AMiable Solution #6: Avoiding List-Rental Hold-Ups

Selecting and renting lists tends to take a back seat to creating the actual mailpiece, which can cause gridlock with your schedule if your piece is printed but your lists at large. The list rental process, unfortunately, takes time. Time (yours) to examine the lists and extract current and relevant information. Time (your list broker's) to process the orders and submit them to the appropriate owners. And time (the list owner's) to review the order and sample mailpiece and either approve or deny the rental request. Throw in holidays, vacations, meetings, and general business busyness, and your "quick" order can become a two week ordeal.

Fact is, Geoff Batrouney, executive vice president at Estee Marketing Group, in an October 2011 Multichannel Merchant article, says list brokers usually need three to four weeks to create and implement a list rental program.

So what can you do to avoid running full-steam ahead into a campaign only be to derailed by a wait? Think ahead, and ask for pre-approvals. Instead of waiting until your mailpiece is complete to turn your attention to lists, start right away. When you begin your mail plan and start scoping out potential rental lists, contact your list broker with questions about those lists--current counts, additional fees for special processing or handling, turnaround times, list selects, age of the list, etc.--before you start the actual mailpiece. By the time your mailpiece reaches its first draft, you'll most likely have answers to your questions and have a better idea which lists you plan to pursue.

Then, use the first draft and ask your list broker if she/he can secure pre-approvals on those lists, even if you're not 100% sure you'll use them. You'll most likely know which lists are useable and which aren't before your mailpiece is finalized, at which point you can place the actual order and expect a shorter turnaround time, since neither your list broker or the list owner will be surprised by your request.

Do you have a better suggestion to offer or a challenge you'd like help with? Say it here. Your comments are always welcome.