A customized prospecting list is critical for your cold calling campaign. Although every element of a cold calling campaign needs special attention, prospect lists need the utmost care. Selecting and cleaning your data can be tedious and time consuming but it will bring about rewarding results in the end.
Start your campaign with confidence in your database. Conduct a SIC code lookup for your target industries and personnel, and build separate lists to accommodate multiple industries. This will enable you to customize your approach and assess results by industry.
Regardless of where your data comes from, it will need to be cleaned before you begin the campaign. As much as 25% of the data could be missing or incorrect. People move between roles and between companies. In addition, some companies may be incorrectly classified within SIC codes, some may be out of date, or some records may be incomplete.
List cleaning starts with reviewing the data for errors in SIC classification, records that just don’t make sense like incorrectly formatted emails, and for missing pieces of the data. Eliminate those records that don’t apply then start “filling in the blanks”. If your source for the data doesn’t provide any further insights, missing data can be researched on online through LinkedIn, Google searches and company websites.
Cleaning your prospect list takes time and may delay the ROI of your lead generation campaign, but it is well worth it. Once you have cleaned your data, your campaign will progress more efficiently. You will be talking to the people you want to talk to and therefore it will deliver a higher level of engagement. The goal is to build a targeted and accurate database. It is well worth the effort to clean up your lead list because a good list leads to qualified appointments and lead nurturing not just for the short-term, but also for the future. Like anything else, it takes time and skill to do this.
Bad data is bad business, and there’s a cost to it –wasted time and missed new business opportunities. A finely tuned prospect list is your best sales tool.
