by Nearly every marketer knows that if there are subscription lists available for your target audience you should at least test them. This is often the only option (beyond slug-titles) for reaching specific individuals not available from traditional compiled list sources.
1. As with every list, be sure to use every appropriate select on each new campaign. Where applicable, buy the 30 or 60-day hot list names in addition to narrowing your list as much as possible when testing any mailer for the first time.
Buying the most current names as well as selecting the most specific audience available assures your first test is your best test. If your mailing is successful, you can test less specific, less expensive lists against that benchmark whereas if you are not successful you’ll have to buy more targeted lists and run the tests again.
2. As with all list updates, buy immediately after the update, run fresh counts to verify it took place as scheduled, and plan your mail date accordingly. Try to be first hitting the new names on that list.
3. Controlled circulation publications (free to the subscriber) tend to include many inappropriate names such as salespeople. You must select by title, industry, company size, etc. to efficiently utilize controlled circulation lists. We also recommend avoiding home addresses if possible, and as a general rule find that the more expensive the subscription the higher the quality of the lead (and, again, controlled circulation subscriptions are free to the recipient).
4. Most subscription lists have demographics appended and identifying the source of the appended data will allow more accurate selections (allowing you to accommodate the compiler skews). Please see “Compiler Counts Compared” at the bottom of this page for obvious examples of compiler skews.
5. Where desired selects are not available on the subscription lists for your target audience, consider appending data from compiled list sources. While there are often restrictions on appending data, it may be acceptable just to “match” for elimination purposes.
6. Another option is to match the rented subscription list to a preferred compiled file (for as little as 1-cent per name) to verify you are reaching the desired audience and to eliminate those outside your targeted demographics.
The initial match is free. If it matches well you need not spend any money. If the match is poor you may want to append a data element to identify which records are and which are not within your target audience.