How to improve CRM data quality: 5 steps for success

1. Understand your data

The first step to improvement is understanding your starting line. A simple data Health Check will tell you how big the problem is and more importantly provide insights on how to fix it. 

For example, you’ll understand the level of duplicate records you hold (be they individuals, families, or households),how well your data is structured (e.g. you may have the right data, but not necessarily in the right fields), and alert you to any gaps or inconsistencies anywhere in your database.

2. Understand how data enters your CRM

One of the very first things to ask yourself is how the data is entered in the first place. Even the smallest mistake can cause detrimental impacts down the line. If that same piece of data is entered differently twice, then the two opposing records result in wasted efficiency, irritated prospects and confused sales staff. 

An easy fix is validation software that can be integrated within your CRM fields or Salesforce Flows to prevent inaccurate data, like poor address email contacts from entering your database.

3. Become data obsessed

Secure buy-in from other parts of the business. Making data quality an organisation-wide strategy will reduce your workload and put the topic on every department’s agenda. Initiating data quality initiatives on a regular basis to maintain data quality, reporting on metrics to show improvement and linking this to revenue or cost savings such as quicker to answer queries, reduction in storage costs, reduced complaints and customer queries and making data quality part of your business as usual (and not a specific one-off project) are just a few ways to help create a strong data culture within your business.

4. Remove the deadwood

Did you know that each year, due to house moves, job changes and mortalities, consumer data degrades by around 15 – 20% and business data by 30 – 40%? That means that if your database is just a few years old over half your contacts could be unreachable.

Removing latent, dormant and incorrect details can save you time and money and help you comply with data regulations such as GDPR.  Without cleaning out the dead wood, your sales team is wasting time chasing useless prospects – just because they appear on the sales database and getting demotivated and measured incorrectly. The simple process of keeping your customer database and prospect mailing lists up to date with regular data hygiene will make your marketing budget go much further.

5. Weed out false emails

Don’t waste your time and contact space in CRM on contacts that don’t exist. Use an email verification tool to ensure any email addresses in your database are accurate and valid. Storing fake email addresses in your CRM database won’t just annoy your sales teams - it also costs money, as data storage isn’t cheap. With email being the preferred channel of choice due to its reach and cost-effectiveness, it’s never been more important to have an accurate count of deliverable email addresses prior to any campaign sendouts, and to maintain sender reputation by decreasing the number of hard bounces received. Both can be helped by implementing an email validation tool at the point of entry.

The bottom line

Improving data quality management doesn’t necessarily mean massive investments in IT and organisational changes. Even small tuning-type adjustments to the existing architecture can bring quick and significant benefits. By making data quality a pillar of your business, you’ll see your CRM maximise its potential, helping you make data-driven decisions with big performance impacts.

From increasing efficiency to cutting costs, prioritising data quality will help you rapidly move towards a single customer view, underpinned by real data and insights that will guide all your future sales and marketing efforts to their maximum impact. The potential growth CRMs offer to businesses is enormous - will your business become one of the few truly unlocking the power of your customer data?