November 2, 2007 The Forrester Wave™: Database Marketing ...€¦ · The Forrester Wave™: Database Marketing Service Providers, Q4 2007 For Direct Marketing Professionals 4 ·

Making Leaders Successful Every Day

November 2, 2007

The Forrester Wave™: Database Marketing Service Providers, Q4 2007by Dave Franklandfor Direct Marketing Professionals

www.forrester.com

© 2007, Forrester Research, Inc. All rights reserved. Forrester, Forrester Wave, RoleView, Technographics, and Total Economic Impact are trademarks of Forrester Research, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective companies. Forrester clients may make one attributed copy or slide of each figure contained herein. Additional reproduction is strictly prohibited. For additional reproduction rights and usage information, go to www.forrester.com. Information is based on best available resources. Opinions reflect judgment at the time and are subject to change. To purchase reprints of this document, please email [email protected].

For Direct Marketing ProfessionalsIncludes a Forrester Wave™

EXECUTIVE SUMMARYForrester evaluated 12 leading database marketing service providers across 143 criteria. Our analysis identifies Merkle, Targetbase, KnowledgeBase Marketing, The Allant Group, and Epsilon as Leaders in our enterprise evaluation — due in large part to a combination of integrated delivery, advanced analytics, and favorable client feedback. These Leaders are challenged by two groups of Strong Performers: niche players like ChoicePoint Precision Marketing, Equifax Database Services, and Fair Isaac and those working to fully integrate the sum of their parts, including Acxiom, Harte-Hanks, Experian Marketing Services, and infoUSA.

TABLE OF CONTENTSMarketers Demand More From Their Database Marketing Service Provider

They Face Differing Vendor Strategies

The MSP Landscape

There Are No Risky Bets In Our Evaluation

Enterprise Evaluation Emphasizes Analytics, Strategic Services, And Integrated Service

Midmarket Evaluation Rewards Dedicated Midmarket Strategy And Offering

The Market Continues To Evolve

Vendor Profiles

Leaders

Strong Performers

Supplemental Material

NOTES & RESOURCESForrester conducted in-depth evaluations in Q3 2007 of 12 database marketing service providers: Acxiom, ChoicePoint Precision Marketing, Epsilon, Equifax Database Services, Experian Marketing Services, Harte-Hanks, Fair Isaac, infoUSA, KnowledgeBase Marketing, Merkle, Targetbase, and The Allant Group. The services evaluation included vendor surveys and executive interviews. We also surveyed 205 vendor-supplied references online and interviewed more than 65 customers by phone.

Related Research Documents“The Direct Marketing Services Ecosystem” May 16, 2007

“How Firms Use Database Marketing Services” February 15, 2007

“The Forrester Wave™: Database Marketing Service Providers, Q1 2006” January 10, 2006

November 2, 2007

The Forrester Wave™: Database Marketing Service Providers, Q4 2007Merkle, Targetbase, KnowledgeBase, Allant, And Epsilon Are Enterprise Leadersby Dave Franklandwith Cliff Condon, Jennifer Joseph, and Scott Wright

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www.forrester.com

http://www.forrester.com/go?docid=41289&src=42370pdf




© 2007, Forrester Research, Inc. Reproduction ProhibitedNovember 2, 2007

The Forrester Wave™: Database Marketing Service Providers, Q4 2007 For Direct Marketing Professionals

2

MARKETERS DEMAND MORE FROM THEIR DATABASE MARKETING SERVICE PROVIDER

Database marketing service providers (MSPs) have traditionally focused on designing, building, and managing marketing databases. In the past, marketers hired MSPs to help with customer data integration and data hygiene and processing, often augmenting these services with data sourcing and media and fulfillment services, such as lettershop and printing services. But in today’s environment of media fragmentation, and with the increasing prevalence of addressable and interactive media and fast-changing consumer behavior, most marketers consider these capabilities to be table stakes. Today, clients are seeking:

· Higher-value services. Marketers expect analytics and strategy support from their service provider, but not all of them expect to pay for it. Others seek creative support and demand the ability to enable marketing conversations across channels. The emphasis today is on relevance. One senior marketer at a leading financial services company told us, “I originally chose my vendor because I was so confident in its technical capabilities. I am still working with it more than 10 years later because it understands my business inside out and offers strategic advice that helps to drive our business forward.”

