Easily meet the challenge of keeping your contact database up to date!

However, this database quickly becomes “polluted”, on the one hand because the contact details of your contacts can change, and on the other, because there will inevitably be erroneous information that has been voluntarily (or not) transmitted, such as false telephone numbers or invalid e-mail addresses from prospects who do not wish to be recontacted…

It is therefore essential to regularly clean up your contact database to ensure that the information it contains is reliable and always usable.

Let’s take a look at this issue and answer any questions you may have about how to keep your database as “clean” as possible!

A database is constantly changing…

Customer data, for example, evolves on a regular basis.

Did you know that over 3 million French people change their place of residence every year?

That more and more people want to unsubscribe from mailing lists such as those for newsletters?

That a certain number of professionals have several telephones, each with a different number, and that you need to know exactly how they are used?

To maintain and develop your business, it’s essential to take these changes into account and integrate them into your database.

That’s why we invite you to preventively check the accuracy of your information, rather than wasting time trying to repair errors.

For example, it may be a good idea to have your contact check the information directly before entering it into your database, rather than integrating it immediately.

Effective tips for cleaning up your contact database

First point: check the accuracy of your contacts’ contact details.

Numerous changes can occur that will render the information you hold inaccurate.

For example, a store whose address you had has closed or changed its location, or even its name…

The manager you knew has retired or the sales representative has resigned…

Your subcontractor’s website address has been modified following a change of platform…

These are just a few examples of the changes you need to take into account if you want to stay in touch over the long term with the people who are important to you, whether in your professional or personal life.

Second point: ruthlessly track down duplicates.

This is a mistake we often make, but don’t always think about. A company’s name can be spelled in many different ways, and it’s possible for it to appear several times in your database under different names.

Let’s take an example from the French automotive industry.

If you’re in contact with the Citroën brand, have you entered the exact details of the name or have you used the name of the PSA or even P.S.A. group?

Perhaps you entered Groupe Peugeot Citroën?

If a member of your team or your secretary creates a new file when the contact already exists, a duplicate will be created.

In itself, this is not very serious if it concerns only a few files.

But if this practice is repeated, you’re going to weigh down your database, which will ultimately slow down its operation.

Don’t forget that if you fill in a form, the other form linked to the same structure won’t benefit from the additional information: and if you come across it just when you need it, the relevant information will be missing…

Third point: use a very clear structure for your data.

If you work with large groups, you know that they have subsidiaries, factories in different locations, multiple departments…

How do you structure all this information?

Do you prefer to centralize everything, or set up “child” files in relation to the single “parent” file, which would then represent the corporate entity or general management?

Similarly, if you’re in contact with several people within a store or company, will you create a single file listing the contact details of your various contacts, or will you set up a single file for each of your contacts?

It’s important to define a precise organization to which all your collaborators must adhere, so that the “contacts” database can be used by all in the most efficient way.

Fourth point: check the relevance of keeping a contact or not in your database.

After all, there’s no point in keeping the contact details of someone you no longer work with.

What’s more, if you have a marketing-related professional activity, it’s important to know whether your customers are still loyal to your services or products, whether they open your e-mails, newsletters or consult the documents you send them or not…

Why is it important to check this?

Quite simply because, in digital marketing, what you do is always under the microscope.

For example, if you send a lot of e-mails in an email campaign, and a large number of addresses turn out to be obsolete, your deliverability rate will be low, and you risk being blacklisted as a sender.

Checking your database will also enable you to analyze the behavior of your customers, and you may find that some of them no longer order from you or use your services: before deciding to delete their contact details, it may be a good idea to ask yourself about the quality of your offer, so that you can review it if necessary…

Lastly, with the RGPD law protecting people’s contact details, you don’t have the right to keep them if an Internet user has wished to unsubscribe from your files or has informed you that they no longer wish to appear in your database.

An essential action: make regular back-ups!

Don’t forget that today’s databases are under attack from hackers and computer pirates!

It is therefore essential for the long-term survival of your business that a copy of your contact database is made and kept in a safe place.

Just imagine the problems that would arise if you could no longer easily contact your contacts, suppliers or customers…

Our advice is therefore to make daily backups, or even more if the volume of data is substantial, and to keep copies in a digital safe or on a server that will be disconnected from the networks immediately after receiving the backup: you must avoid at all costs having this file contaminated by a computer virus!

A simple but effective way of checking the quality of your information: get in touch with your contact person!

Every time you interact with your customer, prospect or subcontractor, take the opportunity to check all the contact details, including telephone number, geographical location, e-mail address and special information such as a code to open a door in the event of a delivery…

And if you have any doubts, take the opportunity to contact your contact directly and check with him or her the quality of the information contained in your database: this will give a very positive image of your professional commitment!

A contact form can be full of relevant information!

When it comes to your best customers or most valuable contacts, it’s a good idea to fill out your contact sheets exhaustively, i.e. in addition to the “classic” telephone numbers, geographical addresses and e-mail addresses, add links to your social network accounts (LinkedIn but also Facebook or even Instagram or Pinterest…) and also add useful information such as the date of a specific event, the publication of an annual report or a news item concerning your customer.

This is particularly useful, as it can foster a more engaged contact with your interlocutor.

Your contact database is one of your company’s “treasures”, enabling you to interact easily with your prospects, customers, employees, suppliers and subcontractors.

As such, it’s essential to keep it in good “health”.

By carrying out the simple actions we’ve listed above, you can be sure to keep your database in perfect working order, i.e. able to deliver relevant and verified information day after day.