Glossary
Find all the key terms in Data Quality Management, along with their definitions. If any explanation doesn’t fully answer your question, feel free to get in touch with us.
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360° customer view
In marketing, a 360-degree view describes a strategic approach to identifying and coordinating, in a consistent way, all the resources available to a company. A 360-degree customer view means adapting the company’s communication across every customer touchpoint to manage the customer relationship consistently across all channels.
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Address block
The address block is the area reserved on a mail item for the postal address, positioned and formatted so that automated sorting equipment can read and process it correctly.Address line 2
Address line 2 is a free-text field used for additional recipient detail, such as a company name, department, or building name, that doesn’t fit on the main address line. Address formatting conventions vary by country and postal authority (for example USPS guidelines in the US or Royal Mail’s PAF-based formatting in the UK), but this second line is commonly used the same way across markets.Address line 3
Address line 3 is a free-text field used for additional location detail, such as a building name, residence, or apartment complex, that helps a carrier pinpoint the exact delivery point. As with address line 2, exact formatting conventions differ by country, but the purpose, narrowing down the delivery location beyond the street address, is consistent.Address restructuring
Address restructuring is the process of rearranging the different components of an address, street number, street name, city, postal code, and so on, into their correct position according to the relevant national postal addressing standard.Address standardization
Address standardization covers the automated processes used to bring the postal addresses in a file into line with the formatting rules used by national postal services (such as USPS standards in the US or Royal Mail’s PAF-based rules in the UK). Standardizing an address means applying a recognized, universally understood format to it. Address standardization is a key step in reducing the number of Undeliverable-as-Addressed (UAA) items.Autocomplete
Form autocompletion is a data-entry assistance feature that suggests values as a user types into a form field, refining its suggestions with each additional character. It mainly serves to speed up data entry, save time for anyone filling out the form (customers, prospects, telemarketers, in-store staff), and reduce typing errors. These benefits typically translate into higher form conversion rates.
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B2B (Business-to-Business)
Business-to-Business (B2B) refers to commercial activity between companies, covering everything a business does to sell to professional or corporate customers. More broadly, B2B encompasses the tools, technical architecture, and software used to connect businesses with one another and facilitate the exchange of products, services, and information.B2C (Business-to-Consumer)
Business-to-Consumer (B2C) describes the relationship between companies or professionals and end consumers. More broadly, B2C covers the tools, technical architecture, and software that let businesses connect directly with consumers.Batch processing
In computing, batch processing is an automated sequence of commands run on a computer without operator intervention. In Data Quality Management, batch processing refers to checking and cleansing large volumes of data at once, a curative, large-scale approach to data quality.Big Data
Big Data refers to the vast and varied volume of digital data generated from a wide range of sources, which can be processed and analyzed to extract meaningful insights.Bounces
In marketing, bounces are emails that fail to reach their recipient. There are two main types: soft bounces, caused by temporary issues such as a full inbox or a mail server that is briefly unavailable, and hard bounces, caused by permanent issues such as a domain that no longer exists or an invalid email syntax.