· Flexible and proactive service. For years, reliability was the name of the game. MSPs were evaluated on their ability to nail the operational metrics: get a mailing out the door, segment a file in the required timeframe, or process a certain number of names in a required timeframe. While the need for reliability remains, marketers tell us that flexibility and proactive service are just as important in today’s market. One retail executive commented, “I can get reliable service from any number of providers; what elevates them to a strategic partner is how well they adapt to our needs and give us proactive advice that, at the end of the day, makes us better marketers.”

· Integrated delivery. Whether components are wholly owned or subcontracted, the way to many a marketer’s heart is to partner with them across the entire process. A senior marketer at a travel and leisure firm told us, “I think of my provider as an extension of my team. It has better insight into our process than we do because it manages so many of the pieces. It insulates me from the minutia of the day-to-day, freeing my time to focus on the bigger picture. Because of the trust I have in it, it is also a part of that strategic conversation.”

They Face Differing Vendor Strategies

While all providers offer database management and data processing capabilities, marketers find that vendors’ emphasis on other areas differs considerably. Unfortunately for marketers, the multitude of options causes confusion, frustration, and missed expectations as they struggle to identify their outsourcing options.1 In particular, MSPs differ in their emphasis on (see Figure 1):

· Strategy and analytics. Most MSPs offer some strategic and analytical capability, although marketers point to considerable differences between those that integrate these capabilities within their overall service offering and those that offer them as standalone, bolt-on offerings. Marketers tell us that they prefer integrated strategy and analytics to drive their relationships with their MSPs and, more importantly, with their customers.

© 2007, Forrester Research, Inc. Reproduction Prohibited November 2, 2007


3

Figure 1 Database Marketing Service Provider Focus Areas

Source: Forrester Research, Inc.42370

Significantfocus

Nofocus

Limitedfocus

Moderatefocus

Functional areas of focus

List

and

dat

a so

urci

ng

Stra

tegy

and

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Dat

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anag

emen

t and

dat

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Ana

lytic

s

Cre

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Exec

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Mea

sure

men

tan

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sigh

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Service providers

2. ChoicePoint Precision Marketing

3. Epsilon

4. Equifax Database Services

5. Experian Marketing Services

6. Fair Isaac

7. Harte-Hanks

8. infoUSA

9. KnowledgeBase Marketing

10. Merkle

11. Targetbase

1. Acxiom

12. The Allant Group



4

· Data ownership. While most marketers leverage their MSP to source data, MSPs that have proprietary data assets and those that are data agnostic take different approaches. Marketers who favor vendors with proprietary data point to ease of access and freshness of data as advantages. Other marketers tell us that data-agnostic providers appeal to them because they source data based on the unique business requirements of each client, irrespective of the source.

· Creative and execution. Some marketers seek out creative expertise that is fully integrated with an MSP’s strategic and analytical offerings, lauding the benefits of analytically driven creative. However, not all MSPs offer creative services. Similarly, MSPs present marketers with different options in relation to execution capabilities, with some offering email, lettershop, and call center capabilities, while others choose to partner with third parties for all creative and execution services.

THE MSP LANDSCAPE

To help companies sort through the different product offerings and vendor strategies, Forrester vetted a list of potential candidates and created a methodology to measure their product offering.

There Are No Risky Bets In Our Evaluation

In considering which vendors to include in our evaluation, Forrester invited 144 companies that build, manage, and host marketing databases and/or deliver technology, marketing, and analytical services to support database marketing to provide us with details about their services. Ultimately, only 12 vendors met our selection criteria: Acxiom, ChoicePoint Precision Marketing, Epsilon, Equifax Database Services, Experian Marketing Services, Fair Isaac, Harte-Hanks, infoUSA, KnowledgeBase Marketing, Merkle, Targetbase, and The Allant Group (see Figure 2). These 12 MSPs manage a combined 1,275 outsourced databases and generate database-related revenues in excess of $1.5 billion. To identify the appropriate vendors to participate in this Wave, we assessed:

· The breadth and depth of managed database customers. Our primary selection criterion was based on market share. We looked for a balance of both enterprise managed database providers — defined as clients who pay more than $1 million per year for database marketing services — and midtier managed database providers — those spending less than $1 million — with an emphasis on enterprise customers.

