Residential Data or Consumer Data? What's the Difference?

While the terms "residential" and "consumer" may seem similar, the types of lists created from these datasets are quite different. Explore this article to learn more!

We are frequently asked what the differences between Compact's residential and consumer datasets are. Both terms do sound familiar, and in fact, the same addresses may appear on both types of lists. To aid in explaining the differences, we have prepared a comparison grid along with usage examples below.

	Compact Resident List:	Compact Consumer List:
Dataset Overview	The Compact Resident List is a dataset of physical structures, residential and business, receiving mail As long as an address is active and occupied, it is included for list creation purposes Approximately 96% of residential addresses are accounted for	The Compact Consumer List is a dataset consisting of specific households whose addresses are updated when the household moves Approximately 70 - 75% of residential addresses are accounted for
Dataset Sourcing	Compact Residential List sources include: USPS® Computerized Delivery Sequence (CDS) file, which is compiled and updated by postal carriers and maintained by the national Address Management System (AMS) office Consumer name overlay (to provide contact names where available) Carrier route-level aggregated demographic attributes	Compact Consumer List sources include: Address Histories City Directories Consumer Surveys Courthouse Records Directory Assistance Data Modeled Data Postal Data Publications Purchase Transactions Real Estate Transactions U.S. Census® Data Voter Registrations Warranty Cards and more
Update Schedule	Compiled weekly with updates applied monthly	Compiled quarterly with updates and data hygiene applied monthly
Demographic Attributes	A limited number of carrier route-level aggregated demographic attributes are available	A comprehensive collection of demographic and lifestyle attributes are applied at the individual or household level for targeting purposes
Salutation/Alternative Address Format	"Resident" is the default salutation; a custom salutation such as "To Our Neighbor at" can be added Contact names where available can be added to your list for an additional fee	A contact name appears on every record A supplemental salutation can be added
Postal Saturation	Postal saturation levels are always provided	Postal saturation levels are unknown
Sortation Level	Carrier Route Walk Sequence (the highest level of sortation discount available)	Consumer lists can be limited to records that meet 5-digit or high density rates
Postal Paperwork	USPS qualification summary, CASS certificate, and NCOA reports where applicable	CASS and NCOA certificates are included with each order
Estimated Deliverability Rates	97 - 100%	90 - 95%

Consider using Compact Resident List if:

You want to saturate a geographic area by mailing to every available address
You seek the highest possible postage discounts for sortation and saturation
The importance of postal discounts outweighs the importance of targeting specific consumers
The importance of highest possible deliverability outweighs the slightly lower deliverability of a more targeted list
You want a list that arrives pre-sorted and ready for mailing including appropriate postal paperwork

Here is an example of a campaign that would benefit from the use of Compact Resident List:

A local pizzeria knows that most households within 2 miles of their location will consume at least one pizza every 2 weeks. By using the Resident List, they will saturate their delivery area, reaching every address in the neighborhood with a coupon mailing.

Consider using Compact Consumer List if:

You want a contact name for every record on your list for personalization purposes
You require that demographic attributes (for example, age, income, or presence of children) have been used to target your list
The importance of targeting your list outweighs the importance of postal discounts
The importance of targeting your list outweighs chance of slightly lower deliverability
You are mailing first class and/or don’t mind that the file will need additional presort processing to achieve automation discounts
You require email addresses or telephone numbers for multichannel campaigns

Here is an example of a campaign that would benefit from the use of Compact Consumer List:

A luxury car dealership has a specific demographic profile for households that are the most likely to buy their vehicles. The profile includes ages 45+ with an income greater than $175,000 that live within a 25-mile distance of the dealership. Having a name on each mail piece is essential to obtain their goals for personalization.

About Compact

Compact Information Systems, a Deep Sync brand, drives successful campaign outcomes with highly customizable, privacy-first datasets. Compact’s masterful consumer, business, and residential compilations and deep industry relationships enable you to identify the specific audiences you desire with ease.

As always, we welcome your questions on our datasets and data-related products and services. For additional information or a consultation in support of your next marketing campaign, please feel free to contact our team.