Data hygiene refers to the process of ensuring, constantly, that the data you have at your disposal is \u201cclean\u201d- free of errors and inconsistencies of all kinds. During the course of building your email database, you\u2019ll find yourself inundated with information streaming in from several channels. But, know that not all of it will be useful or reliable. And, when you come across such nuggets, your job is to immediately weed them out of your system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Why is this important, you ask? You see, when customers entrust you with their data, they expect to receive an exceptional user experience in exchange. That, you will be able to provide if and only if you have a plethora of actionable insights. Such insights, in turn, can only be obtained from data that is correct and accurate. In a nutshell, in the absence of good data hygiene, driving the results you desire will become a herculean task. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
So, if you want your business to stay ahead of the curve, you must embrace data-driven marketing. As many as 70%<\/a> of marketers admit to data being a central part of their company\u2019s decision making at all-levels. The general consensus is that open access to data holds the key to higher business performance. Increasing customer loyalty and conversion rates are among the leading reasons why marketers, these days, are keeping data-oriented strategies at the core of their operations. Take a look at the graph below to gain more clarity. If you are new to this, all of what I just said might come across as a touch overwhelming. Be at ease, though; we\u2019ve got you covered. In this blog, we will help you undherstand why email data hygiene is among the mainstays of a high-performing email marketing campaign<\/a>. Additionally, we will also elaborate on some best practices to get you started. Curious to see what we have in store? Dive right in, then!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Data gets dirty due to a number of reasons, such as:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Dirty data takes myriad shapes- redundant records, incomplete information, outdated data, inaccurate data, and invalid data. How do they stand to impede your campaigns? Let\u2019s take a look. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Compiling an email database isn\u2019t just confined to the act of adding email addresses to your list. It also involves categorising your subscribers into different buckets, with the aim of greeting them with personalized campaigns. And why is delivering personalized experiences important? Because nearly 80%<\/a> of customers will be inclined to buy from you if you manage to offer them one. 1. Find your list being populated by several invalid or inactive email addresses. Sending emails to invalid email addresses will earn you the suspicion of ISPs (Internet Service Providers) and ESPs (Email Service Providers), thereby dealing a body blow to your sender reputation, and ultimately, your email deliverability. Moreover, there\u2019s always the possibility of encountering spam traps- bot emails deployed by major email ISPs like Gmail, AOL, and Yahoo and the DNSBL (Domain Name System-based Blackhole List) to catch spammers. Once you hit a spam trap address, you\u2019ll get flagged within no time and added to a blacklist, subsequently. Spam traps are of four types- Classic spam traps, Seeded spam traps, Typo domain-based spam traps, and Recycled email address-based spam traps.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the case of delivering emails to mislabelled subscribers, you will end up getting blacklisted for what you send to your readers won\u2019t ever be relevant to them, to begin with. Gradually, they will grow less and less engaged with your communications, and eventually either flag you as spam, or, worse, blacklist you. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Churn rate refers to the number of subscribers who opt out of your email list. Churns are of two types:<\/p>\n\n\n\n 1. Transparent churn<\/strong>: Refers to hard bounces, unsubscribes, and spam complaints. Also called involuntary churn. Now, churn is inevitable. Over the course of time, a few of your subscribers will drop out of your list every now and then. That\u2019s never going to be in your control. What you will have control over, though, is your email churn rate; you can take steps to make certain it is as low as possible. A good starting point is, you guessed it, maintaining excellent email data hygiene. <\/p>\n\n\n\n As we have already mentioned earlier, bad email hygiene will keep you from making the most of your customers\u2019 data. As a result, you will never quite be able to come up with marketing campaigns that leave them spellbound. And once your subscribers run out of reasons to look forward to your emails, they won\u2019t think twice before opting out of your list. <\/p>\n\n\n\n This consequence is really a culmination of the two factors listed above. With your deliverability and engagement down in the dumps, your ROI will, of course, be unenviable. Unless you fix your data hygiene problems, all your email spendings will basically be in vain. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Sometimes the repercussions of bad email hygiene can appear rather trivial, which is why email marketers tend to overlook them. For instance, let\u2019s say that one of your subscribers is named John. While entering their name into the database however, you misspelt it as Jon. So, the personalized emails<\/a> you send to him now will now address him as \u201cHi, Jon!\u201d instead of, you know, his actual name.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It is easy to pass this off as a trifling error. After all, it\u2019s just a case of one missing alphabet, right? Wrong. It is enough to put off your customer and push them to consider dropping off your list. A few seemingly casual mistakes like this, and you never know the scale of losses you might be setting yourself up for. So, whatever you do, never be lousy when it comes to your email data hygiene. Remember, you can strive for the perfect big picture only if you get every single detail spot on. <\/p>\n\n\n
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What Makes Your Data Dirty<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
What Can Dirty Data Mean For You<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Increased Risk of Getting Blacklisted<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Now, if you are not on top of your email data hygiene, you will:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
2. Mislabel your customers.<\/p>\n\n\n\nDifficulty In Minimizing Email Churn Rate<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
2. Opaque churn<\/strong>: Refers to cases where your emails are going straight to spam, and to unengaged subscribers- ones who are receiving your emails but leaving them unopened. Also called voluntary churn.<\/p>\n\n\n\nDecreasing ROI<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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