· The balance of retention or hybrid versus acquisition systems. Most of the demand we see in the industry is for retention and hybrid solutions. Vendors with a sole emphasis on acquisition/prospecting were excluded.

· The number of industries served. To ensure that our findings were relevant to marketers in a broad range of industries, vendors with a niche focus in a single industry were excluded.



5

Figure 2: Evaluated Enterprise Vendors: Vendor Information And Selection Criteria

Source: Forrester Research, Inc.

Vendor qualification criteria

Vendors included in this evaluation have a mix of clients spending in excess of $1 million per year for database marketing services as well as midmarket clients, spending less than $1 million per year.

All the vendors build and manage retention/hybrid databases and acquisition databases. Vendors with a sole emphasis on acquisition/prospecting were excluded.

Only vendors that serve at least three industries were included to ensure relevance for a range of marketers.

Enterprise Evaluation Emphasizes Analytics, Strategic Services, And Integrated Service

To assess the state of the database marketing service providers market and see how the vendors stack up against each other, Forrester evaluated the strengths and weaknesses of top MSPs for both enterprise and midmarket customers. Forrester categorizes enterprise and midmarket firms as those spending more and less than $1 million annually on all services, respectively. Enterprise buyers typically require greater customization, scalability, and dedicated account service. After examining past research, user need assessments, and vendor and expert interviews, we developed a comprehensive set of evaluation criteria (see Figure 3). We evaluated vendors against 143 criteria, which we grouped into three high-level buckets:

· Current offering. Service delivery, analytical services, and strategy services together account for 45% of the weighting in this category. Database management and technical services account for a combined 20%, data and data sourcing for 10%, creative and execution for a combined 10%, industry capabilities for 10%, and other capabilities for 5%.

· Strategy. We examined each MSP’s plans and current success in meeting the needs of buyers seeking strategic and analytically led integrated service delivery. Our analysis of vendor strategy fell into five buckets: 1) the firm’s corporate strategy, weighted at 40% of this category; 2) its strategic emphasis on the database business, weighted 15%; 3) its delivery strategy, weighted 30%; 4) its technology strategy, weighted 10%; and 5) its industry strategy, weighted at 5%.

· Market presence. To benchmark the relative size of each vendor’s database business, the primary factors we evaluated included the number of large databases under management, weighted 30%; their database-related revenues, weighted 30%; and the number of full-time equivalent staff dedicated to the database business, weighted 20%.



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Figure 3 Evaluation Criteria


How well does the company service and interact with clients?

How strong are the company’s capabilities for delivering high-level marketing strategy services that span data, analytics, and campaign tactics?

How strong are the company’s data sourcing services and/or assets?

How strong are the company’s database management capabilities?

How strong are the company’s data processing and hygiene services?

How strong are the company’s analytical marketing services?

What creative services does the company provide?

What fulfillment, media planning, sourcing, and buying services does the company provide to managed database clients?

What measurement services does the company provide?

What technology services does the company provide?

What integrated services does the company provide?

What other marketing services does the company provide?

What is the company’s approach and success at servicing the midmarket?

What is the company’s vision and tailored capability for serving various industries?

What is the company’s vision and tailored capability for serving various client sales channels?

What are the terms of the company’s client engagements?

Account management and service delivery

Strategy services

Data and data sourcing services

Database management

Data processing and CDI

Analytical services

Creative services

Execution

Measurement

Technology capabilities

Integrated services

Other capabilities

Midmarket capabilities

Industry capabilities

Sales channel capabilities

Contracts and pricing

CURRENT OFFERING



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Figure 3 Evaluation Criteria (Cont.)


What is the company’s vision for its managed marketing database business, and what is the growth strategy for getting there?

How important are managed marketing databases to the company’s overall business?

How strong is the company’s database marketing services delivery strategy?

What is the company’s vision for servicing midmarket clients (those spending less than $1 million per year), and what is its strategy for getting there?

How robust and flexible is the company’s technology strategy?

How strong is the company’s industry strategy, and how appropriate is it for the company’s size and market position?

How unique and defensible are the company’s differentiators?

What is the company’s strategy for partnering with channel partners like agencies?

Does the company outsource any internal or client-facing functions?

