Where Am I Going to Find 100,000 Names?

A primer on where to locate sources of productive lists.

By Bruce Sprague
Friday, December 9, 2011

For People Just starting out in the audience development profession there are many aspects of the work, which can seem completely overwhelming. Finding the quantity of names needed for new name development efforts can be one of these.

If you need to develop 5,000 new subscribers you may need to have a universe of 100,000 contacts for a telemarketing campaign. This may seem very high but once the lists are merge/purged against your magazine file 10 percent to 15 percent of the names could be duplicates. The telemarketing company will not be able to get in touch with everyone on the list. They might only be able to get through to 60 percent to 70 percent of the file. Finally, the file may only generate a 10 percent to 20 percent response rate. It really could take renting this many names to get 5,000 new subscribers.

Fortunately, there are a surprising number of sources you can access. If you work for a publisher with other audience development professionals, ask these people where they find their names. They probably have several sources of lists they have developed over the years. They could put you in touch with the list broker they use.

If you are the “audience development” expert at your company look at these areas for potential new subscribers:

1. Are there other magazines in your company? If yes and the markets are similar, you might be able to use names from these other magazines. This can be a sensitive issue. Some companies and/or magazines do not want to have high levels of duplication among their magazines. While this could be a good source of names it may not be available to you.

2. There are large databases of names from which you can rent targeted groups of prospects. Examples of these sources include Dun & Bradstreet and InfoUSA, among others.

3. Standard Rates & Data Services, SRDS, is a source you can use to find other publications in markets similar to your magazine(s). You could then contact these companies to see if they would be interested in renting or exchanging names with your magazine. You could also provide these potential sources to a list broker.

4. If you can establish a relationship with one or more brokers they can make this process less stressful. You could check Audience Development magazine for names of brokers, do a Google search or ask peers what list brokers they use.

If you provide the list broker with the specific demographic criteria of the names you need, they will do the research to find lists with names matching these criteria. You can then review these lists to determine which might be appropriate to test for your magazine.

The price you pay for lists will vary significantly. If you are using a list for direct mail you might be able to rent a list for $150/M to $200/M. A file rented for telemarketing could cost $250/M or more. Lists rented for email can run $300/M and higher. Prices will differ based on how much information you request.

After you have gone through the process to find appropriate lists you may not be able to rent them. Some list owners may not rent to your magazine because they consider it too competitive. Additionally, some list owners do not rent their files for telemarketing or for email campaigns. The good news is there are usually enough lists that you will be able to rent some.

Take heart—while 100,000 names is a large number there are resources you can use to find them.

Bruce Sprague has wide ranging experience in all aspects of audience development. As director of circulation for Penton Media, Bruce was responsible for more than 30 b-to-b controlled circulation magazines. The Sprague Group provides an alternative solution to publishers needing assistance with their audience development. Reach Bruce at bs200264@sbcglobal.net.