BoldData’s guide to buy a Mailing List – 9 important steps to follow when purchasing Mailing Lists

BoldData’s guide to buy a Mailing List – 9 important steps to follow when purchasing Mailing Lists

The time has come: you’re going to do direct marketing campaign to find new customers. Everything is ready, only one thing is missing: the mailing list of your ideal target group. Where are you going to buy this mailing list? A short search on Google shows you that there are many providers. From listbrokers to global data owners such as Dunn & Bradstreet. Buying a mailing list is still quite difficult. Because how do you choose the right mailing list provider? And what do you have to think about when you are buying a mailing list? A accurate mailing list can make a huge difference for your campaign, so think carefully!

Think carefully about your target group before you buy a mailing list

The first step is to determine exactly who you want to reach. There are more than 2 million companies in the Netherlands and more than 42 million in Europe. Are you looking for a mailing list of retailers or a mailing list with HR managers of companies with more than 100 employees? In a certain region or in the entire country? Try to be as specific as possible. Because buying addresses outside your target group reduces your response and increases your costs. Think of unnecessary call-hours or extra printing costs. Need help? A good mailing list provider can advise you about the right target group or come up with suggestions you had not thought of yourself.

Tip: are you not sure what your target group is? Then ask whether the data provider can make an analysis of your existing customer mailing list. You can then buy a mailing list of companies that resemble your existing customers, so-called look a likes.

What data should the mailing list contain?

Are you going to do a e-mail marketing campaign with follow up by phone (great idea!)? Then you obviously need a mailing list with e-mail addresses and phone numbers. But it can also be useful to know the industry or the number of employees of a prospect. This way you can create different segments within your file. And after the campaign analyze which segments respond well. This is valuable information!

Tip: ask the mailing list provider for a list of the available selection criteria. Make a brainstorm about the target group using this list. For example, BoldData has more than 300 different data fields: from software systems within companies to the number of stars from a hotels.

What is the duration of the campaign?

Make an estimate in advance on how long your campaign will last. And consider how many addresses you need in the period. Is there one account manager who is going to call the recipients after you’ve sent mailing? In that case 500 calls a month is already a big challenge. In this case, it may be wise to buy mailing list in batches. This way you will always use the most accurate data in your campaign.

Do not outsource the comparison of mailing list vendors

It’s always a good idea to compare vendors. Especially mailing list vendors, since there quite a bunch out there. We often see that companies leave the comparison of the mailing list vendors to a trainee or someone who is not well known with the ins and outs of the marketing campaign. Which results that the purchase of the mailing list is decided solely on price and the amount of data available. This buying process is a guarantee for a failed campaign. Instead appoint the comparison to someone with knowledge of your campaign and objectives. A mailing list can be composed of 1,500 different target groups. It is therefore important that someone asks the right questions and also is capable to give an immediate answer to critical questions from the mailing list provider

Buying mailing lists? Study the privacy legislation first

Direct marketing is bound by privacy rules. Especially in Europe! So always get legal advice on the legislation and stick to the rules to prevent fines and damage to the image of your company. In the Netherlands, for example, you cannot e-mail consumers without consent, a so-called opt-in address. Tip: Only purchase mailing lists from members of the DDMA. These members are annually checked for the collection, storage, use and receipt of personal data for marketing purposes on behalf of third parties

Request a sample from the mailing list

Do you doubt the quality of the mailing list? Or does it sound too good to be true? Ask for a free sample of, for example, 10 addresses. You do not even have to contact those 10 addresses. Often you can determine the quality of the mailing list based on the structure of the data. Are all data fields neatly separated in one column? Are the fields well-filled? Do the phone numbers all have the same length? If It looks good: then you can without a doubt buy the mailing list!

Test the mailing list

Testing is important before you buy a mailing list. Even if you are sure that the mailing list is of good quality! With a test you can also find out whether you are communicating with the right target audience. Or maybe you are communicating with the right target, but you might learn that your offer is not aligned.

Tip: are you going to do an e-mail campaign? Do two small tests with different subject lines. You use the test with these most opens and clicks for the final shipment. This is called an A / B test.

Do not buy your mailing list too quickly

Did you know that 30% of the company data in Europe changes every year? Think of bankruptcies, relocations and job changes. So wait with buying your address file until you actually start your campaign. You start with the most up-to-date addresses in your mailing list!

Want to know more about purchasing mailing lists?

BoldData provides access to more than 1,000 (inter) national mailing lists for direct mail, e-mail and telemarketing campaigns. We have more than 10 years of experience in guiding direct marketing campaigns in Europe and even worldwide. And therefore we know exactly what works and what does not. Want to know more? Call +31 (0) 20 705 2360 or send an e-mail to info@bolddata.nl. We are ready to answer your questions!

Daan Wolff

Data Expert

A numbers guy! Expert in the area of international e-mail marketing marketing campaigns