It is important to dedicate time to clean up your data, particularly when it comes time for member recruitment.
Look at your list of prospects and ask yourself:
1) Do I know where they came from?
2) Do I know what role that prospect plays in the decision-making process?
3) Is that information still accurate?
If you can’t answer these questions, it’s time to re-visit your list!
Are there holes in your data? If so, the first step is to diagnose your data by identifying missing information. To do this, gather your list of prospects from your CRM and paste them into your Excel. Make sure to include every detail you have about that company and prospect, including where you found them and when you last spoke. This will come in handy during the next stage: clean-up. You will have an honest look at your data once you take care of the “busy work” and can develop a strategic plan to improve your prospect list.
The next step is all about quality over quantity. Don’t be afraid to eliminate companies that are no longer relevant to your association’s mission or membership services offered. It’s okay if this list goes from thousands to hundreds. Once you have a refined list of companies, look at the contact and fill in the missing information that will help you decide if they are the best person for membership discussion.
The rewards of list clean-up may not be immediate. Be patient. The sooner you put in the work, the sooner you will see improved results in your membership prospecting.