Email Data

What is Email Data?

Email data refers to the simple yet extensive database of the names and email addresses of your customers and leads. Various departments use the data but it’s primarily the marketing department that most often reaches out to people in the list.

Email data includes both current verified and historical data for different industries. Companies generally store this information in an email delivery software service or a CRM (customer relationship manager) software program with bulk email capabilities.

Where Does Email Data Come From?

Email data comes from both your own records and from databases sold by vendors.

You can gather your own email data via opt-in landing pages and competitions on your website or social media accounts. If your company has a physical store or presence, physical sign-up sheets are also a good method of collecting the data.

Conversely, purchasing this data from external providers can be expensive and sometimes less dependable. However, their databases can enlarge your client list considerably.

What Types of Columns/Attributes Should I Expect When Working with an Email Database?

Naturally, email data does not contain many complex attributes. Generally, there are names, email addresses, location (the specificity depending on your need), and method of data collection. Other common attributes include the type of product the customer has previously bought or has shown interest in.

What Is This Data Used For?

There are over 3.8 billion email users in 2018 and an expected 4.2 billion by the end of 2022, according to The Radicati Group, so the utility of this database must be recognized.

Marketers already know that emails convert more leads into customers than any other marketing method. They also understand that, since they can responded to them at any time, customers are more likely to reply positively. Phone calls or in-person meetings,  on the other hand, can put people on the spot.

Once onboarded, customer service departments use email data to provide an improved customer experience. Agents send updates on sales, special offers, prizes, business updates, and even informational content like case studies. In essence, extensive and accurate email data vastly improves conversion rates and customer satisfaction.

How Should I Test the Quality of Email Data?

The two key factors that guarantee quality email data are quantity and accuracy. Quantity is easy to measure—the more addresses, the more leads you can contact with. Quantity, however, should not be prioritized over accuracy. In this case, accuracy refers to both recency and topicality. That is, the data should contain current, valid emails and the contacts should have shown some interest in your product (or similar ones).

What Are the Most Important Factors I Should Vet when Selecting This Data?

If you are looking to purchase email data from external providers, you should first make sure they provide a large and dynamic database that your company cannot build or maintain on its own. In other words, you should only purchase an external database that adds value to your own records.

Additionally, providers should be able to answer questions about the collection of their data. For example, how frequently do they update and clean their database? How do they collect the data? What intent or other data do they use as evidence of topicality?

Interesting Case Studies and Blogs to Look Into

Marketing Sherpa: 5 Interesting Ways to Use Email Data Analytics
Socket Labs:5 Interesting Ways to Use Email Data Analytics

Tangible Examples of Impact

“Time and time again, you’ve been asked to prove the effectiveness and ROI of your organization’s marketing efforts—especially when it comes to email marketing. And email marketing is the king of the marketing kingdom with a 4400% ROI and $44 for every $1 spent.”

The Campaign Monitor: 70 Email Marketing Stats You Need to Know for 2019