Is Your Database Ready for an Online World?
by Bob Moore

The Internet has brought great new tools and sources to database marketing. Not only can we learn more about our customers and prospects through this great new medium, but these customers can also tell us directly about themselves. But are your databases ready? How do you take advantage of the best of these technologies? Here are 10 tips for eVolving your database.

1. Don't mess with privacy rules!  Make sure you decide up front what you're planning to do with the data you gather and that your purposes are clearly spelled out in your site's privacy policy. Then stick to your policy. If your data strategy changes, be sure to update your policy, inform those on your database, and give them a chance to opt out of any communication. Trust is more valuable and harder to come by than any data element.

2. Make sure your on-line forms are well designed. An online form should be inviting, attractive, and easy to fill out. The questions should be non-ambiguous and clear; the space for responses, well delineated. The submit button should be easy to find.

3. Is your database e-ready?  Do you have an email address field? Don't forget URL, opt-in status, format preference (HTML or text), mobile phone, and other attributes. Before you add them to any online forms, make sure you've handled the back end in your database. There's no sense in asking for a data element if there's no place to put the response in your file.

4. Check what comes into your database from online registrations before it goes directly into your database. Inviting customers to put their own data into an online form is similar to inviting customers to make their own change from your cash register. Some take it seriously, some don't. You will get some junk responses. Have a system in place to review these responses before the records are updated in your database and before any contact goes back out to them.

5. Use drop-down menus wherever you can in online forms. Not only are drop-down lists easier for the user, but the responses you get back are also standardized and eliminate junk responses. Using drop-down lists will increase your response rate, enable you to push your clients and prospects into the categories that work best for your data segmentation, and result in a more consistent database. This is quick way to prioritize leads for your sales force as well.

6. Use check boxes and radio buttons.  All these form elements help you reach your goal of ease of use, good design, and consistent data. Carefully choose the appropriate form element for each data element. Radio buttons are intended for single responses (tying into only one place in your database), and check boxes are suitable for "check all that apply" questions and allow for multiple entries into your database.

7. Use specific data field names.  What do you mean by "Title"? Do you mean job position or name prefix such as "Ms." or "Mr."? Fields such as "Source," "Function," etc. can be confusing. The best test is to get three or four people who are not involved in the database development to fill out the form for you. If they get it right without any confusion, you've done the form right.

8. The Internet is global, not American.  Be prepared for responses from all over the world, even if you only want responses from the USA. Include a "country" field and allow for Postal Codes that aren't just 5 digits. International addresses often contain two or three more lines than American addresses. International telephone numbers conform to alternate standards as well. Even if you aren't planning on marketing to these prospects, you want to make sure that the data is gathered appropriately so you can eliminate them from outgoing communications.

9a. K.I.S.S. (Keep It Simple Stupid)  It's easy to get carried away and ask for too much information or for too much detail. A form that contains too many questions or asks for too much sensitive information will often be aborted before completion. A little data is better than no data.

9b. Forget K.I.S.S.  Don't fail to ask what you need to know. If there are a few qualifying questions that will make all the difference in the world to your sales force, ask them. Not enough data is worse than no data.

9c. Test if you can.  Find out how best to get the most useful data by trying different forms. As direct marketers, this should be a natural tip to follow.

10. Protect that database and the data.  Your data and your customer's or prospect's privacy is at stake. Make sure that anyone who isn't authorized doesn't have access to your data. Consult an expert because the folks who may try to steal your data are often quite expert themselves.

Bob Moore is President of Data Direct, a source for data processing, Industry Co-Chair of the San Jose Postal Customer Council, and a member of the board for the DMA of Northern California.