17/02/2009

A new report published today by Experian®, the global information services company, reveals that 30 per cent of UK organisations - despite the emphasis on customer retention in today's economic climate - have not profiled their contact data to understand who their most profitable customers are.

The free report 'Contact data management: the wise investor', examines organisations' attitudes to data quality and also provides strategic advice on how to prioritise contact data management projects and track return on investment.

Stuart Johnston, UK Managing Director of Experian QAS, commented: "The bedrock for any customer management strategy is having high quality data insight. Despite the 80/20 rule, nearly a third of UK organisations admit that they do not even know if they have the right name and address details for their most valuable client contacts. Our new report provides the latest thinking on why contact data management is even more important in today's climate and addresses the issues facing organisations right now, but also those they are likely to encounter in the future."

The report also found - based on a survey of over 600 professionals responsible for data management in the UK - that less than half of respondents claimed to analyse their most profitable customers to help influence marketing strategy and drive new business revenues.

Stuart Johnston added: "Despite these stark findings, the good news is that the majority of organisations we interviewed said they plan to invest heavily in data quality over the next six months to improve their contact data managementstrategies. As our report outlines, investment should be governed by a clear strategy to ensure that it is concentrated in the right areas and will have a quick impact on business performance. "

To obtain a free copy of Experian's 'Contact data management: the wise investor' report, please go to www.qas.co.uk/invest

For further press information please contact:

Rachael Taylor
PR Manager, Experian QAS
Tel: +44 (0) 207 819 5368
Email: rachael.taylor@qas.com

About Experian
Experian is a global leader in providing information, analytical and marketing services to organisations and consumers to help manage the risk and reward of commercial and financial decisions.

Combining its unique information tools and deep understanding of individuals, markets and economies, Experian partners with organisations around the world to establish and strengthen customer relationships and provide their businesses with competitive advantage.

For consumers, Experian delivers critical information that enables them to make financial and purchasing decisions with greater control and confidence. Clients include organisations from financial services, retail and catalogue, telecommunications, utilities, media, insurance, automotive, leisure, e-commerce, manufacturing, property and government sectors.

Experian plc is listed on the London Stock Exchange (EXPN) and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 index. Experian has corporate headquarters in Dublin, Ireland and has operational headquarters in Costa Mesa, California and Nottingham, UK. The Group employs approximately 15,500 people in 38 countries worldwide, supporting clients in over 65 countries around the world. Continuing sales for the year ended 31 March 2008 were $4,059m (£2,020m / ¬2,858m).

For more information, visit www.experianplc.com.

About Experian QAS
Experian QAS provides contact data management (CDM) software and services that help organisations drive value from their data. Every organisation stores contact information on its customers/citizens, prospects, suppliers and employees. Over 10,000 organisations worldwide choose Experian QAS products and services to manage the quality and accuracy of this data to improve business processing, financial performance, efficiency and the customer experience.

The CDM capabilities include data auditing and standardisation, validation and cleaning, matching, suppression and enhancement. Specialist Authentication solutions are also offered to meet the growing demand for electronic identity verification in the wake of rising ID-related crimes.

Award winning Experian QAS solutions are a r