You have probably heard it all before but your database really can go out-of-date by over 40% a year unless you do something about it. And as one of your most valuable assets, doesn't it deserve some time and attention every now and then? Take 5 minutes to see how many of these you can answer before you run your next campaign. It could ultimately save you money and increase your response rates.

1. When was the last time your data was de-duped?

You may have a number of personnel inputting customer details onto your CRM system - or have various databases stored at different sites or on different systems. Does it really matter if Mr Bloggs at ABC Widgets Ltd receives 2 of those flyers you're planning on sending? After all, it's only paper and postage that's being wasted...

2. Are the addresses on your database accurate?

We're not all fortunate enough to have address verification software that ensures data entry is correct and up-to-date. Your brand can suffer and your carefully crafted mailing consigned to the waste bin when addresses and postcodes are inaccurate.

3. How many of your customers are still current?

Are you sure the customers you have on your database are still at the addresses you hold? Reducing mailing costs is easy by ensuring you continually update your database which can be carried out through the use of industry suppression files. With email campaigns, make sure you remove the hard bounces before running your next broadcast - you will be a better friend to your ISP if you do.

4. Are you legally compliant?

Are any of your contacts on the Telephone or Corporate Telephone Preference Service registers? If they are not existing customers or have already requested to be suppressed, you need to make sure your database is updated against each of the registers every 28 days in order to avoid a potential £5000 fine.

5. When was the last time you had a data healthcheck?

There are suppliers, including Marketscan, who will run a data healthcheck free of charge to show you the current status of your database. This is an excellent way of checking how good (or bad) your data really is before making any commitments. Make sure you use a supplier who complies with the DMA's Direct Marketing Code of Practice and Data Security guidelines for the protection and confidentiality of your database. If you are interested in having a free data healthcheck run against your database, call us on 0845 838 5380 or email datahero@marketscan.co.uk.