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Cart abandonment
Cart abandonment occurs in e-commerce when a visitor selects one or more items but leaves the site without completing the purchase. Abandonment rates vary widely by industry. Common causes include a poorly designed checkout flow, an overly long order form, and friction or errors in the payment process.CASS Certification
CASS (Coding Accuracy Support System) Certification is a USPS program that evaluates the accuracy of software used to standardize, correct, and match postal addresses against USPS files. Address-verification software that carries CASS certification meets USPS requirements for candidate postal discounts and delivery accuracy.CCPA (California Consumer Privacy Act)
The California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) is a US state-level data privacy law that gives California residents specific rights over the personal data companies hold about them, including the right to know what data is collected and to request its deletion. It is one of the most influential privacy frameworks for US companies managing customer databases.CDP (Customer Data Platform)
A Customer Data Platform (CDP) is a marketing technology that centralizes and unifies customer data from every online and offline channel. A CDP consolidates, organizes, and structures customer information to make it usable, with the goal of building rich customer profiles that improve communication campaigns through a more personalized experience.Census Tract
A census tract is a small, relatively stable geographic area defined by the US Census Bureau for statistical purposes, typically covering a population of a few thousand people. Census tracts are commonly used in geomarketing to analyze demographic and socio-economic data at a local level.Companies House Number
A Companies House Number is the unique identifier assigned to every company registered in the United Kingdom. It is used in B2B data enrichment and verification to confirm a company’s identity and official registration status.Conversion rate
The conversion rate measures the share of contacts, such as website visitors or email opens, who complete a desired action out of the total number of contacts reached.CRM (Customer Relationship Management)
Customer Relationship Management (CRM) refers to the tools and techniques used to identify, process, and analyze information about customers and prospects, with the goal of building loyalty by delivering the best possible service.CRM form
A CRM form is used to capture prospect or customer data, such as name, job title, and company, directly into a company’s CRM tool.Curative (batch) data quality solution
A curative solution is one that intervenes during large-scale processing of a database, also known as a solution running in Batch mode.Customer database
A customer database (or prospect database) is a structured collection of data about a company’s customers or prospects. It includes identifying information for each contact, such as first and last name, postal address, email, and phone number, and can also include purchase history and marketing interaction data: offers sent, responses to email campaigns, open quotes, inbound calls, and more.
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Data cleansing
Data cleansing verifies and corrects data, such as email addresses and postal addresses, while standardizing the format of a company’s databases. Postal data cleansing processes in particular help improve the overall quality of prospect, customer, and supplier data.Data enrichment
Data enrichment means adding new information to an organization’s existing databases. It helps companies build a fuller picture of their customers and prospects, so they can better tailor their messaging and offers.Data entry assistance
Data entry assistance is a tool that makes entering data faster and easier, whether it’s an email address, a postal address, or B2B data enrichment.Data governance
Data governance refers to the policies and procedures an organization puts in place to oversee how data is collected and used, ensuring compliance with legal obligations and internal rules.Data management
Data management covers every practice involved in collecting, maintaining, analyzing, storing, archiving, securing, and making data available for an organization’s activities.Data processing
Data processing covers all the actions carried out on data to clean, standardize, and format it.Data qualification
Data qualification is the process of verifying the accuracy of the data held in a customer or prospect file. Its purpose is to improve the quality of customer databases and, in turn, the effectiveness of marketing and sales campaigns such as email, direct mail, and prospecting.Data Quality
Data Quality is a measure of the state of an organization’s data based on factors such as accuracy, completeness, consistency, reliability, and durability. It allows organizations to assess the quality of their data and identify the errors that need to be resolved.Data quality (as an organizational concern)
Within an organization, data quality matters enormously: decisions based on inaccurate data can directly harm the business.Data Stewardship
Data Stewardship refers to the day-to-day custodianship of an organization’s data. The role of a Data Steward is to define and enforce the security and usage policies set out as part of the organization’s data governance initiatives.Database audit
A database audit is a method for analyzing the data held in one or more databases to identify weaknesses or non-compliant records against a defined audit framework. The findings then guide the corrective actions needed to fix the gaps and issues identified.Deduplication (across multiple files)
Cross-file deduplication is the elimination of redundant records found across different files or databases.Deduplication (within a single file)
Deduplication (within a single file) covers the solutions used to identify, clean, and merge duplicate records within a single database. When this process is carried out across multiple databases, it is instead called cross-file deduplication.Disposable email address
A disposable email address is an anonymous, temporary address that is automatically destroyed once its validity period expires. It lets a user sign up for a site, download content, or claim an offer without sharing their regular email address, avoiding spam and unwanted marketing. Disposable addresses are also frequently used to attempt fraud, which makes them a common target for email validation checks.DMP (Data Management Platform)
A Data Management Platform (DMP) is software used to store and manage prospect and customer data. Information gathered from multiple sources is centralized on the platform, which then helps refine marketing targeting and personalize the user experience.DPV (Delivery Point Validation)
Delivery Point Validation (DPV) is a USPS service that confirms whether a specific address is an actual, deliverable location. It checks an address down to the exact delivery point, such as an apartment or suite number, rather than just validating the street and ZIP code.DQM (Data Quality Management)
Data Quality Management (DQM) is the discipline of managing reference data: it covers every action and process used to define, store, guarantee, and maintain the quality of marketing data within an organization. DQM helps ensure the accuracy and reliability of collected data, improving the efficiency and performance of the marketing and CRM activities that depend on it.DUNS Number
A DUNS Number is a unique nine-digit identifier assigned to a business by Dun & Bradstreet. It is widely used in B2B data enrichment to verify a company’s identity and link its records across different databases.Duplicate (record)
A duplicate is a record that appears more than once in the same file, where the repeated occurrence serves no purpose.Duplicate management
Effective duplicate management typically relies on a dedicated tool that identifies duplicates and carries out deduplication, cross-file deduplication, and merging, such as combining two contact records into one. The goal of duplicate management is to improve the performance and efficiency of a company’s sales and marketing activities.
