by Ron Daly

For marketers, making assumptions about your target audience is easy. But is it always accurate? It's tempting to look at a person's buying history, or review gender and age demographics, to help customize marketing messages. However, you should do so with care, as assumptions can just as easily backfire on your good intentions.

Just because someone buys a tricycle, don't assume they are married with young kids … it could have been purchased as a gift.

That's the point of Loren McDonald's message in a recent Email Insider article. (Loren is a "he" not a "she." And he doesn't have an ounce of Irish or Scottish in his genes.) In his article, "My Name Is Loren. BTW, I'm a 'He,'" McDonald warns of awkward and costly mistakes when you bring stereotypes and assumptions into your marketing efforts.

"The downside of wrong assumptions about your customers and prospects goes beyond potentially annoying them and even hurting your brand," he said. "It can also hurt your bottom line by continually sending subscribers offers and communications based on 'bad' data."

To steer clear of these situations, keep these tips in mind:

• Collect key demographic data when members opt in. Case in point: McDonald received an email promoting engagement rings despite being married for 26 years - something that should have been easily captured by the marketing team.
• Gather data useful to your key business lines. Credit unions can benefit from gathering financial preferences of its members, such as if they own or rent (mortgage products), recently purchased a car (auto loans), or have children approaching college age (student loan programs).
• Collect members' basic interests and preferences. This helps you provide messages that are more applicable and well-timed, as well as member' preferred method for receiving messages.

DigitalMailer has the know-how to help you execute an effective email communication program - call (866) 994-4900, ext 103, visit www.digitalmailer.com/arb or email info@digitalmailer.com for more information.