What did client references, provided by the vendor, identify (in a forced decision) as the two best things and two most disappointing things about working with their provider?

Corporate strategy

Focus

Delivery strategy

Midmarket strategy

Technology strategy

Industry strategy

Differentiators

Channel strategy

Outsourcing strategy

Customer feedback

STRATEGY

How strong is the company’s client base?

What are the company’s revenues?

How balanced is the company’s momentum with its customer retention?

What is the company’s employee base?

What is the company’s global presence and approach?

What is the company’s market presence in various industries?

What is the company’s market presence servicing clients with various sales channels?

Clients

Revenues

Momentum and longevity

Employees

Global presence

Industry presence

Sales channel presence

MARKET PRESENCE



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Midmarket Evaluation Rewards Dedicated Midmarket Strategy And Offering

We also assessed how vendors serve midmarket opportunities, which Forrester defines as opportunities representing less than $1 million per year on all services. We did this by ratcheting up the weight of their midmarket scores to 50% of the current offering and strategy scores, and reducing the emphasis on several criteria, including account management, data sourcing, and strategic services. We also increased the weighting for smaller databases under management in the market presence category.

THE MARKET CONTINUES TO EVOLVE

Our analysis of the database marketing service providers market revealed that (see Figure 4):

· Two predominant vendor strategies are emerging. MSPs approach the market from two angles: as end-to-end or niche providers. There are Leaders and Strong Performers in both camps. Most marketers we spoke with have a clear preference for one approach over the other. End-to-end providers offer a one-stop shop for marketers, while niche providers offer a singular focus on a narrow range of services. Broad providers can always seek to compete at the niche level, while niche providers can partner to compete for end-to-end opportunities. The challenge for end-to-end providers is to integrate their disparate parts, and the challenge for niche providers is to not get overlooked in broader deals.

· The midmarket is an industry focal point. A majority of the vendors in our Wave have developed or are developing packaged midmarket solutions. Why the big R&D focus? At the end of the day, there are a limited number of very large banks, retailers, and insurance companies that need and can afford the highest-end database services. But there is a very large tier of companies at the next level that can benefit from implementing a marketing database, and MSPs are looking to service this market in the most repeatable and cost-effective manner (see Figure 5).

· Gaps remain in most vendors’ service. Even the Leaders in our Wave demonstrated some glaring holes in their service. What upsets marketers more than anything else? Poor project management skills, often translating into protracted timelines, misaligned expectations, and budget surprises. Proactive service got mixed reviews across most providers, and interactive services integrated with offline capabilities shockingly still lag.

· M&A activity may be restricting progress. 2007 has been an eventful year for MSPs. Several long-standing CEOs and senior execs have left their firms or announced their impending departures, and acquisitions continue aplenty, most often in the hot areas of the market: analytics and interactive. Marketers should pay close attention to this corporate activity, as during periods of change and turmoil, innovation suffers inevitably.



9

· Providers reach for the CMO. As MSPs expand their capabilities and focus more on strategy and analytics, many tell us that they are moving up the food chain within client organizations. However, as they do so, they will begin to compete with direct marketing agencies, digital agencies, and even traditional brand agencies. We expect to see some form of industry showdown over the next five years as the battle to be CMO-relevant heats up.

This evaluation of the database marketing service providers market is intended to be a starting point only. Readers are encouraged to view detailed product evaluations and adapt the criteria weightings to fit their individual needs through the Forrester Wave Excel-based vendor comparison tool.

Figure 4 Forrester Wave™: Enterprise Database Marketing Service Providers, Q4 ’07


Go online to download

the Forrester Wave tool

for more detailed product

evaluations, feature

comparisons, and

customizable rankings.

RiskyBets Contenders Leaders

StrongPerformers

StrategyWeak Strong

Currentoffering

Weak

Strong

Market presence

Experian Marketing Services

infoUSA

Fair Isaac

KnowledgeBase Marketing

Harte-HanksAcxiom

Epsilon

Equifax DatabaseServices

The Allant Group

TargetbaseMerkle

ChoicePoint Precision Marketing



10

Figure 4 Forrester Wave™: Enterprise Database Marketing Service Providers, Q4 ’07 (Cont.)


