Database 360 opens offices in the UK

1 Jun 2010

To answer the growing need for information on African businesses within the UK, South African database specialists Database 360, a division of CG Consulting, has opened an office in London. The UK arm of the company aims to provide companies a gateway to doing business in Africa by providing strategy consulting and fact-finding services.

The company is also tasked with helping organisations avoid spending a fortune to penetrate the African market and it aims to provide quality data and information on companies throughout the African continent.

"Globally, companies are still looking at Africa as an emerging market. However, the challenge is where to start and who to speak to," says Louise Robinson, founder and owner of Database 360.

"A challenge for global organisations is access to accurate, relevant and up-to-date information and data. Another aspect is getting a partner that understands the myriad of African cultures and in the absence of data is able to develop niche databases and events on a client's behalf."

Culture governs how business is done

Africa is home to more than 50 countries, every one of which with its own culture - and each culture to a large extent dictates how the people of the country do business. Database 360 has been working with customers throughout the continent for nearly a decade and claims to have a broad understanding of how business is done in countries across the continent.

Robinson says the company has a top corporate database of key executives in the oil, banking, mining, financial and healthcare industries, to name a few. "Our consultants speak French, Portuguese and Arabic. The Database 360 model differs from traditional data houses that churn information, bloat their databases, and provide data that is oftentimes inaccurate, incomplete, and out of date."

Run by a team of experienced telemarketers and business-to-business specialists with a wealth of experience in the data sourcing industry, the company says it is able to offer tailored data to meet the needs of very specific campaigns.

It's the leads that count

Data sourced and collected by the team is thoroughly checked and cleansed using a very specific model developed by the company. Each client is then provided with access to accurate, up-to-date data that fits closely to the campaigns they are running, promoting relevance and avoiding wastage.

"There is nothing worse than getting a database with thousands of names but with only five genuine leads. In my experience, clients are willing to pay the same for five leads than they would five hundred. Especially if these are actual accurate data sources that support the sales process," she adds.

"To date the company has already done extensive work for companies throughout the UK, Middle East and Africa. Years of experience in the field of database profiling has helped us develop a model where we help clients identify their markets, look at what information they need to support this market, and then providing them with this information," concludes Robinson.

For more information contact Database 360 UK on +44 (0)165 264 1567 or at Suite 143, 315 Chiswick, W4 4HH, or go to the website www.database360.co.za.