Choosing a Michigan geographic segment
Statewide, county or city — how to pick the right scope.
Start from where you can actually do business. A title company with two offices rarely benefits from Upper Peninsula contacts; a software vendor selling remotely may want the whole state.
- County scope is predictable: Michigan has 83 counties with fixed boundaries (State of Michigan county list).
- City scope is narrower but fuzzier — some cities, such as Lansing, cross county lines.
- Office address vs service area: an agent's office may be in one county while they sell in several. Check which one a list uses.
Understanding dataset fields
Included columns vs filled values, and why the difference matters.
A field being “included” means the column exists. What matters for outreach is the fill rate — the share of rows with a value.
Ask for fill rates per field and per package. A phone column that is 40% filled supports a different plan from one that is 95% filled.
Also ask whether emails are personal work addresses or shared office inboxes, and how duplicates across licences are handled.
Evaluating email verification
What a “verified” email really tells you.
Most verification checks syntax, the domain's mail server and, sometimes, a mailbox response. A pass means the address looked deliverable on the check date.
It does not mean the person agreed to hear from you, that their licence is active, or that your message will reach the inbox. Always ask when the check ran — it is a separate date from the database refresh.
Planning responsible outreach
Practical CAN-SPAM basics and sending-provider rules.
Buying a dataset does not by itself give you permission to email, call or text anyone. For commercial email in the US, the FTC's CAN-SPAM guidance requires, among other things, accurate headers and subject lines, identifying the message as an ad where applicable, a valid physical postal address, and a working opt-out honoured within 10 business days. Read the FTC CAN-SPAM compliance guide.
Phone calls and texts are covered by separate rules. Email platforms also set their own policies — Mailchimp, for example, does not allow purchased lists (Mailchimp list policy). Check your provider before importing.
This is general information, not legal advice.