CURRENT OFFERING Account management and service delivery Strategy services Data and data sourcing services Database management Data processing and CDI Analytical services Creative services Execution Measurement Technology capabilities Integrated services Other capabilities Midmarket capabilities Industry capabilities Sales channel capabilities Contracts and pricing

STRATEGY Corporate strategy Focus Delivery strategy Midmarket strategy Technology strategy Industry strategy Differentiators Channel strategy Outsourcing strategy Customer feedback

Forr

este

r’sw

eigh

ting

50%20%

10%10%

10%0%

15%5%5%0%

10%0%5%0%

10%0%0%

50%40%15%30%

0%10%

5%0%0%0%0%

Har

te-H

anks

3.102.58

3.003.33

2.800.003.003.753.500.003.404.502.805.003.800.000.00

2.832.503.502.505.003.005.000.000.000.000.00

info

USA

2.412.73

1.633.23

3.050.002.300.401.750.002.703.753.704.201.700.000.00

2.382.501.502.004.004.003.000.000.000.000.00

Know

ledg

eBas

e M

arke

ting

3.584.33

4.503.10

3.650.004.251.002.100.003.903.503.002.402.600.000.00

4.484.005.005.005.004.004.500.000.000.000.00

Mer

kle

4.154.20

3.634.35

3.500.004.653.654.200.004.804.503.101.804.400.000.00

4.835.005.005.002.004.003.500.000.000.000.00

Targ

etb

ase

3.994.25

5.003.00

3.200.004.904.904.800.004.105.002.902.702.400.000.00

4.835.005.005.003.504.003.500.000.000.000.00

The

Alla

nt G

roup

3.443.98

4.003.10

2.800.004.550.002.550.004.503.253.102.402.430.000.00

4.504.504.005.002.004.004.000.000.000.000.00

Cho

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oint

Pr

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ion

Mar

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ng

3.023.28

3.752.95

2.700.003.151.753.000.004.203.002.703.201.550.000.00

2.953.002.003.504.502.004.000.000.000.000.00

Epsi

lon

3.563.63

3.252.80

3.850.003.553.352.800.004.804.003.202.803.600.000.00

3.904.005.003.003.504.005.000.000.000.000.00

Equi

fax

Dat

abas

eSe

rvic

es

3.113.88

3.503.28

3.100.002.651.000.700.004.403.752.804.402.850.000.00

3.753.502.005.005.003.504.000.000.000.000.00

Exp

eria

n M

arke

ting

Serv

ices

3.002.53

4.003.35

4.400.003.250.300.750.003.403.133.703.802.500.000.00

2.652.502.002.503.504.004.000.000.000.000.00

Fair

Isaa

c

2.812.38

3.882.95

2.750.003.302.450.800.003.402.632.751.002.450.000.00

2.452.501.502.502.003.003.500.000.000.000.00

All scores are based on a scale of 0 (weak) to 5 (strong).

Acx

iom

3.062.18

4.003.18

4.000.001.851.751.750.004.503.503.203.404.400.000.00

3.032.503.502.503.505.005.000.000.000.000.00



11


Go online to download

the Forrester Wave tool

for more detailed product

evaluations, feature

comparisons, and

customizable rankings.

RiskyBets Contenders Leaders

StrongPerformers

StrategyWeak Strong

Currentoffering

Weak

Strong

Market presence

Experian Marketing Services

infoUSA

Fair IsaacKnowledgeBase

Marketing

Harte-Hanks

Acxiom

Epsilon

Equifax Database Services

The Allant Group

Targetbase

Merkle

ChoicePoint Precision Marketing

Figure 4 Forrester Wave™: Enterprise Database Marketing Service Providers, Q4 ’07 (Cont.)


MARKET PRESENCE Clients Revenues Momentum and longevity Employees Global presence Industry presence Sales channel presence

