Process of combining two or more lists or files, simultaneously identifying and/or combining duplicates and eliminating unwanted records such as deadbeats and nixies. The purpose of the merge/purge is to provide a mailer with the best possible list of names to which to mail a promotion. The input to a merge/purge consists of all of the lists the mailer has rented and several other lists he has created or rented. A common practice is to use one's own customer list (house list) as a purge file, so that promotions intended to generate new customers are not sent to existing customers. Many mailers also maintain their own list of deadbeats and nixies they will purge from the list.
The merge/purge program describes how the mailer wishes to identify duplicates and how he wants to allocate deductions for duplicates to the various rented lists. list rentals are usually based on the number of names remaining after the merge/purge; thus, each list owner has an interest in having duplicates fairly allocated so that no one owner is excessively penalized.
The output of the merge/purge is usually on mailing labels but may be on magnetic tape depending on how the list user intends to promote the list. In addition to labels, reports are generated showing how many names were input and output by list, and sometimes by list broker. A finder number is sometimes assigned during the merge/purge process.
See also dedupe; list rental; multibuyer; net name arrangement; priority list.
