FAQs

Direct Mail Vs Direct Marketing:

• If you are contacting a direct marketing agency, chances are they have direct mail in their service offerings. Rather than ask questions that will trigger clarification questions, it would be better to start off by describing what issues you are looking for solutions to and why you thought direct mail was an answer. Expect a detailed discussion and be prepared to supply enough information to get to a point where the agency can actually formulate an answer that will make sense for your request. Keep in mind that a direct marketing agency is not a mail house. If you are simply looking for someone to execute direct mail as quickly and economically as possible, an agency might not be a good fit.

What is your pricing for your services? Do you have a price list you can send to me?

• Rather than ask for pricing or a price list, it may be better to request a proposal. Keep in mind that for an agency to effectively develop a proposal, there will need to be a detailed conversation that maps multiple factors, including strategy, goals, channels, metrics, etc. Also keep in mind that when considering a direct marketing agency, price should not be the sole factor in your decision.

How are Response mailing lists and Compiled/Database mailing lists different?

• Response and Compiled mailing lists are the two main types of lists on the market. A Response list is comprised of individuals or companies who have taken an action. These people/companies have purchased from a catalog, have subscribed to a magazine, have replied to a space advertisement, or have ‘opted-in’ to receive an e-mail solicitation.

There are two types of Complied lists:

1. The standard inexpensive compiled list comprised from such sources as public records, questionnaires and registration forms, telephone directories, business incorporation papers, and realty filings amongst many other sources. There are many list firms that see this or resell this type of data which comes with no data quality guarantees.
2. The custom built highly verified B2b databases with data quality guarantees for the emails, phones & postal records.  BorgDirect follows all best practices to ensure the quality and deliverability of the database lists we offer. These are custom built highly verified records containing matching email, postal & phones that we provide for your mailing requirements.

How do I find mailing lists that identify my audience?

• Mailing lists are our specialty. Begin by describing the universe of people/businesses that you want to contact. We will identify the best records per the specifications and present you with a recommendation, which is supplied to you at no cost.

How do I buy mailing lists I have identified as appropriate to reach my audience?

• We will handle the list rental or database purchasing process for you.

How much do mailing lists cost? How can I save money?

• The price of mailing lists is set by the specific list owner, and you are charged based on the quantity of records that you rent. The industry standard is that you are given a quantity discount if you order a substantial number of records. There are other factors that may affect the price of mailing lists, including integration with your own business data or customization of individual records (“selects”).

What does a mailing list broker do?

• A mailing list broker is responsible for conducting all the list research and making list recommendations for the mailer. In addition, a good list broker performs price negotiation, clears the sample mail piece, tracks the orders, and in general is the go-between for the mailer and the list owner.

What is a mailing list manager?

• A mailing list manager is responsible for maximizing the performance of mailing lists by maintaining the integrity of the database, performing stringent hygiene and generating regular usage and performance reports. This ensures that the mailing lists you buy are of the highest quality possible.

What is a datacard?

• A data card is an informational brief that describes the contents of a mailing list. The data card will feature topline information such as total universe, major data segments, pricing structure, granular data selections, delivery etc

What are Net Name arrangements?

• Net Name is a negotiated agreement that credits mailers for duplicate records. It is common that purchased or rented list contains some of the same names on a house list or on other acquired lists. The net name agreement process consists of two parts, an allowable duplicate percentage and a run charge. The percentage is the minimum percentage of the quantity ordered, say 100,000, that must be paid at the full rate, say 85%. So even if there are 80,000 unique names left after the merge/purge process, the mailer must pay for 85,000 at the agreed to list price. The run charge is the rate charged for the duplicate records deleted. In this case, the 20,000 duplicates would be billed at $3/M. Net name arrangements are not available on all mailing lists and are typically only available on larger orders.

Can I order segments of mailing lists?

• Most mailing lists contain a variety of selectable details from which the mailer may choose. These data details will help to more accurately identify and focus on a target audience. So, if your offer is geared towards a specific geography, age range, business type, etc, you are able to select the precise data elements you need.