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Email address
An email address is made up of a personal identifier and a domain name, separated by the @ symbol (for example, pierre.dupont@gmail.com). Like a postal address, it allows messages to be sent and received, but electronically.Email address validation
Email address validation checks the syntax of an email address, confirms that the domain name exists, and verifies the username portion of the address.Email address verification
Email address verification checks and confirms the validity of an email address, either in real time as it is entered into a form, or after the fact through large-scale processing of a database.ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning)
An ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) system is integrated software used to run a company’s core operations. It brings together the main functional areas of a business, production management, sales, logistics, human resources, accounting, and management control, so that users across different departments work within a single application environment built on one shared database. This model helps ensure data integrity, eliminates redundant information, and reduces processing time.
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GDPR / UK GDPR
The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), and its UK-retained equivalent, UK GDPR, is the legal framework governing how organizations collect, process, and store personal data in the EU and UK. It sets requirements around consent, data accuracy, and individuals’ rights over their own data, all of which directly affect how customer databases must be managed and maintained.Geocoding
Geocoding is the process of assigning geographic coordinates (longitude and latitude) to an address. It can be applied to a single address or run automatically across an entire address file (individuals, companies, points of interest, and so on). The resulting coordinates allow each address to be plotted on a digital map through a Geographic Information System (GIS). Geocoding is one of the core techniques behind geolocation.Geolocation
Geolocation is a technique for pinpointing a person, object, or device on a map using its geographic coordinates. It relies on a device capable of being located through a satellite positioning system, such as a GPS receiver, and of publishing its coordinates (latitude and longitude) in real time or after the fact. In marketing, for example, geolocation can be used to identify where the recipient of an ad is physically located, via the internet or their mobile phone.Geomarketing
Geomarketing brings together marketing actions based on the geography of populations and consumption patterns. This approach relies on analyzing geographic, socio-behavioral, and socio-demographic data, such as living areas, housing types, and social profiles by neighborhood.
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Master Data Management (MDM)
Master Data Management (MDM) is the set of tools used to improve and maintain the quality of reference data within a single, unified repository. MDM cleans data, makes it consistent, consolidates it, and removes duplicates. The result is a single, reliable, up-to-date view of the organization’s data.Match (real-time) mode
In computing, Match mode means processing data instantaneously, in real time, as opposed to Batch mode.Multichannel
In marketing, multichannel describes the simultaneous or alternating use of different contact channels for selling products and managing the customer relationship. In Data Quality Management, the challenge for a company is to centralize contact records in a single database while collecting information through multiple communication channels: distance selling (notably e-commerce), physical points of sale, direct mail, and more.
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NCOA (National Change of Address)
The National Change of Address (NCOA) service is a USPS database of consumers and businesses who have filed a change-of-address request. Matching a file against NCOA data helps identify contacts who have moved, reducing undeliverable mail and keeping customer records current.
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Online data entry
Online data entry means filling out a form at the point of capture to enrich data, whether postal or otherwise. These forms may be filled in directly by the customer, such as a form on a website, or by an operator using an intranet or internet-based form.Online form
An online form is a dedicated space for capturing prospect data through a series of required or optional fields, allowing the organization collecting the information to enrich its database.Output Area
An Output Area is the smallest geographic unit used by the UK’s Office for National Statistics (ONS) for reporting census data, typically covering a small number of households. Output Areas are commonly used in geomarketing to analyze demographic data at a highly localized level.
