Published On: November 14th, 2024 / Categories: Data Cleansing, Data Processing /

Diluted and fragmented datasets create chaos when it comes to making actionable decisions. Merge purge is your rescue that can make your database organized and dirt-free.

Wait! That's just a brief information about the merging-purging process. Let this blog guide you in revealing all the details of this process.

What is Merge Purge – Basics

As the word "merge", like its literal meaning, indicates combining multiple things into one. Here, it means combining multiple datasets to form a consolidated database. Following specified merge purge rules not only ensures all your rows and columns are placed perfectly but also makes your database completely aligned.

When your database is completely arranged by merging, it will reflect true insights from your data. There are certain rules you need to follow for organizing your database. Mainly, these rules eradicate errors, confusion, mistrust, and other matters.

Now, let's discuss the other part, which is purging. This process involves removing duplicates and putting accurate information in the same place. Using this process, you can make your database clutter-free using this method.

Why is Merge Purge Important?

Over time, businesses collect data from various sources—website sign-ups, purchase records, social media, email subscriptions, and more. These data sources often overlap, resulting in duplicate entries. For instance, a customer might sign up for a newsletter twice or use different emails for the same account. This can create a messy database that's inefficient and misleading.

The survey reports of Unitrends revealed that, 96% of businesses do not have a proper data backup system. Therefore, it's your duty to secure your data via merge-purge as it help you creating a solid back-up system.

Here are some key reasons why merge purge is essential:

1. Improved Accuracy: Duplicate or outdated data can lead to inaccurate analysis and poor decision-making. A clean database ensures you work with the most accurate and up-to-date information.

2. Enhanced Customer Experience: Sending duplicate emails or messages to customers can be annoying for them and reflects poorly on the business. By eliminating duplicates, merge purge helps you maintain a professional and streamlined customer communication.

3. Cost Efficiency: Storing and managing unnecessary or redundant data consumes resources and drives up costs. A streamlined database is not only easier to manage but also more cost-effective.

4. Compliance with Data Regulations: With data privacy laws like GDPR, businesses must ensure they're handling personal information responsibly. Merge purge can help you stay compliant by regularly updating and cleaning your data.

5. Better Marketing Results: Clean data improves marketing campaigns by targeting the right audience with accurate information, leading to better response rates and overall success.

How Does Merge Purge Work?

  • Data Collection and Integration (Merge): The first step in merge purge is to gather all the data from various sources into one place. This could include CRM systems, mailing lists, or purchase history files. By merging these datasets, you create a centralized view of your data, making it easier to identify and remove duplicates.

  • Data Cleaning (Identify Duplicates and Inaccuracies): In this step, you analyze the collected data to identify duplicates, errors, and inconsistencies. This can involve comparing data fields like name, email address, phone number, or address. Data cleaning can also involve fixing formatting errors, correcting typos, and standardizing values (e.g., using "USA" instead of "US" or "United States").

  • Data Deduplication and Purging (Remove Unwanted Data): After identifying duplicates and inaccuracies, you can decide which records to keep and which to delete. In some cases, merging data might involve combining information from two records into one (e.g., merging an old address with a new one if a customer moved). The end result is a clean, deduplicated database ready for use.

  • Data Deduplication and Purging (Remove Unwanted Data): After identifying duplicates and inaccuracies, you can decide which records to keep and which to delete. In some cases, merging data might involve combining information from two records into one (e.g., merging an old address with a new one if a customer moved). The end result is a clean, deduplicated database ready for use.

Key Techniques in Merge Purge

Different methods can help in successfully carrying out a merge purge. Here are some of the commonly used techniques:

  • Exact Matching: This technique involves finding records that exactly match across datasets. It works well for fields with precise information, like email addresses or phone numbers, and is often used as the first step in deduplication.

  • Fuzzy Matching: In some cases, data entries may be close but not identical due to typos or different formats. For example, "John Doe" and "Jon Doe" might refer to the same person. Fuzzy matching uses algorithms to identify such similar entries, considering minor variations to avoid losing relevant records.

  • Rules-Based Deduplication: Here, specific rules are set to decide which duplicates to keep or delete. For instance, you might want to keep the most recent entry if a customer has two records with different purchase dates.

  • Survivorship Logic: This technique involves selecting the "best" or most accurate data from duplicates based on predefined rules. For example, if two records contain the same person's name and different phone numbers, you can choose the most recent phone number.

Conclusion

Checking all the elements properly while performing a merge purge is crucial. Many businesses make mistakes there that's why, you need constant support to do this accurately. Here, outsourcing plays a big role in this process. Which most businesses do very often. You can outsource merge purge services to perfectly organize your database in the right order. Adopt the right approach to prepare your database in the right direction.

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