From AllBusiness.com

Direct mail marketing is an inexact numbers game, but you can get some idea of the quality of a mailing list by asking a few key questions.

• Ask your list vendor for the names and numbers of businesses that have purchased the list in the last six months. Think of it as a reference check.
• Contact these businesses and ask them what they used the list for, what kind of response rate they got and how many returned mailers they received due to bad addresses. This is a good time to ask any other questions you have.
• Find out how frequently the list is updated. In general, the accuracy of a business-to-business mailing list drops to 50 percent after one year. Consumer lists age at a rate of 2 percent per month. The older the list, the less qualified the leads.

Related Articles

• An Introduction to Direct Mail
• Five Good Reasons to Do a Mass Mailing
• Four Rules of Permission Marketing
• Get the Most from Your Mailings
• The Basics of Direct Mail
• What is the source of the list? Mailing lists have a profile that outlines the age, education level, interests, gender and other relevant information of the people on the list. The details of where the list names come from should clue you into whether or not they fit your target market, and thus are more likely to be receptive to your product or service.

*AllBusiness.com provides resources to help small and growing businesses start, market, manage and expand their business. The site has Forms & Agreements, Business Guides, a Platinum Program and Business Directories along with an extensive library of Articles and Advice to help with all of the activities associated with starting and running a business.

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