Without a doubt, 2009 will be the year of zero tolerance for business mistakes. So here is my annual Top 10 list for what you must do now to maximize your #1 business asset (your customer list.) Think of these as New Year’s resolutions for your database…
10. I will clean up old contacts. I have thousands of names in my database, and many are outdated, duplicated or missing key information.
a. I will create a *dynamic group membership* for all customers with missing or bounced email addresses so I can call (or delegate someone to call) to update this critical data field.
b. Duplicates increase my marketing costs and decrease sales effectiveness and–more important–my response metrics. I will send my list to The Database Diva to update my postal addresses against the National Change of Address processing (NCOA) to find out who moved or went out of business. This process also standardizes my addresses to find every last duplicate–even the ones ACT overlooks.
9. I will delete my unused Groups. Groups take on a life of their own. I will “use them or lose them.” I can delete groups without deleting my contacts.
8. I will get my e-newsletter out monthly. If I planned to start an email newsletter and never did it, I will download a free trial of Swiftpage and handcuff a staff member to a chair until he/she learns how to use this program. If I can’t find a staff member to handcuff, I’ll hire The Database Diva to do it for me, knowing that if I pay for it, I’ll really commit to following through.
7. I will erase or clear the “antiques” on my Task List. I will NEVER get to those incomplete tasks from a year ago. I will highlight them on the Task List, then right click and select “Clear Multiple Activities.”
6. I will stop setting alarms, except when I REALLY need them. One to 3 alarms per day is plenty. Alarms are unnecessary if I keep my eye on my Task List.
5. I will stop rolling over my calls, meetings and to-do’s (TOOLS > PREFERENCES > SCHEDULING PREFERENCES). If I can’t keep up with activities I schedule for myself, I will design a more realistic follow-up plan, like automating my follow-up process with drip marketing.
4. I will call one day ahead to confirm all my meetings (not really an ACT! thing, but I’ll set my Task List DATES filter to “Today” to do it).
3. I will create a system for handling the business cards I collect. When someone hands me a card, I will write a few words on the back to remind me about this person (how many business cards do I have that I can’t remember why I have them in the first place?) Then I will…
a. Use a card scanner to automatically enter it into ACT (why leave it to mold on my desk?)
b. Code the contact record with REFERRED BY (where I met this person) and ID/STATUS (in which category(ies) will I want to communicate with this person again?)
c. My “few words” will go into the LAST RESULTS field (which will automatically record a time/date-stamped history under the HISTORY tab, saving me an extra step).
d. I will then THROW AWAY the business card so I do not inspire guilt or panic in a few months, thinking I was supposed to do something with that person (if I was, I’ve already scheduled it)!!! Ed. Note: The Database Diva grants you full, enthusiastic permission to toss all imported and coded business cards.
2. When I make an unscheduled call I will ALWAYS record it in ACT with my keyboard shortcut command: CTRL+H.
1. When I clear an activity, I will ALWAYS schedule a follow-up activity so I never let important contacts fall into a black hole in my follow-up system.
BONUS TIP: I will not become a poster child for bad database management: I will back up my database everyday and/or test the backups I currently create. If I am a single or remote user, I will buy a flash drive (for less than $20) and make an additional back-up copy of my ACT! database to store in a safe, off-site location.
P.S. If you want more customers and prospects calling you next year (instead of relying 100% on face-to-face selling), make a New Year’s Resolution to learn about drip marketing. I have a special event coming up on Wed., Feb. 4, 2009. Save the date now.
{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
Thanks for the great tips. As our company looks ahead to 2009, we are trying to be more aggressive in our marketing and are looking into buying email lists for the first time. We plan to provide relevant content, have good offers, incentives and calls to action. If one does not have a large email list, do you recommend purchasing lists and testing them?
Jim, STOP! Do not pass go! Do NOT buy any prospect email lists. NOT NOT NOT. We have one word for these lists: SPAM. While it may seem like an expedient course of action for your business, it’s actually an expressway to wasting money (at best) and a likely way to piss off potential new customers (at worst). And if you get opt-outs from this effort, you can never email these folks again without getting written permission (torturous CAN SPAM requirement). As painful as it is, the only kosher way to build a viable and *responsive* email prospect list is to call and talk to each one. (We routinely collect email addresses on 80% of the targeted prospects we call this way!) Is this productive for salespeople? No. That’s why I suggest you use an outside call center to do this heavy lifting. I recommend Power of No-2 as a company who specializes in “collecting email and survey Q&A” calls. Another resource for strategizing a new-customer acquisition plan is the book, Five Minutes with Vito, written by sales gurus David Mattson and Anthony Parinello. Prospecting is a contact sport, and there’s no shortcuts–it’s all about allocating limited resources to be as efficient as possible. With the money you save by not paying to spam and not experiencing the lost opportunity costs, you can also look into SEO, BTB Co-registration and possibly pay-per-click advertising. But initially start with a qualified prospect list and an accomplished telemarketing team to kick start your initiative. Good luck, and thanks for your comment.
Lori, these are great tips and so actionable! Your e-zine continues to be a high ROI read, so thanks for the help and for inspiring me to do what I like least…marketing. I’m one of the millions of small business owners who would rather just work with my clients vs. marketing…so thanks for making the marketing thing easier and more do-able.
Kate, I commend you for doing what you hate! Database management is a must-do pain in the neck. But your business has no better asset than your customer list, so it does pay off. Just do a little everyday; it’s all about continuous improvement. Thanks for reading my musings.
I appreciate the tips. Your site is what I have been looking for. I currently working on resolution #10, cleaning up our database. We have 12,000 in Act and another 28,000 outside of Act that I am merging by hand and importing back in. I work for a small company, one whose list has grown to this point in a matter of months, and I wish I had found you website earlier. As I am merging fields, adding relevant fields, and mass importing I am also learning how to use Act, customizing our layout and fields, grouping contacts (we have 0 groups), determining how our sales department will record contracts received, and integrating all these things to utilize Swiftpage’s Drip Marketing. Your posts have been a breath of fresh air and much needed encouragement.
Amanda, you’re a real trooper! I hope they’re buying you chocolate and flowers on a regular basis to show appreciation! I wonder if you couldn’t speed things up by using some third-party add-on software for merge/purging (combining lists and finding and eliminating duplicate records). Please call me if you’d like to discuss your options. 40,000 contacts is a lot to go through manually when there’s no need. And, unfortunately, you can’t maximize Swiftpage’s drip tool until you get your list cleaned up. Thanks for telling your story.