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Save Time Researching B2B Marketing Sources - Use a veteran List Broker 

Let the List Broker do all the researching and then you make the final decision on what you want to use. Before you start researching lists make sure that you understand who your target audience is.

There are so many B2B postal and email lists being promoted these days it is hard to determine, which lists are worth testing and which ones are garbage.   Here are the steps a List Broker will discuss with each and every source across different vertical in different parts of the world.   

WHO OWNS THE LIST

Find out the name of the actual listowner so you can determine the exact source of the file.  We stress "exact" because there are so many files out there being whitelisted under different names. Also knowing the publisher/conference company you will know if your target audience is on their files.

 

SIZE OF LIST - INCREASED OR DECREASED OVER THE LAST YEAR

Then we ask how records get added to the list?   For example when talking to a publisher about their subscription list we want to know if the records are of Active Subscribers or Expires or Inquirers? You also want to make sure people are not being added to the list just because they asked.   There has to be something in place that qualifies them to receive this specific publication or attend a conference. Conference files usually work very well because attendees usually pay upwards of $2000 to attend so you know the information they are reporting when registering is correct.

 

DON'T DISMISS THE IDEA OF USING INQUIRERS / EXPIRES  

If they are Inquirers or Expires then we question how many years they are on the file.  Most times we recommend sticking to the Actives only, If a list performs extremely well, then it is worth testing some of the recent expires/inquirers.

 

IS THE OWNER DOING THEIR HOUSEKEEPING 

Find out when the postal/email list was last cleaned and updated?   People are changing positions so often you must make sure the listowner is doing their job by keeping the list updated. SPAM laws continue to be changed and update so make sure each listowner is compliant.

 

MAKE SURE YOU CAN REACH YOUR BULLSEYE

Review the list selects each listowner has to offer. It is imperitive to reach your target audience and NOT be swayed into casting a broader net.. If the listowner is able to pull the appropriate selects ask to see a sampling of the records to make sure the type of companies you are trying to reach are definitely there.

 

SAVE YOURSELF TIME

This takes time and a knowledge of the lists on the market.  If you put the time in you will definitely increase the number of responses you receive on every b2b marketing campaign.  By using a veteran B2B list broker who knows who has sold and bought different magazines they can do the list searching job quicker and more efficiently and give you the time to take care of your other duties.  

 

If you want help doing your list research, please call Donna Peterson at 860-210-8088 or email her.

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