Forr

este

r’sw

eigh

ting

0%30%30%

5%20%

5%10%

0%

Har

te-H

anks

3.834.004.003.005.002.001.800.00

info

USA

2.773.203.002.503.000.601.500.00

Know

ledg

eBas

e M

arke

ting

3.133.304.003.003.001.401.200.00

Mer

kle

3.473.804.003.504.000.001.500.00

Targ

etb

ase

2.331.803.003.003.000.001.400.00

The

Alla

nt G

roup

1.702.201.004.002.000.001.400.00

Cho

iceP

oint

Pr

ecis

ion

Mar

keti

ng

2.412.703.002.002.500.001.000.00

Epsi

lon

3.603.704.003.005.000.001.350.00

Equi

fax

Dat

abas

eSe

rvic

es

1.522.251.003.001.000.601.600.00

Exp

eria

n M

arke

ting

Serv

ices

3.913.604.004.505.005.001.500.00

Fair

Isaa

c

3.192.903.003.505.001.701.600.00


Acx

iom

4.164.005.002.005.004.201.500.00

Figure 5 Forrester Wave™: Midmarket Database Marketing Service Providers, Q4 ’07



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Figure 5 Forrester Wave™: Midmarket Database Marketing Service Providers, Q4 ’07 (Cont.)


CURRENT OFFERING Account management & service delivery Strategy services Data and data sourcing services Database management Data processing & CDI Analytical services Creative services Execution Measurement Technology capabilities Integrated services Other capabilities Midmarket capabilities Industry capabilities Sales channel capabilities Contracts and pricing

STRATEGY Corporate strategy Focus Delivery strategy Midmarket strategy Technology strategy Industry strategy Differentiators Channel strategy Outsourcing strategy Customer feedback

Forr

este

r’sw

eigh

ting

50%10%

5%0%

5%0%

15%0%5%0%5%0%0%

50%5%0%0%

50%15%10%15%50%

0%10%

0%0%0%0%

Har

te-H

anks

4.032.58

3.003.33

2.800.003.003.753.500.003.404.502.805.003.800.000.00

4.102.503.502.505.003.005.000.000.000.000.00

info

USA

3.262.73

1.633.23

3.050.002.300.401.750.002.703.753.704.201.700.000.00

3.132.501.502.004.004.003.000.000.000.000.00

Know

ledg

eBas

e M

arke

ting

3.114.33

4.503.10

3.650.004.251.002.100.003.903.503.002.402.600.000.00

4.804.005.005.005.004.004.500.000.000.000.00

Mer

kle

3.044.20

3.634.35

3.500.004.653.654.200.004.804.503.101.804.400.000.00

3.355.005.005.002.004.003.500.000.000.000.00

Targ

etb

ase

3.494.25

5.003.00

3.200.004.904.904.800.004.105.002.902.702.400.000.00

4.105.005.005.003.504.003.500.000.000.000.00

The

Alla

nt G

roup

3.093.98

4.003.10

2.800.004.550.002.550.004.503.253.102.402.430.000.00

3.234.504.005.002.004.004.000.000.000.000.00

Cho

iceP

oint

Pr

ecis

ion

Mar

keti

ng

3.163.28

3.752.95

2.700.003.151.753.000.004.203.002.703.201.550.000.00

3.833.002.003.504.502.004.000.000.000.000.00

Epsi

lon

3.213.63

3.252.80

3.850.003.553.352.800.004.804.003.202.803.600.000.00

3.804.005.003.003.504.005.000.000.000.000.00

Equi

fax

Dat

abas

eSe

rvic

es

3.713.88

3.503.28

3.100.002.651.000.700.004.403.752.804.402.850.000.00

4.383.502.005.005.003.504.000.000.000.000.00

Exp

eria

n M

arke

ting

Serv

ices

3.392.53

4.003.35

4.400.003.250.300.750.003.403.133.703.802.500.000.00

3.102.502.002.503.504.004.000.000.000.000.00

Fair

Isaa

c

1.902.38

3.882.95

2.750.003.302.450.800.003.402.632.751.002.450.000.00

2.252.501.502.502.003.003.500.000.000.000.00


Acx

iom

3.132.18

4.003.18

4.000.001.851.751.750.004.503.503.203.404.400.000.00

3.352.503.502.503.505.005.000.000.000.000.00



13

Figure 5 Forrester Wave™: Midmarket Database Marketing Service Providers, Q4 ’07 (Cont.)


