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In the email marketing world, you often find yourself inheriting lists of contacts for email delivery on behalf of clients. Besides ascertaining the origin these lists (opt-in, matched file, etc.), it is important to do an initial cleansing of the lists. This includes removing duplicates, filling in missing data and removing erroneous data. If you have a person responsible for database administration he or she could probably get this done by loading the lists into a MySQL, SQL, or Access database and running a few scripts. However, this person may not understand the specific logic that the data must follow (i.e. this type of record trumps this type), because it is often not known until someone actually rolls up their sleeves and starts digging.
So when you need to manipulate data using a fine point rather than the broad brush of database scripts, Microsoft Excel is a natural solution. However it has its limitations in terms of sync-ing multiple lists. Thankfully, DigDB is a useful Excel plug-in that allows you to do much of your data manipulation yourself. Its website also features step-by-step instructions for common tasks like de-duping lists. Check it out, it’s pretty cool and extremely useful.
