It does not matter what kind of business you run, at some point in time, you will have to handle addresses including customer addresses, vendor addresses.
Businesses work hard to ensure they have verified addresses in the address book but things do not always go smoothly.
Why Are Addresses Important for Businesses?
Technically speaking, all kinds of companies need addresses. Here’s why:
- Companies Need Supplier Information: Almost all companies have to deal with vendors. Restaurants, for example, need to be in touch with vegetable suppliers, meat providers, etc.
They may not always need to send an employee to the given address, but they must have it in the record book in case there is an emergency. Plus, they also have to mention it on the invoices and other relevant documents.
Other than this, you may need the address to mail documents.
- Businesses Need Employee Contact Details: This is very important because you do not know when an accident might occur at work. In such a scenario, it becomes your responsibility to ensure the employee reaches home safe and sound.
Knowing the employee’s address can be very helpful in this regard. Plus, you may even need the address to mail documents including salary slips, legal notices, etc.
- Customer Details Are Essential: Now, here comes the most important part. Almost every business needs customer addresses:
- To Deliver Goods: This one is a no brainer. If you are in a goods producing business, you will need customer addresses in order to fulfill orders.
- To Create Customer Profiles: Ever read about a business making a niche in a specific market. How do you think businesses are able to identify their best markets? It’s by creating customer profiles. These profiles tell them everything about a customer including their city or town.
Once a business has all such information, they can gauge where they are most popular. Such information can be very helpful in coming up with the right marketing plan.
- To Send Marketing Materials: We still live in the era of ‘mails’. Businesses regularly send physical mails, newsletters, and other such documents to subscribers and customers.
These documents are especially written according to the target audience and are sent to specific addresses so that the business can enjoy a high return on investment.
For example, a business offering ‘newborn formula’ would send brochures to a house that has at least one toddler. The brochure will not generate leads if it reaches a home with no babies.
- For Better Planning: Businesses need complete addresses in order to plan properly. Think about FedEx. The company is able to deliver thousands of parcels in a day because it has complete addresses.
It sorts ‘em out according to the area and then delivers each parcel on time. The job would have been nearly impossible without correct addresses.
- For Invoice Purposes: In some parts of the world, invoices are not valid if they do not contain full and correct addresses of both the seller and the buyer.
This is why it is important that businesses have access to complete addresses so that they can issue valid invoices. Otherwise, they may have to face trouble when it comes to taxes.
How Do Companies Collect Addresses?
Businesses use a variety of methods to gather information and then manage their data. Some of the most common tools include:
- Cookies and IP: When you access a website, it leaves information regarding your city. While it may not tell your exact address, businesses often use this information for marketing purposes.
- Physical Forms: When you work with a company, they may request you to fill a form. This form has space for your address. Businesses use this form to feed information into the system and there is always a high risk of entering the wrong information.
- Online Forms: Whenever you make a new account on a site that requires the delivery of goods, you will be asked to submit your address information.
Some companies use the latest tools that will save your information and will autofill it when you encounter a similar form in the future.
Such tools are of huge importance as they reduce the risk of errors and also save time.
- Documents: While it’s rare, some companies pick address up from documents such as bills, driver’s license, resumes, etc. A major problem with this method is that the information may often be dated.
- Maps: This is a new technique that uses GPS to find your information. However, it is not available on all devices.
Plus, in some cases, forms may automatically gather information regarding your country, state based on your IP address. You may not even have the option to change this information unless you submit the required identity and address verification documents.
WhAt Is The importance Of Addresses?
Before we get into the details, let’s talk about a real life case study.
Some US states were recently in the news for introducing a new system to reduce the cost of transportation. They changed routes and as a result, there were fewer trips and less traffic on the road.
The authorities were able to achieve such amazing results because they had access to complete addresses. This allowed them to select appropriate routes, change pick up and drop off timings, and recommend other changes.
They would have never been able to do so without access to complete and correct addresses.
But, addresses benefit not only schools and government but other organizations as well.
Here are some advantages:
- Reduced Cost: As seen in the example above, correct addresses can help businesses save cost.
Let’s say a business spends $2 on delivering a parcel but it bounces back due to an incorrect address.
Now, the business has to resend the parcel, hence bearing an additional cost of $2, which will be reduced from the profit.
- Saved Time: When you have correct addresses, you will have more time in hand. There will be no failed deliveries to take care of. Your employees will be able to devote time to other jobs and your business will flourish.
- Better Efficiency: All businesses want to be efficient and this is possible only when they use their given resources in the best possible manner. Having access to correct information can be of help in this regard.
- Improved Customer Satisfaction: Customers trust companies that meet deadlines and deliver products in a timely manner. They are also more likely to reuse and refer companies that respect their deadlines.
- Increase Loyalty: Believe it or not, the right address can help improve loyalty among consumers and workers.
Employees take great pride in working for a company that does not make ‘errors’, thus improving loyalty. The same goes for clients as they love to work with companies that are reliable.
What Kind of Address Related Errors Are There?
There can be a variety of errors including:
- Typos: When it comes to addresses, you need to be exact. Even a single mistake can create havoc. Imagine, you have to send a parcel to house no 676 and you end up sending it to house number 667. A small mistake will cause major issues for the company, hence it is important to be careful.
- Incomplete Address: It is not very uncommon for people to leave incomplete addresses. If you have studied about logistic issues in Dubai, you must know how problematic it can be to deliver parcels in the emirate.
The same can happen in your case if you or your respondents do not enter complete details. These typically include:
- House number
- Street name or number
- Town or locality
- City
- State
- ZIP code
Also, the address may differ based on where the respondent lives. For example, there may be information regarding the floor number or block if the person lives in an apartment building.
- Filing Errors: Filing errors occur when you file the wrong information from one document to another. These include putting the wrong information in the wrong section and not copying all the details.
Related Reading: $300 Billion Cost Of Dirty Data In Healthcare
How Can We Reduce These Errors?
The best way to reduce the risk of address-related problems is to turn to real-time address capture.
Such tools can add global address entry into your online forms and CRM, helping your customers quickly complete the buying process. Plus, it can be beneficial for your business as it will reduce the risk of errors. We have a free address lookup tool on our website where you can enter up to five worldwide addresses.
Our real-time address verification tool comes with easy integration and is highly customizable. It verifies addresses at the point of entry and provides true data for over 240 countries.
If you are not sure of how it can benefit you, go here and sign up for a free trial.
