Data Cards: An Indispensable Tool

Another piece of information that needs to be looked at carefully is the kind of offer that generated the names on the file. Huntoon asserts, “A sweepstakes-driven customer is a very different one from a customer who has responded to a cash-up-front offer.”

Always get a sample of the mailing piece used to generate the names currently on the list. Analyze all of the components of the piece, including offer, creative and price. “Then you can draw parallels to your own marketing techniques,” Huntoon says. If your package bears no resemblance to what those people responded to, you may want to reconsider a test.