Your Agency New Business List and Beer-Quality Counts

When I was approached to write a post for the “ANB” Blog, I knew I would focus on the topic of agency new business list building and cleaning.

That is, after all, what I do.

I started thinking about what angle I would take and it suddenly occurred to me: beer.

Don’t worry, my logic will soon be revealed…or will it?

You see, a friend of mine makes his own beer.

It’s a process that takes at minimum 4 weeks if you just want to drink it and longer if you allow the flavors to mature.

Do you know how much beer I could drink in four weeks?  Is it worth it?  Yes.  Quality always is.

It occurred to me that rather than building all of our lists in-house at RSW/US, we could very well acquire them elsewhere.

There are dozens of companies that sell marketing lists.

Imagine all the time it saves.  But what are you getting when you buy one of those lists?

In an article from CRM Search (Better Campaign Results from Better Marketing List Management) about list management the author cites:

A research firm stating that 78% of marketers show a lack of trust in their customer data.

If you’re a New Business Director, how much of your time is spent cleaning dubious lists with duplicate contacts and outdated information?

When I build a list, I’m provided with a range of companies, ideal titles, revenue targets and various other criteria that will guide my hand when searching for potential leads.

I might dip into our database for contacts, but only as a starting point.

If the contact hasn’t been verified recently, it will be by the time I’m done with it.

Otherwise, it won’t be used.

That does mean the entire process can be time-consuming and, I admit, tedious.  Is it worth it? In a word, yes.  Quality always is.

What this allows our New Business Directors to do is to focus on making that connection and getting that lead.

Before an NBD begins to reach out, they can be confident that an entire line-up of specialists has massaged and nurtured the list they are using so that it can be all it can be.

Before I even build the list, someone has worked to select the companies that fit the client’s needs; after I’ve cleaned the list, someone reviews it to ensure quality.

 

A good agency new business list is like driving in the HOV lane

I asked one of our NBDs, Jane Browe, what it’s like to work with one of our lists versus one of…let’s say…lesser pedigree.

Jane was one of RSW’s first list builders; she started working on contract in 2006, building, cleaning and prospecting.

She told me, “A good list is like driving in the HOV lane, blasting past stopped traffic.  A bad list is like sitting on the launch pad, feeling the rocket engines rumble underneath you, but going nowhere.”

Now, how’s that for an ego boost?

For my birthday, my wife bought me a home-brewing kit, so I’ve started to dabble in zymology (It’s a word! Look it up.)

I’m only one week in but I can almost taste the malty goodness on the tip of my tongue.  Will it be worth it?  Oh yes.  Quality always is.

Cheers!

*By the way, check out the rest of the article I linked to above.  Something that stood out to me was that the author wrote that marketing lists generally deteriorate at a rate of 2% per month.  Hmm.

 

Related to Your Agency New Business List and Beer-Quality Counts –

Ad Agency New Business: Your Effort is Only as Good as Each List

Agency New Business List Building- An Insider’s View: The Gatekeeper’s Iron Fist

 

Guest Post by RSW/US List Team Member Miguel Trejo