Checklist: 12 tips for better data in email marketing

Data is the basis for relevant email marketing, such as for example personalized content. The highest possible data quality is therefore a key success factor. artegic AG has compiled 12 tips on how to win better data in a checklist.

Many email marketers still operate according to the German proverb "Viel hilft viel", which roughly translates to "the more, the better" (literally "a lot helps a lot") when acquiring data. The results are often large but intransparent pools of low-quality data, some of which cannot even be used in a legally compliant manner. But how can you obtain the necessary data for your email marketing use cases in the right amount and the right quality, as well as the necessary consent to be able to use this data at all? And how do you prevent collecting incorrect data? The checklist: 12 tips for better data in email marketing refers to these questions.

The checklist addresses the following 12 tips in detail, including practical examples:

1. Create a clear data plan: First, determine in a data plan what data in what quality you need, what data you already have and what kind of measures could fill in the gap.
2. Get marketing opt-ins from your existing customers: Many companies have very extensive data on existing customers but cannot utilize it for marketing purposes. You should use all available customer-touchpoints to obtain opt-ins.
3. Compile data centrally: In many cases the data is already available in the company but stored on external systems. Marketer should unify this data in a single customer view.
4. Filter spam addresses and sweepstakes services: Improving data quality also means not collecting false or low-quality user data in the first place, for example spam addresses. There are various ways to keep this data out of your database, for example blacklists or verifications in the form.
5. Request additional data in a follow-up form: Instead of requesting all required data in the newsletter registration form, you can ask for it in a second optional form.
6. Request additional data after a double opt-in: You can also display the optional form after clicking the confirmation link in the double opt-in email.
7. Ask users about their interests: The easiest way to present relevant content to your customers is to simply ask for their interests during the registration.
8. Offer a self-service page: A self-service page, respectively a customer account or user profile, allows your users to manage their profile themselves, like setting a preferred communication type or entering additional data.
9. Ask for more data in a welcome message package: Signing up for your newsletter is usually associated with high interest in your offers and content. Therefore, welcome emails are a perfect occasion to ask for more data.
10. Run automated profile update campaigns: The right marketing automation software automatically recognizes which data you are still missing and sends the appropriate emails to your users in defined intervals.
11. Reactivate customers and update their data in one go: If customers are inactive, you should win them back with a targeted reactivation campaign. This is the perfect occasion to ask your customers to recheck their data.
12. Track user reactions: If there is an opt-in for profiling, email marketer should track the reactions of their users to newsletter and email campaigns to get to know their users better.

The complete Checklist is available for download

The complete checklist with extensive tips and best practices is available for free download: https://www.artegic.com/checklist_12_tips_better_data/