. Now you are ready to add this list title your client's new test recommendation, but you notice that the data card has not been reviewed in over a year. Needless to say, you're likely to question the validity of the information. You may wonder if the mailing list is still available for rental, or you may find out that the owner of the data card is no longer the list manager because they lost the business to a competitor and never deactivated their version of the data card. That's obviously not something the former list manager would want to promote in the public domain, but it happens every day!

What's the take-away in all of this? It's simple. Keep your data cards up-to-date with quality information on all of the list research channels, especially in the public domain where your content is most visible. You are able to publish and maintain your data cards online for free using MarketMax SE, and those cards will be updated instantly on all of the list research portals powered by NextMark in the public domain.

At the same time, your data cards will be updated for all of NextMark's list research and list brokerage system users, representing 185 companies who acquire mailing lists for new customer acquisition.

Finally, if you'd like NextMark can integrate your web site so you only need to update your data cards in one place — NextMark will take care of the rest. Is there any better way for you to gain control over the process? It's time to serve those data cards 'well-done' and get noticed for your efforts.

Tags: data card quality, data cards, junk yard dog, list management, list manager, t-bone steak, trash can lid
Posted in Industry Observations | Comments Off on Would You Serve A T-Bone On A Trash Can Lid?

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