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Best Practice Strategies to
Clean up and Maintain Your
Database
Hether Ghelf
Senior Consultant, Project Manager & Data Hygiene Lead
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• Bad inputs make bad outputs
• In lead generation and overall marketing, a piece of information is
considered “garbage” if it doesn’t contribute positively to the
campaign.
• If you’ve got misleading, inaccurate, or incomplete data, then you’ve
got garbage on your hands.
GARBAGE IN, GARBAGE OUT
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Staffing Issues
• Do you have a high data entry staff turnover?
• Are you stretching existing resources a long way?
CHALLENGES & REASONS FOR MESSY DATA
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Limited Time / Budget
• Do you struggle finding the time or money for proper database training
for your employees?
CHALLENGES & REASONS FOR MESSY DATA
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Merges and conversions within your databases
• Have you recently merged 2+ databases?
- Were duplicate records, codes, attributes taken care prior to the
merge?
• Did you convert from one database to another?
- Were pre-conversion clean up activities and post conversion clean
up activities scheduled?
CHALLENGES & REASONS FOR MESSY DATA
Converting from one database to another is
a huge task and shouldn’t be taken lightly!
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Using external sources
• Do you bring in data from 3rd party vendors or external lists?
• Have you ensured the data is formatted to fit your data file prior to
importing?
CHALLENGES & REASONS FOR MESSY DATA
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Documentation for Policy and Procedures
• Are your policy and procedures documents non existent or out-dated?
• Does your organisation have a Data Entry Standards (DES) document
to assist with “how to” properly enter data?
CHALLENGES & REASONS FOR MESSY DATA
A policy and procedures document
and DES are two of the top documents
organisations should have!
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Resistance to change
• Have you stopped to ask why you enter in data the way you do?
• Do you have multiple people entering data different ways?
CHALLENGES & REASONS FOR MESSY DATA
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1. Receive support from the top down
2. Audit/Assessment
3. Areas & Issues Identified
- create a clean up plan/strategy
- start with the most important areas
4. Begin Data Cleansing
5. Ask for Help
6. Be Proactive – fill in the gaps
7. Maintain Your Database
WHERE TO START - STEPS TO TAKE
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• CEO
• Executive Committee
• Fundraising Manager
• Fundraising Staff
• Program & Other Department Staff
• Data Entry Staff
• Volunteers
STEP 1 – RECEIVE SUPPORT FROM THE TOP DOWN
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Review your database structure
• Codes, Attributes, Notes, Gift info, Reports, User Access, Process
• EVERYTHING!
Create initial queries/groupings
STEP 2 - AUDIT/ASSESSMENT
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• Examples of groupings/queries:
- Formatting of title, first name, middle name, surname, suffix, address lines,
suburb, state, postcode, gender
- Blank fields in all of the above
- Where there’s a spouse but the primary addressee and salutations are
singular
- If marked deceased, is the spouse still receiving the mailings; if yes, how are
they being addressed? Is it still Mr & Mrs? Correct the record so you don’t
offend anyone
- Marked as do not solicit, do not call but have been sent a recent appeal or
called during a recent calling campaign
- Missing Constituent Codes, Solicit Codes, Attributes
- Review code tables or drop down menu selections regularly and eliminate
duplicates or misspellings, especially after data has just been imported into
the database
- Return to sender mail – mark as invalid address, don’t just throw it away
STEP 2 - AUDIT/ASSESSMENT
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• Examples of groupings/queries continued…
- Male title/female or unknown gender
- Female title/male or unknown gender
- Title Ms, Mrs, Miss and unknown gender
- Blank spouse or contact title
- Marital status with deceased spouse
- Single with spouse
- Gifts with a blank campaign, appeal, letter code, etc
- Gifts not receipted or acknowledged
STEP 2 - AUDIT/ASSESSMENT
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• Other areas to consider reviewing/updating:
- Required fields
- Security Groups and/or User Access
- Existing reports, queries/groupings and exports
- Duplicate records – find and merge
STEP 2 - AUDIT/ASSESSMENT
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Start talking!
• Have you asked for input from staff/departments who obtain
information from the database? Or from those who input data?
STEP 2 – AUDIT/ASSESSMENT
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• Review and fine-tune the queries/groupings you created in Step 2
• Review notes from talking with staff/departments
STEP 3 – AREAS & ISSUES IDENTIFIED
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• Create a Clean Up Plan/Strategy and goals
STEP 3 – AREAS & ISSUES IDENTIFIED
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Start Data Cleansing!
STEP 4 – DATA CLEANSING
Before making any changes to be
sure to back up your database!
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Ask for help Internally
• Knowledgeable staff within your organisation
And for help externally if needed
• Consultants or technical experts
to run database audits
• Blackbaud Data Hygiene Services
STEP 5 – ASK FOR HELP
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Be Proactive
Be Proactive
Be Proactive
STEP 6 – BE PROACTIVE
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STEP 7: MAINTAIN YOUR DATABASE
After you have spent time, energy
and money cleansing your
database, put steps in place to
maintain it!
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Assign roles within your organisation
• Database Administrator (DBA) and/or Super User is a must
• Set their primary responsibility to keeping your database clean and
maintained
Have a back up!
• Have a back up DBA that can step
up in case your primary DBA is
out sick or leaves the organisation
STEP 7 - MAINTAINING YOUR DATABASE
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Update (or create) those important documents!
• Policies and Procedures
• Data Entry Standards (DES) document
STEP 7 - MAINTAINING YOUR DATABASE
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Example of Policy & Procedures document:
STEP 7 - MAINTAINING YOUR DATABASE
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Example of Data Entry Standards document:
STEP 7 - MAINTAINING YOUR DATABASE
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Keep your staff in the know!
• Train new and existing staff in system functionality
• Provide refresher training to staff on a regular basis (quarterly)
• Hold regular data entry staff meetings (weekly/bi-weekly)
STEP 7 - MAINTAINING YOUR DATABASE
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Look AND Listen
• Check new staff’s data entry –
help them become comfortable
with how they should be entering
data
• Talk to your staff - ask what staff like
doing in the database and what
they don’t
STEP 7 - MAINTAINING YOUR DATABASE
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Be prepared for upcoming campaigns
Calling Campaigns:
• Request staff or volunteers to verify name, address, email, mobile
• Create a template for entering the new/updated information
STEP 7 - MAINTAINING YOUR DATABASE
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Mailing Campaigns:
• Check your queries/groupings to ensure they have the correct criteria
• Run your addresses through a data hygiene service or Australia Post
one or twice a year
STEP 7 - MAINTAINING YOUR DATABASE
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Always continue auditing and cleaning up your database
And never stop searching for areas of improvement
STEP 7 - MAINTAINING YOUR DATABASE
Once your database is at a
manageable state, it will be easier
to maintain!
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1. Your database is key to your fundraising
2. Remember… garbage in, garbage out
3. Get started – don’t keep delaying the inevitable
4. MAINTAIN YOUR DATABASE
5. Ask for HELP
TAKE AWAYS
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• Blackbaud’s Consulting Services Department can assist you with your
database clean up, creation of your Policy & Procedures document
and Data Entry Standards document.
• Blackbaud’s Data Hygiene Services include:
– Address append and verification
– Phone append and verification for telemarketing and other contact
purposes
– Deduplication
– Provides deep insight into your existing data
– Offers data elements to enhance your data to create a richer asset
for your organisation
HOW BLACKBAUD CAN HELP
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THANK YOU!
Questions?