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Postal address
A postal address is the complete location of a mail recipient, written on the envelope by the sender so the postal carrier can route and deliver the item. Postal addresses follow formatting standards that are specific to each country.Postal address entry
Postal address entry is the process of enriching a customer database with contacts’ postal addresses.Postal address management
Postal address management is the process by which a company verifies, corrects, and assists with the entry of postal addresses held in its databases.Postal address validation
Postal address validation verifies the accuracy of an address’s components against regularly updated postal reference files.Postal address verification
Postal address verification confirms that a postal address actually exists.Postal addressing standard
A postal addressing standard defines how an address should be formatted and presented so that it can be processed efficiently by a national postal service. In the US, this role is filled by USPS addressing standards (see USPS Publication 28); in the UK, by Royal Mail’s PAF-based addressing rules. While the exact requirements differ by country, they generally share the same goals: consistent line structure, a maximum line length, and clear placement of the recipient, street, and locality information.Postal reference database
A postal reference database is an authoritative file containing validated address data, covering, depending on the country, elements such as street names, postal codes, and delivery points, used to standardize addresses and improve deliverability. Examples include the USPS address file behind ZIP+4 validation in the US and Royal Mail’s PAF (Postcode Address File) in the UK. Each postal reference database is built for a specific use case within the address verification process.Preventive (real-time) data quality solution
A preventive solution is one that assists the operator during initial data entry to stop inaccurate data from ever reaching the database, also known as a solution running in Match mode.
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Royal Mail PAF (Postcode Address File)
The Postcode Address File (PAF) is Royal Mail’s official database of every postal address and postcode in the United Kingdom. It is the primary reference file used by address validation and standardization tools to verify and format UK addresses.
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SaaS (Software as a Service)
SaaS stands for Software as a Service. It describes a model where a subscription to software is offered instead of a traditional software license purchase. As information and communication technologies have developed, more and more SaaS offerings are delivered over the web, removing the need to install a desktop application in favor of a client-server program.Single Customer View (SCV)
A Single Customer View (SCV), sometimes called a 360-degree customer view, brings together all of an organization’s data on a given prospect or customer in one centralized place, providing a single, consistent, and powerful overview.Smart Contextual Matching (SCM)
Smart Contextual Matching (SCM) is an innovative technology developed by DQE that uses algorithms capable of factoring in the context and format of different types of data (emails, postal addresses, phone numbers, and more) to intelligently compare and match records, notably to deduplicate customer databases.Smart data
Smart data is a data collection and processing approach that emphasizes focusing on the data points that actually matter for running effective marketing campaigns. The concept emerged in response to the explosion in data volumes generated by the rise of big data.SMTP server
An SMTP server is a mail server that routes emails across the internet from a sender to one or more recipients, following the rules of the SMTP network protocol. One of its key functions is preventing spam through authentication mechanisms that only allow authorized users to send emails.Software license
A software license (as opposed to an on-premise installation) is the right granted to a user to use a given piece of software. Acquiring a license grants the right to install and use the software on a computer. The license is a contract that sets out the user’s rights regarding that software.Standardization
Standardization is the process of applying a defined format to a piece of data. That format may follow an official standard or simply a convention chosen by the company for a given category of data. Standardizing a piece of data means applying a recognized reference format to it, whether defined by a formal standard or common usage.
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Third-party data
Third-party data is any data that was not collected directly or explicitly from the prospect or customer by the advertiser. It is typically supplied by third-party companies or data aggregators, and is generally behavioral or declarative data used for advertising or marketing targeting.
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UK Redirection Service
The Redirection Service is a Royal Mail service that forwards mail to a new address for a set period after someone moves. Matching a database against redirection data helps organizations identify customers who have relocated and update their records accordingly.Undeliverable-as-Addressed (UAA)
Undeliverable-as-Addressed (UAA) mail is mail that cannot be delivered, generally because the address is incorrect or cannot be processed by the postal service.
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Web form
A web form is a tool used to collect information entered by a visitor on a web page or HTML email. It typically includes a mix of elements, checkboxes, radio buttons, text fields, and more, designed to capture different types of data such as contact details and preferences.