How to Leverage the Do Not Call List to Enhance Your Marketing

By Matthew Vernhout

Is your company optimizing the potential of permission marketing?  The introduction of the Do Not Call List (DNCL) regulation will certainly compel senior marketers like you to think about this question.

With the DNCL set to be launched on September 30, 2008, you want to make the most of the time you have to call your customers. Take this time to contact the customers that are the most valuable to your firm. When you call them, make sure you verify their contact information and obtain permission to contact them through one or all of your communication platforms (telephone, email or direct mail).

The following is a guide on how you can leverage permission-based marketing across all communications platforms:

For those customers who prefer to be contacted by telephone:

• Verify which telephone number(s) may be used for contact
• Verify the preferred time(s) for contact
• Probe to determine if other methods such as email or direct mail can be used for specific marketing or transactional communications

Some of your contacts will opt-out of telemarketing, and thus, you should immediately request their permission for your email marketing program.

For those customers who prefer to be contacted by email:

• Verify which email address(es) may be used
• Also, send an email within 24 hours of your conversation to acknowledge their preferences
• Keep in-mind that when launching any new email program, begin with a ‘welcome message’ that describes the program – and includes an indication of the frequency of your email messages
• Provide a method (e.g. a preference centre) that allows customers to define what emails they want and when they want to receive them
• Include a visible and operable unsubscribe

For those customers who prefer to be contacted by direct mail:

• Verify their postal address
• Verify the marketing programs that match customer interests
• Send relevant DM campaigns to communities of interests (social values, psychographic or demographic segments)

Ultimately, you want to get your customer’s permission to market and examine their preferences in detail. These preferences can be used to design a marketing program that is unique and relevant to your customer. As a result, you will achieve greater responses and build stronger relationships with your customers.