MARKET PRESENCE Clients Revenues Momentum and longevity Employees Global presence Industry presence Sales channel presence

Forr

este

r’sw

eigh

ting

0%65%10%

5%10%

0%10%

0%

Har

te-H

anks

4.485.004.003.005.002.001.800.00

info

USA

3.744.403.002.503.000.601.500.00

Know

ledg

eBas

e M

arke

ting

3.053.204.003.003.001.401.200.00

Mer

kle

2.171.604.003.504.000.001.500.00

Targ

etb

ase

1.541.003.003.003.000.001.400.00

The

Alla

nt G

roup

2.202.401.004.002.000.001.400.00

Cho

iceP

oint

Pr

ecis

ion

Mar

keti

ng

2.703.003.002.002.500.001.000.00

Epsi

lon

2.752.404.003.005.000.001.350.00

Equi

fax

Dat

abas

eSe

rvic

es

2.463.001.003.001.000.601.600.00

Exp

eria

n M

arke

ting

Serv

ices

3.363.204.004.505.005.001.500.00

Fair

Isaa

c

2.572.203.003.505.001.701.600.00


Acx

iom

3.463.405.002.005.004.201.500.00

VENDOR PROFILES

Leaders

· Epsilon. Epsilon has completed several acquisitions during the past few years, adding interactive, data, and agency capabilities to its arsenal. Its strategic and analytic approach to database management helps make the company a Leader in the space, and most clients applaud its service delivery.2

· Equifax Database Services. Equifax Database Services offers flexible, pragmatic, and integrated solutions best suited for midmarket opportunities. Primarily focused on financial services, media, retail, and travel companies, Equifax integrates strategy, technology, data, and analytics into packaged, customizable solutions.3

· Harte-Hanks. Although Harte-Hanks offers enterprise-level custom database solutions, much of its recent focus and success stems from its midmarket accounts. The company has deep industry experience across a range of industries and a vast array of loosely integrated service offerings. 4

· KnowledgeBase Marketing. KnowledgeBase Marketing has an analytic and strategic approach to service delivery and, through the purchase of DataCore, has acquired a full-service midmarket offering. The company maintains its dominant position in the healthcare industry and has expanded into the packaged goods and telecom/Internet/video “triple play” markets.5

· Merkle. Merkle is an analytically driven integrated services provider. Its approach to client service is to collaborate with clients to help solve their business problems. The company delivers integrated services across its lines of business and evaluates account staff based on their ability to work as an integrated team, among other factors.6



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· Targetbase. Its highly integrated, strategic, and analytically led approach to service delivery has catapulted Targetbase into a leadership position in our Wave. Targetbase focuses on helping its clients change consumer behavior, and clients praise the ease of working with the company, as well as its approach to building relationships based on trust and transparency.7

· The Allant Group. The Allant Group has honed its delivery of analytically and strategically led database engagements. It targets enterprise opportunities in select industries, and its integrated service and high customer satisfaction translate into notable market momentum. The company is a strategic partner for senior-level marketers within its client base.8

Strong Performers

· Acxiom. Acxiom is a technology powerhouse with a heavy emphasis on proprietary data and deep industry expertise across a multitude of industries. It has added significantly to its strategy and analytics capabilities, although these services are not yet fully integrated within its overall offering. The company has also developed a promising midmarket strategy.9

· ChoicePoint Precision Marketing. ChoicePoint notched up consistent but not outstanding scores across the board. It is heavily focused in financial services and recently began targeting telecommunications and cable firms. The company manages both acquisition and retention databases, with a high concentration of acquisition databases.10

· Experian Marketing Services. Experian has invested during the past 18 months to improve its service delivery, enhance its strategic and proactive advice, and deliver an integrated offering. The company still has a distance to go in these areas, but there are signs of improvement, and some new clients have had positive experiences from day one.11

· Fair Isaac. Fair Isaac offers a range of services and technologies for mostly enterprise clients, but most of its database clients have service bureau relationships for data processing and database management. Its highly regarded analytics capabilities are usually “bolt-on” offerings, rather than the core of analytically led database solutions.12

· infoUSA. infoUSA has invested heavily in enhancing its technology and service delivery, and there are signs of the investment starting to pay off, with several clients pointing to dramatic improvements in service delivery over the past 12 to 18 months. InfoUSA needs to make additional investment in integrating its offering and in beefing up its strategic capabilities.13



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SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIAL

Online Resource

The online versions of Figures 4 and 5 are Excel-based vendor comparison tools that provide detailed product evaluations and customizable rankings.

You can view our related Vendor Product Catalog at http://www.forrester.com/rb/vpc/catalog.jsp?catalogID=6.

