Wanted: Fresh Names

The flip side of this philosophy, supported by direct marketing legend Dick Benson, tells marketers not to waste time on lists that don’t perform well on the initial test. You might want to re-test if you’re sure you screwed up your first analysis, but a list that doesn’t work can’t be made better.

One of the factors that can throw off mailing results is the makeup of the list. For example, Kupfer explains, seasonality can change the type of customer ordering from the catalog. Or, if the list owner changes price points, tinkers with the focus of the product mix or adds a deferred payment option, the names brought in on those campaigns can be much different from the segments you’re used to mailing.