The secret to hidden lists

Folio: The Magazine for Magazine Management, April 1, 1996 by Robert Spiegel

All circulators are facing the need to find more productive lists. We have all seen our response rates slip as expenses increase. Many larger magazines are responding to the challenge by lowering their ratebases, while some smaller publications are exploring alternate forms of subscription generation. Whatever your response, you're surely changing your assumptions about finding new readers.

One way to make the most of your circulation dollar is to ferret out the lists that perform well but are not out on the open market. These hidden lists are typically small but well-targeted. Often, the names produce response rates far greater than commercial lists, and pay-up, conversion and renewal are usually strong. With a good hidden list, you're hitting the heart of your market.

Some examples of hidden lists for Chile Pepper include spicy-food catalogs and pepper-seed companies. These were not huge universes, but the lists performed extremely well. All special-interest magazines have these opportunities. Simply look for other companies within your industry that maintain lists of customers. Often, you can trade for use of the list.

Most niche titles can come up with a list of sources for hidden lists. And once the sources are in place, the successful ones can simply be re-used again and again as new names are added. Some common sources for hidden lists:

Advertisers: Many of your advertisers keep customer lists that are highly targeted to your market. Frequently, you'll be in the same market, but reaching different people. Also, by working with advertisers you can trade for usage. A wise trade would be to move the advertiser to a larger ad; that way, you don't interrupt the revenue flow that is already coming from them.

You can also include potential advertisers in this group. You may actually bring in an advertiser by trading for names. You get to use their names, and they get a free or discounted ad. This can lead to an ongoing relationship.

Association membership list: If you have a sizable association in the market you serve, it can be an excellent source of names. Like your advertisers, these organizations may barter for usage.

Your suppliers: Again, if they are in your industry, they may have names that are appropriate for mailing. There is not much chance for barter here, however, because you are buying from them, not selling.

Complied lists: Granted, these are not really hidden lists. They are in fact available on the rental market. But they are often overlooked by list brokers--who almost never recommend them--and are usually frowned upon by circulation directors. For a niche magazine, though, there are some compiled lists that can work. At Chile pepper, we use the list of gourmet stores that is compiled from Yellow Pages nationally. We mail a flier advertising our magazine as a product for sale in their stores. This brings in a lot of direct-to-retail accounts. We turn fulfillment over to our printer, and we manage the invoicing and collections. What's more, maintaining this system is easier than you'd imagine. We have also used restaurant lists for mailing subscription offers. This was worth the effort, but like a lot of lists that work, it was frustratingly small.

The duds

And then there are the lists that don't work. The duds. Just keep in mind: There are reasons why the duds are duds, so most bad experiences can be avoided with a little planning and investigation.

Unlike commercial lists, hidden lists are not always maintained in the manner you might expect. One common problem is currency. Generally speaking, specialized lists are not mailed on a regular basis. Thus, the address changes may not be captured. And even if the list is mailed regularly, there may not be an address-change capture mechanism. You cannot necessarily expect this basic function to be completed with a non-commercial list. Remember, 10 percent of all addresses go bad during a one-year period. So, if a list hasn't been updated in two years, 20 percent of the names on the file are automatically bad.

Another problem with hidden fists is the tracking of sources. You need to find out whether orders are maintained separately from inquiries. Believe it or not, sometimes all names go into the same database without a tag. This also creates a problem with duplicates. A dupe-check can catch it before you mail, but not necessarily before you buy or trade for the file.

And then there is the issue of compatibility. Every company has its own ways of entering names, and its own software. One company may have several non-compatible lists for different purposes. Compatibility is not nearly the problem it was just a couple of years ago, but it can still slow the process of gathering names, and thus cut into the effectiveness and profitability of the list in question.

Selling yourself

Finally, you will probably find some resistance to the use of these hidden names. Publishers are very free about renting their subscriber files. Most magazines would like to see their list revenue grow. But not all companies feel so free about handing over their customer lists, even for a good fee. You will probably have to do some educating in order to wrestle names from a potential source. Be prepared to explain even the most basic of points, that you are buying the names for a one-time use.