It is very common these days for a business to purchase data on which important business decisions will be based. Business today is data-driven, and business success, or the lack thereof, can be shown to be directly related to the accuracy of the data used to make important business decisions.

One very common use of purchased data is when a company is planning an expansion of its product range or services range, and needs to carry out market research in the consumer or business sector, regarding the long term feasibility and profitability of the proposed expansion.

Is The Data You’re Using Fit For Purpose?

It is vital for a company, when purchasing third party data, that the data obtained fit the purpose. Before purchasing data, you need do two things. Firstly, you to have an idea of the type of customer you are targeting with your expansion. Secondly, you need to question the quality of the proposed supplier of this data.

Have you asked the necessary questions? The type of customer you are targeting will determine the type of data you need to acquire.

Consumer Data Vs. Business Data

Buy consumer data if you need to approach customers based on specific demographics like age, gender, homeownership, affluence, marital status etc. With the appropriate up-to-date data and validated against existing data for accuracy, your marketing efforts will return real value for money.

On the other hand, if your campaign is targeting other businesses, then it is vitally important that the data you purchase reflect this by giving you complete and accurate company and contact information. Effective business data ensure you have accurate and up-to-date details on the businesses you target, which will typically include data on industry sector, turnover, job titles, number of employees, employee responsibilities, employee contact details and of course the basic necessities such as accurate address details, contact numbers, postal codes etc. fore purchasing data, you must also be confident that the third party you intend to buy your data from is reputable and trustworthy.

Use A Trustworthy, Consumer Data Supplier

Here too you need to ask some basic questions. Does your intended supplier simply offer data, or do they work with you to understand what your campaign is all about so that you get accurate, up-to-date and fit for purpose data? Does your intended supplier actively and constantly update, maintain and cleanse their data? What proof can they offer to show that they take their data as serious as you are taking it? What is the maintenance cycle, if any, they apply to the data in their possession? Does the intended supplier simply offer data lists, or do they offer further support in terms of developing and executing marketing campaigns? Does your intended supplier offer analysis of the data returned by your campaign?

Ensuring A Successful Consumer Marketing Campaign

Before making a decision on which third party to purchase your data from, it is vitally important that you ask these questions, as they will not only influence the purchase price of your data, but most of all the success of your campaign. There is nothing worse than spending a lot of money on the wrong type of data, leave alone spending money on wrong data.  Before you purchase consumer data, don’t just question the relevancy of the data itself. Also question the third party that has the data on offer.