What is the minimum order qty? -

• BorgDirect is flexible on the order qty minimum. Pricing depends on qty and target criteria.

Once I order and receive mailing lists, are the names mine to keep?

• For rental lists No. Orders for opt-in mailing lists are placed with the condition that you will only use the records one time for whatever purpose has been specified (postal mail, telemarketing, etc.). One can order a -re-use of that data for a 2nd use.
• For BorgDirect’s database lists they are all for purchase with unlimited use and with no rental requirements.

What is my guarantee that the mailing list will be successful for me?

• We cannot guarantee that the list we recommend, and you select, will be successful. But we can guarantee that our knowledge and expertise will ensure the highest possible level of deliverability, and that you will be mailing to your targeted audience. The responsiveness of mailing lists depends on many variables, such as the effectiveness of your offer, price, creative content, competition, as well as the time of year in which you mail.

What do you mean by “one per” and “All per” ?

• One Per Company: That is the # of unqiue accounts/firms that have a top one company contact able to be identfied at that account whether an owner, partner, president or VP etc.
• The all per company is just that, the total number of contacts overall that can be pulled from the critera..... some companies will have 2+ contacts and some will have just one contact, contact titles can range from c-level to mgmt level to staff level titles

What about compliance with U.S. and global privacy regulations?

• BorgDirect data is subject to strict governance around the world. Reputable mailing list data brokers and managers must comply with regulatory frameworks which include the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in the EU and UK, the US-EU-Swiss Privacy Shield Framework, the California Consumer Protection Act (CCPA), and the Canada Anti-Spam Law (CASL). These should be referenced in a Privacy Policy or data sourcing and usage compliance statement. Mailinglists.com is in full compliance with all major regulatory frameworks and laws.

How updated are our lists?

• Our databases are updated quarterly and periodically run against the NCOA (National Change of Address) file that is provided by the US Postal Service. This is a file of all the people that have changed or updated their address. The NCOA file is updated monthly. Most lists are run against the NCOA file on a quarterly basis.  At BorgDirect, out databases are constantly being updated. We are always adding new names to our databases and purging out bad ones. The names that we purge are those that have moved and left no forwarding address, people that have passed away and other undeliverable addresses. The overall decay rate for B2C and B2B customer data is estimated at 20-30% each year. In the most dynamic job markets, better than 70 percent of business people change some aspect of their contact data each year. Consumers move constantly, while experiencing life changes of all sorts. Freshness counts, staleness costs

• Yes, we can e-mail your list to you.

• We begin to process orders as soon as they are received. Most orders take 48 hours to complete.

• We accept payment via Wire, ACH, Check, Money Order. Credit/Debit cards are accepted on a case by case basis.

• We provide a 85% accuracy on email, 95% accuracy on postal and 90%+ on phones. We guarantee the data quality for up to 30 days after the file is delivered.

• SIC stands for Standard Industry Classification. This is the number system that is used to identify a business. Each type of business has an SIC code associated with it. We use the code to select businesses from our business database.

• With the advent of technology and modern data collection methodologies, lists can be extremely targeted. You must keep in mind however, that the more targeted you get, the more expensive the list. Here is a list of the different demographic categories we offer:
  • Geography
  • Income
  • Gender
  • Martial Status
  • Mail Order Buyer
  • Magazine Subscriber
  • Computer Owner
  • Donor
  • Ethnicity
  • Religion
  • Book Buyer
  • Credit Card Holder
  • Homeowner
  • Length of Residence
  • Presence of Children
  • Age of Children
  • Telephones
  • (/M = per 1,000)
• Please note that some demographic selections might be included with your list depending on the database. We also have categories that are not listed here. Please check with your list rep.

How targeted can a business list be?

• We can target businesses by using SIC code, sales volume and number of employees to name a few. Here are the different categories available on our business database:
  • Title & Contact name
  • Hotline
  • Geography
  • S.I.C. Select/Omit
  • Sales Volume
  • Employee Size
  • Contact Name
  • Religion/Ethnicity
  • Executive Donors
  • Telephones
  • (/M=per 1,000)