Database conversion has been described as more painful than root canal therapy. This is a classic case where it is much better to do the job right the first time than to do it over (and jeopardize business as usual). Here are the types of approaches DMSI offers to reduce your risk in this area:

Household^SM - This process gathers multiple name and address records into a consolidated group, usually by organization. For DMSI clients, normalization helps sales & marketing pros identify multiple contacts within an organization (which is highly valued in B-B marketing).

Convert^SM - This one-time process converts name, address, and transaction information from a source database to a target database. Conversion processes are often required when new software is introduced, so that legacy data can be transferred.

Refresh^SM - This process takes conversion one step further, by providing an application to refresh a target database on-demand (rather than a one-time conversion). Currently, this process uses either of four alternatives:

     a.  DoubleTake software package
     b.  HotShot Tools (for updates of Upshot and Salesforce.com data)
     c.  Customized DMSI Access programs (for Yahoo stores imports to M.O.M).
     d.   Merge/Magic software (for Telemagic and/or Goldmine)

Integrate^SM - This approach creates an integrated database by linking sales & marketing data from multiple client sources. This process uses Data Junction, a powerful application that links multiple files of all types.

Dedupe^SM - This process merges multiple customer files together and then purges duplicates, based on user defined criteria (name & street address, email, etc). The surviving record is most often the preferred one for mailing purposes. However, for building a database, you may choose to keep the most recent customer record, the most complete record, or perhaps the record with order transactions linked to it.