Resources and Advice

RESOURCES and ADVICE

Using The Internet To Mine Your Database

By Jonathan Lehrer and Sara O. Marberry

Whether you’re “mining your database” or developing a “house list,” you are selling your products to your customers continuously. Here’s a way to use the Internet to communicate directly with them, one by one.

If you’re like most businesses, your best potential customers are the people with whom you’re already doing business. Whether you call it “mining your database” or developing a “house list,” you’re selling to customers who have previously shown confidence in your company. You may be selling them more of what they’ve already bought, or you may want them to buy a greater variety of goods or services from you.

The Internet is a valuable and inexpensive tool for mining your database. Not only can you collect and update contact names, but you can also use e-mail to communicate with them at a fraction of the cost of printed mail. With the arrival of the Internet, it is now possible and even easy for you to communicate directly with your customers or clients, one by one.

Follow these steps for success.

Step 1
Assemble the crew

Make someone responsible for this project, such as a team leader. This person should assess the current state of your postal and e-mail lists so that you know where you stand.

Step 2
Develop a house list

There are ways in which you can develop or improve your house list, both on-line and off. First, post a Contact Us or Registration form on your Web site for people to fill in their names and addresses to receive information or some other perk, like a newsletter. Make the form as simple as possible, and allow a space for comments or questions.

Collect business cards at trade shows and conferences. If you exhibit at trade shows, find out if the organizers will provide you with an attendee list. Assign someone in your company to enter these new contacts into a database. Where e-mail addresses are missing, telephone the contacts to obtain them. Of course, you also can rent or purchase mailing lists. One of the many net-based services that provides e-mail addresses is www.postmasterdirect.com/.

Step 3
Decide your approach

There are three types of e-mail marketing: Spam, opt-out and opt-in. Spam refers to the practice of blasting unsolicited e-mail to zillions of people who never asked for it and don’t want it. Avoid this technique if you want to maintain your good reputation.

The other methods refer to the recipients ability to exercise the option of getting on or off your e-mailing list. An opt-out campaign sends messages to names on a list. Recipients have the option of getting off the list, but they must take action to get removed. An opt-in campaign sends an e-mail invitation, asking recipients to sign up for the list. If they don’t take action to sign up, they don’t get on the list. With this alternative, you can be certain that everyone on your list really wants to be there.

A newer, consumer-friendly technique is emerging known as “double opt-in.” After the user “opts in” to your list, your system sends a confirmation message to his e-mail address. He must respond to this message to verify that he wants to be on the list. This prevents pranksters from adding unauthorized names to a list, and B2B marketers consider this the best overall option for e-mail campaigns.

Step 4
Develop content

The content of any e-mail you send to customers or clients should not be self-serving, but rather informative and useful. No one likes to read long e-mail messages these days, so keep it brief and provide links to more information on your Web site. Write in conversational style and think of a catchy subject line that will get your customers/clients’ attention.

Step 5
Prepare for e-distribution

Once you have all the names and mailing information, get your house list into an e-mail-ready format. Ideally, this means importing them into a database program, such as Excel or Access.

If you have a large e-mail list (200 names or more), you may want to consider using a listserve to manage your mailings. Companies such as www.listbox.com, or www.bcentral.com will do this for a fee. You may still have to maintain the list (that is, delete or add names), but using a listserve makes it easy to send mass e-mails with little more effort than just the click of a mouse.

You could also create a "group" or "club" at groups.yahoo.com or a "community" at MSN Communities (http://communities.msn.com/home). Both of these options are free, but the e-mails usually contain advertising.

To keep more control in-house, your IT department can configure listserve software on your server via its connection to the Internet. Learn about listserve e-mail management software, for example, at http://www.lsoft.com/ or http://www.list.org/.

Step 6
Migrate materials

If you’ve only been sending your customers or clients printed matter—newsletters, faxes, postcards, brochures—shift into the electronic mode. Post information on your Web site and send out e-mails directing people there. Or send them an e-mail announcing a special offer or new service. Make sure, though that the offer is appropriate for the Web. Try offering a more immediate sale with a closer cut-off date.

Step 7
Identify multiple approaches

Don’t abandon the tried and true ways of communicating with your customers or clients, but rather integrate them. Send people a postcard or fax that directs them to your Web site or e-mail them a note to request your newest catalog or sample.

Step 8
Follow Up

This is where the old-fashioned sales approach comes in. Don’t be afraid to follow up an e-mail with a phone call, and keep your sales people in the loop as to the timing of your e-mails.

Step 9
Don’t drop the ball

E-mail marketing is a little bit like exercise: If you don’t do it on a regular basis, it’s not worth much. Stay on top of the people you’ve put in charge of the house file (see Step 1) to ensure that e-mailings are going out to your house list regularly.

Step 10
Repeat Steps 1 - 9

Make it your obsession to add as many e-mail addresses to your house file as possible. After a couple of months, get feedback from your staff as to your customers’ willingness to provide their e-mail addresses. Test various incentives to see if a slight change in approach will bring a better result.

Updated 5/13/02