Unverified data: The wrench in the works of your CRM
High standards for the quality of your customer data are imperative. Unverified, incorrect, or outdated information can infect the deepest parts of your customer databases if not managed. If allowed to spread, this infectious data causes substantial downstream issues that can be financial (loss of revenue), or worse, reputational (loss of customers and brand trust). However, there are a few ways to prevent this unseen threat.
Data verification technology can stop unverified data in its tracks. Technology such as phone, email and address verification can correct and enhance existing data in your system while allowing only validated and new data. With clean, up-to-date data, you can deliver data-driven insights that are guaranteed to cover the complete picture of your customers' past behaviours, current needs and future expectations.
For business leaders wondering just how essential verified customer data can be, here's a list of ways it can benefit your organisation.
Customer communication is heavily dependent on having accurate information on hand to reach the right person through several channels. Data decay is an unavoidable reality in any database, and when you execute marketing communications based on outdated data, the chances of successfully reaching your customers drop considerably. And to make things worse, misaddressed mail can be costly in more ways than one. Ensure your promotional messages reach your intended audience by validating the phone numbers, physical addresses and email addresses of your customers.
With cleaner data comes more possibilities for faster decision-making, stronger go-to-market strategies, and a deeper understanding of your customer base. Your business can gather valuable insights into customer preferences, interests, and buying habits by capturing demographic and location data. You can then use this 360-degree view of your consumer base to fuel localised and personalised communications, strategies and loyalty programs.
We’re all human, and mistakes can happen, especially when your customers manually enter their contact information into forms without the help of type-ahead or auto-complete technology. Inaccuracies like substitutions, missing words, or added letters may seem like minor factors at first but when that information enters your database, it can corrupt everything from the payment process to fulfilment. Verified data saves you time and money on expenses that can build up over time, like returned shipments and mail, failed delivery fees, and chargebacks.
Unverified data deeply contaminates your internal systems, often leaving you vulnerable to a different kind of unwelcome invasion – fraud. Utilising address verification can wipe out any chances for fraudsters to take advantage of unverified and outdated data in your system. Conducting an address verification check at onboarding can identify fraud at the first red flag.
For instance, a customer address record may seem valid at the time of input, but upon further investigation, you may find that the address is associated with multiple email addresses or phone numbers. This will then alert you to the possibility of fraudulent activity before any deception occurs. Remember - if dirty data never gets into your system, fraudsters will have a much harder time targeting you.
Clean customer data has become one of the most valuable currencies in the digital age, and data-driven organisations are utilising it in as many ways as possible. As you make your way along your digital transformation journey, don’t neglect to protect the very data that will ultimately get you to the finish line. Make collecting and maintaining your customer address, email, and phone data a priority with the help of our data maintenance solutions.
Interested to learn more about how Loqate can help your company collect the highest quality customer data to power your initiatives? Speak with one of our product experts today!