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Data problems should be tackled in a holistic fashion, with
key milestones planned and the steps repeated on a regular basis.
Step 1 (normalization):
It is essential to ensure that data across the whole system
is standardized. Without a common format, any other process
you perform will be less successful. helpIT products can ensure
that all your data is consistent. matchIT in particular has
comprehensive quality assurance reporting which will highlight
inconsistencies in your data for further investigation.
Step 2 (deduplication):
If you wish to merge disparate data sets then it is essential
to use a matching tool that will provide 'phonetic' and ‘fuzzy
matching’. helpIT products use powerful proprietary phonetic
matching which ensures that all significant elements of each
name and address are considered in the matching process.
Step 3 (data accuracy):
Once your data is in a good state of health, you should ascertain the proportion
of the data which is still valid. This can be performed using
a mixture of address checking (helpIT's addressIT product) and
data suppression (helpIT's suppressIT product).
Data suppression will ensure that you avoid marketing to people
who have moved address or died. You will also save considerable
cost in not marketing to individuals or organisations who will
simply never respond, whilst protecting your brand image from
the harm of marketing inappropriately.
Step 4 (data enhancement):
Successful marketing is all about presenting the right product
to the right people in the right place at the right time at
the right price. Data enhancement (helpIT's addressIT product)
allows you to append valuable information to your data which
provides the insight required for successful marketing.
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