DQ-IRL

DQ-IRL

Jun 16, 2010 by in Data Quality

Last November, in my blog post Data Quality, 50023, I shared a story about one of my DQ-IRL (i.e., Data Quality in Real Life) experiences, and in the comments section, readers shared some of their stories, which were even better.

In case you missed it, go check it out now.  Don’t worry, I can wait.

You back yet?  No . . . how about now?  You’re back now?  Okay, cool.

Wow, weren’t those some great DQ-IRL stories?  It’s impossible to pick a favorite since they were all awesome.  (But clearly, Crysta Anderson’s comment was the best :-) ).

In my final comment reply, I promised to run a recurring series on this topic.

Well, today I am proud to say that after eight months of careful planning and some investigative reporting that both Geraldo Rivera and his mustache would be proud of, this blog post is officially the second entry in the series!

Okay, so the truth is that I completely forgot about this project until last week.

That’s when Jon Crowell shared some of his “tales from the dirty data crypt” in his excellent blog post Dirty Customer Data Makes You Look Like a Buffoon.

In case you missed it, please go check it out now.  Seriously, it’s much better than my old post that I just made you re-read.  Don’t worry, once again, I can wait.

. . .

Are you back now?  Awesome.  Weren’t Jon’s DQ-IRL stories excellent?

Well, although it’s definitely not as good, here’s my latest DQ-IRL story . . .

I am NOT as old as my Postal Address makes you think I am

I live in Ankeny, which is a northern “suburb” of Des Moines, Iowa.

Slightly more specifically, I own a townhouse in a community that is demographically identified as being comprised of retired people, which in the United States, means you are likely to be at least in your early sixties, if not much older.

The demographics for my townhouse community are based largely on construction blueprints, which are publicly available data in the state of Iowa.

All of the townhouses in my community are exactly the same.

Although the units are two bedroom, two full bath, their layout is relatively small and best-suited for individuals or couples without children.

Perhaps most telling is that they are single-level dwellings built on a concrete slab foundation—meaning no basement—and, in fact, they have absolutely no stairs at all.  Even our “front porches” are on the slab, which also means no outdoor stairs.

These demographics almost scream “retirement community” and therefore, as far as the consumer marketing world is concerned—I am a very old man.

Although we have a few young families, the vast majority of the other members of my homeowners association conform almost perfectly to the expected demographics.

The result is that at least 80% of both my junk mail and telemarketing calls are offering me products and services to assist with my “active senior lifestyle.”

I get offers for senior singles cruises, hearing aids and other medical equipment typically used by the elderly, and frequent offers to take a free tour, with meals and transportation included, of one of the nearby luxury retirement communities.

Of course, when I first bought my townhouse, I actually tried to reason with some of this marketing onslaught, even telling some of the telemarketers my real age.

But apparently I also sound old on the phone, because most of these kind folks laughed at what they assumed was a joke, and simply responded by saying:

“Well, I guess it’s true what they say, you are only as old as you feel, right Mr. Harris?

We’ll pick you up at 3 o’clock in the afternoon tomorrow for our all-you-can-eat-and-play Buffet and Bingo Bonanza, okay?”

No, it’s not okay.

However, I have to go now because there’s a Matlock marathon on TV Land today.

By the way, all you iPod/iPhone/iPad/iHippie freaks—Stay the hell off of my lawn!

;-)

Please Share Your DQ-IRL Story

Please share your DQ-IRL story by posting a comment below.

Alternatively, post it on your own blog, then let us all know about it via a comment, a trackback, or if you use Twitter, then please share it via the #DQ-IRL hashtag.

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9 Responses to “DQ-IRL”

  1. Henrik Liliendahl Sørensen

    Jun 16, 2010

    Jim, I always suspected you cheated with your age given the experience you share :-)

    I have worked a bit with market segmentation and data (information) quality. I don’t know how it is with first names in the United States, but in Denmark you may have a good probability with estimating an age based on your first name for most frequent names. The statistical bureau provides statistics for each name and birth year. So combining that with the location based demographic you will get a better response rate.