Data Sources Used In This Forrester Wave

Forrester used a combination of data sources to assess the strengths and weaknesses of each solution, including:

· Vendor surveys and executive calls. Forrester surveyed vendors on their capabilities as they relate to the evaluation criteria. Once we analyzed the completed vendor surveys, we conducted executive calls to gather details of vendor qualifications.

· Online survey of vendor-supplied references and customer interviews. To validate product and vendor qualifications, Forrester also conducted a survey with at least 10 vendor-supplied references and completed calls with at least four of each vendor’s current customers.

The Forrester Wave Methodology

We conduct primary research to develop a list of vendors that meet our criteria to be evaluated in this market. From that initial pool of vendors, we then narrow our final list. We choose these vendors based on: 1) product fit; 2) customer success; and 3) Forrester client demand. We eliminate vendors that have limited customer references and products that don’t fit the scope of our evaluation.

After examining past research, user need assessments, and vendor and expert interviews, we develop the initial evaluation criteria. To evaluate the vendors and their products against our set of criteria, we gather details of product qualifications through a combination of lab evaluations, questionnaires, demos, and/or discussions with client references. We send evaluations to the vendors for their review, and we adjust the evaluations to provide the most accurate view of vendor offerings and strategies.

We set default weightings to reflect our analysis of the needs of large user companies — and/or other scenarios as outlined in the Forrester Wave document — and then score the vendors based on a clearly defined scale. These default weightings are intended only as a starting point, and readers are encouraged to adapt the weightings to fit their individual needs through the Excel-based tool. The final scores generate the graphical depiction of the market based on current offering, strategy, and market presence. Forrester intends to update vendor evaluations regularly as product capabilities and vendor strategies evolve.



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ENDNOTES1 For more detail about various outsourcing options, see the May 16, 2007, “The Direct Marketing Services

Ecosystem” report.

2 View the vendor summary for more detailed analysis on how Epsilon fared in this evaluation. See the November 2, 2007, “Epsilon Delivers A Potent Database Marketing Service” report.

3 View the vendor summary for more detailed analysis on how Equifax Database Services fared in this evaluation. See the November 2, 2007, “Equifax Shines As An Integrated Midmarket Database Marketing Service Provider” report.

4 View the vendor summary for more detailed analysis on how Harte-Hanks fared in this evaluation. See the November 2, 2007, “Harte-Hanks Excels As A Midmarket Database Marketing Service Provider” report.

5 View the vendor summary for more detailed analysis on how KnowledgeBase Marketing fared in this evaluation. See the November 2, 2007, “KnowledgeBase Marketing Advances With Integrated Strategy And Analytics” report.

6 View the vendor summary for more detailed analysis on how Merkle fared in this evaluation. See the November 2, 2007, “Merkle Raises The Bar For Enterprise Database Marketing Service Providers” report.

7 View the vendor summary for more detailed analysis on how Targetbase fared in this evaluation. See the November 2, 2007, “Targetbase Delivers A Grand Slam Of Integrated Strategy, Analytics, Technology, And Creative” report.

8 View the vendor summary for more detailed analysis on how The Allant Group fared in this evaluation. See the November 2, 2007, “Advanced Analytical And Strategic Services Propel The Allant Group Forward” report.

9 View the vendor summary for more detailed analysis on how Acxiom fared in this evaluation. See the November 2, 2007, “Acxiom Is The Technology Powerhouse Of Database Marketing Service Providers” report.

10 View the vendor summary for more detailed analysis on how ChoicePoint Precision Marketing fared in this evaluation. See the November 2, 2007, “ChoicePoint Is A Solid Database Marketing Service Provider For Financial Services Firms” report.

11 View the vendor summary for more detailed analysis on how Experian Marketing Services fared in this evaluation. See the November 2, 2007, “Experian Marketing Services Offers Scalable Databases And A Broad Range of Services” report.

12 View the vendor summary for more detailed analysis on how Fair Isaac fared in this evaluation. See the November 2, 2007, “Fair Isaac Needs To Integrate Analytics To Shake Off Its Service Bureau Legacy” report.

13 View the vendor summary for more detailed analysis on how infoUSA fared in this evaluation. See the November 2, 2007, “InfoUSA Suits Midmarket Retailers And B2B Firms Best” report.




















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