List Enhancement: Past, Present, and Future

As the year draws to a close and new one begins, it is a good time to reflect on the email list enhancement industry, which is entering its second decade-how far it has come, the state of the industry today, and what lies ahead.

TowerData was a pioneer of email list enhancement, launching its email append service in 2001. The original TowerData list database was 11 million records in size. Today our database houses over 500 million records.

In the beginning, it was a challenge to make customers aware of the value that the new services offered. In addition to a lack of awareness in the industry, hesitancy was encountered because of privacy and permission issues.

The CAN-SPAM Act of 2003, which established federal guidelines for commercial email, had a major impact in removing obstacles and standardizing the industry. Through our efforts and those of our fellow players, customers became aware of the benefits they could derive by enhancing their customer email lists.

Why did email list enhancement catch on and continue to grow? Almost all customers benefit from acquiring more of their customers’ email addresses, and in many cases the gains have been dramatic-increased revenues, lower costs, and higher customer retention. Email list enhancement enables organizations to better engage their customers and maintain their business and loyalty.

As with computer and Internet technologies in general, enhancement services have progressed and evolved at a steady pace. Better matching techniques and algorithms have been developed and refined over time. A host of services complementary to email enhancement have been introduced, including real-time data services and a wide range of demographic data.

Today we are in a thriving industry, and TowerData has been able to maintain its edge through continual innovation and by focusing exclusively on delivering high-quality services. Ten years of experience has given TowerData deep expertise and a high reputation among its partners and customers.

There is still a lot more innovation to come, and the rewards of email list enhancement for customers will continue to expand. We are committed to discovering and delivering more of that value as the future unfolds.