Posted on 12/10/05

Published in Target Marketing Magazine – November 2005: "Read the Signals"

By Lisa Yorgey Lester

Naperville, Illinois, USA – December 10, 2005 – Allant, a Marketing Optimization solution provider, is featured in November 2005’s issue of Target Marketing Magazine and quotes Don Hinman, Ph.D., Executive Vice President, Product Development and as a Senior Principal in Allant’s Professional Services Group.

The article entitled “Read the Signals” focuses on how to correctly identify possible churn (attrition) within a company’s database. Customers are slowly defecting from companies and it is essential to segment customers into groups that behave differently. “Look at the characteristics of who they were when they left, and what was happening prior to them leaving,” explains Dr. Hinman, “What makes this group homogenous?”

“The customers you want to focus on in your segmentation are those (customers) who look like they’re going to churn and have a high lifetime value,” states Dr. Hinman. He suggests running a CHAID model and/or a regression model as a few techniques to segment out the portion of the file that is profitable and likely to churn. “One is good for explaining, while the other is good for predicting, explains Dr. Hinman, “You can use them together to figure out what are the right segments to try and protect.”

Internal, and possibly external, data are the tools to help marketers determine who is going to behave a certain way. But Dr. Hinman points out “Think about behaviors, not statistics and numbers.” He finishes with, “Start with that thinking in mind, and then you can let the statistics help you answer that question.”

About Allant
Allant is a Marketing Optimization solution provider that leverages predictive intelligence, strategic and analytic services and marketing automation to maximize marketing spend productivity, strategy and results for its clients. Founded in 1984, Allant has built core competencies in data management, database services, analytics and strategy which are delivered by highly skilled professionals. For more information on Allant and its products, services and solutions, call 800 367 7311 or visit Allant on-line at www.allantgroup.com.