    Reply to this comment

  2. James Standen

    Jun 16, 2010

    Ha! I love it.

    I get email all the time from GM, they seem to be convinced that I am a Chevy fanatic- although I’ve never even stepped foot in a dealership much less bought one.

    Its also clear they are certain that I am an owner- some samples of the emails they constantly send;

    “Dear James, As a Chevy owner,”

    “Dear James, We value and appreciate your loyalty more than anything.”

    My data quality sense is tingling- pretty sure I’m not the only person GM thinks bought a Chevy but didn’t.

    Reply to this comment

  3. Jim Harris

    Jun 16, 2010

    Thanks for your comments, Henrik and James.

    @Henrik – Perhaps I am simply aging in reverse like Benjamin Button? The Curious Case of Data Quality would make for an excellent film, or a short story, or at the very least, a blog post . . . :-)

    So, I obviously have to ask–how old would my first name make me in Denmark?

    @James – I always appreciate receiving feedback from a loyal Chevy owner–well, at least someone is theoretically buying an American-made automobile.

    Suppose you bought one of those Canadian Chevy models. Beauty, eh?

    Well, say hello to Bob and Doug McKenzie for me. Actually, just them them “Take off, hoser!” – they’ll know it’s from me :-)

    Reply to this comment

  4. Crysta Anderson

    Jun 16, 2010

    Thanks for the shout-out, Jim. Recently, I’ve started getting all kinds of mail for Mr. Raul Hernandez, who, judging by the content of the mail, must be pregnant. (Think about that for a minute.)

    I’ve gotten numerous mailings and coupons from local baby super-stores, discounts for photos of my “precious bundle of joy,” a pamphlet about banking my cord blood (!), and even a sample pack of diapers. Short of contacting each and every one of these mailers to make them stop, I just let it pile up. Luckily, I’m at an age (not quite in a retirement community yet) where many of my friends are indeed pregnant, so I’m sharing my bounty with them… but I wonder why Raul gave out my address when he registered with a baby registry? As far as I know, there’s no one on my street with that name, so it’s not a case of flipped digits. Who knows?

    And will it ever stop?

    Reply to this comment

  5. Henrik Liliendahl Sørensen

    Jun 16, 2010

    Well. First we don’t use nicknames that much, so we have some guys baptized (or named otherwise) Jim and some guys baptized (or named otherwise) James.

    There are 1,548 with the given name Jim. Average Jim is born in 1973.

    There are 672 with the given name James. Average James is born in 1962.

    Reply to this comment

  6. Jon Crowell

    Jun 16, 2010

    Jim, first of all, thanks for the very kind mention of my blog post. Second, when you described telling the telemarketer how old you really are, and his/her reaction, I laughed out loud.

    @Henrik — I’m also curious to know how old I’d be in Denmark.

    Reply to this comment

  7. Henrik Liliendahl Sørensen

    Jun 17, 2010

    Jon. Of course. Average Jon (in Denmark) is born in 1970.

    Reply to this comment

  8. Jim Harris

    Jun 17, 2010

    Thanks everyone for your excellent comments!

    @Crysta – Thanks Raul ( :-) ). It’s always amazing to me that so much effort and money is wasted in consumer marketing. It makes me wonder if the cost of correcting these obvious marketing errors is seen as pointless. Most mass marketing is very much a shotgun approach.

    As the old cliché goes:

    “I know half of my marketing isn’t working–I just don’t know which half.”

    @Henrik – Wow, “Average Jim” is within two years of my actual birth year! Denmark truly does have the best data quality :-)

    @Jon – You’re welcome. Thanks again for inspiring my blog post. I think my favorite DQ-IRL story of yours was your friend Chris. :-)

    Reply to this comment

  9. Phil Simon

    Jun 17, 2010

    Good stuff, Jim. Maybe I can fit in the community with my 8 pm to 5 am sleep schedule.

    Reply to this comment

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