Clean Your MCAE (Pardot) Database in 6 Steps: Boost Efficiency & Save Money

Is your MCAE prospect database feeling like when your junk drawer has moved from the "organized chaos" stage to the "please close for now and I'll deal with you later" stage?

It's easy for your contact lists to become cluttered with junk emails, inactive leads, and even competitors snooping around. And guess what? A messy database can cost you money and make your marketing campaigns less effective. 

But don't worry, we're here to help! Let's spruce up your MCAE (formerly Pardot) database and get it working as hard as you are. 💪 

Benefits of a Clean Database

You might be thinking, "Why should I spend time cleaning up my database? Can't I just ignore it and focus on the things that REALLY matter?" Well, let us tell you, there are some pretty compelling reasons!

In the world of marketing automation, your database is your most valuable asset. It's the engine that drives your email campaigns, lead nurturing and ultimately, your sales conversions. But just like any engine, it needs regular maintenance to perform at its best.

Think of it this way: every contact in your database represents a potential customer. But if your database is filled with outdated or inaccurate information, you're wasting valuable time and resources trying to reach people who may not even exist, or who are no longer interested in what you have to offer.

Additionally, it'll help you...

...save money! This is a big one. The bigger your database, the more you pay. Pricing is often tiered based on the number of "mailable prospects" you have. You're literally paying for every contact in there, so you want to make sure you're not wasting money on leads that will never convert. By removing inactive or irrelevant contacts, you can potentially even lower your subscription costs!

...protect your sender reputation. If people mark your emails as spam (maybe because they don't even remember signing up!), it can hurt your sender reputation with email providers like Gmail and Outlook. This means your emails are less likely to reach people's inboxes. A clean database ensures you're only sending emails to people who genuinely want to receive them. (This is where an email preference center comes in handy. It allows people to choose what types of emails they want to get from you.)

...boost your campaign effectiveness. When you have a bunch of contacts who never engage with your emails, it drags down your overall campaign performance. Key email marketing metrics like open rates and click-through rates are negatively impacted by inactive subscribers. Maybe they've changed jobs, or your marketing just isn't relevant to them anymore. Either way, it's time to say goodbye! 👋 A clean database means you're focusing your efforts on the leads who are most likely to engage and convert.

How Often Should I Clean My  Database?

Maintaining a clean database is crucial for optimal marketing performance. But how often should you undertake this task? The frequency of database cleaning depends on factors like your database size, industry and data change rate. Here's a general guideline:

• High-Growth Companies: Clean your database every 1-2 months.
• Stable Companies: Aim for quarterly database cleaning (every 3-4 months).
• Smaller Companies: A cleaning every 6 months may suffice.

Best Practices:

• Clean your database before major marketing campaigns.
• Regularly monitor email engagement metrics to identify potential issues.

What Are The Signs My Database Needs Cleaning?

A healthy database is essential for effective marketing automation. But how can you tell if yours needs a bit of TLC? Just like a car needs regular maintenance, your database requires attention to ensure it's running smoothly.

Here are some indicators that it's time for a cleanup:

• Poor Email Performance: Low open rates, click-through rates and high bounce rates suggest inactive or invalid email addresses.
• Increased Spam Complaints: A rise in spam complaints indicates that recipients aren't engaging with your emails or don't recall subscribing.
• Low Engagement: If your marketing campaigns are falling flat, your database may contain outdated or inaccurate data.
• Segmentation Challenges: Difficulty segmenting your audience suggests incomplete or inaccurate data hindering effective targeting.
• Reaching Database Limits: Exceeding your database limit signals the need to remove unnecessary contacts.

6 Steps to a Sparkling Clean Database

There are a few steps you can take to reduce the number of unproductive contacts on your list, including: 

Ready to roll up your sleeves and get cleaning? Here's your step-by-step guide:

1. Banish those spam emails! You know the ones—fake emails people use just to download your content. They sneak into your marketing automation and Salesforce CRM, but they're no good to you. These "bad actors" can skew your campaign data and make it harder to track your true marketing ROI. Create a list of common spam email patterns (like "test," "abcd," or "1234") and get rid of them. (Psst... Salesforce Ben has a fantastic blog post on automating this process!)

2. Say "see ya later" to generic emails. Emails like info@, support@, or billing@ won't do you much good. These role-based emails are often shared by multiple people, making it difficult to personalize your messaging or track individual engagement. It's time to give them the boot. 👢

3. Kick out the competition! Okay, admit it, we've all subscribed to our competitors' emails to see what they're up to. 😉 But you don't want them lurking in your database! Competitors can clutter your reports and make it harder to identify qualified leads. Hunt down those competitor domains and add them to a "do not email" list.

4. Call in the verification pros. If you haven't emailed your list in a while, a third-party email verification service can be a lifesaver. It helps you avoid harming your sender reputation by identifying invalid or inactive email addresses. We've used NeverBounce before—it's super easy and affordable. You just upload your list, and they do all the work! ✨

5. Re-engage those sleepy contacts. 😴 Got contacts who haven't engaged with your emails in a while? (I usually consider 90 days of inactivity to be "dormant.") Try a re-engagement nurture campaign to see if they're still interested. This is also a great chance to learn more about them! Maybe their interests have changed, or they simply need a little nudge to re-engage with your brand. Give them a few different ways to re-engage (like a special offer or a survey), and if they still don't bite, you can either add them to your "Do Not Email" list or send them to the recycle bin. (I prefer the recycle bin because it keeps their info—just in case they come back! 😊)

6. Repeat, repeat, repeat! 🔄 Cleaning your database isn't a one-time thing. Make it a regular habit—I like to do it quarterly. Consistent database maintenance ensures that your data remains accurate and relevant, allowing you to continually optimize your marketing efforts. 

Can I Automate Database Cleaning?

Cleaning your database might seem like a daunting task, but it doesn't have to be a completely manual process. Thankfully, MCAE offers several features and integrations that can help automate parts of your database cleaning. Here's how:

• Automation Rules: Set up rules to automatically identify and manage inactive prospects. For example, add inactive prospects to a suppression list or trigger a re-engagement email series.
• Dynamic Lists: Use dynamic lists to automatically segment prospects based on criteria like email engagement, job title, or company size. This helps identify prospects who need updating or removal.
• Salesforce Engage Alerts: Configure alerts to notify you of prospect job or company changes, enabling timely data updates.
• Third-Party Tools: Explore tools like NeverBounce (we mentioned above we're a fan!) for email verification or data enrichment platforms like ZoomInfo or Clearbit to append missing data and standardize formats.

MCAE is an incredibly powerful marketing tool, but it can perform even more effectively and efficiently with a bit of care and feeding. Keeping your prospect database free of extraneous contacts will save you money and make your campaigns work better.

If you are curious about how Unreal can help with your marketing technology needs, be sure to reach out to our team!