Opt-255 Campaign Optimizer

David Shepard Associates and MegaPlex Software Announce Opt-255

David Shepard Associates, Inc. and MegaPlex Software the creators of The Fast-Count DBMS have announced the introduction of a new Campaign Optimizer product, OPT-255. Direct Marketers using OPT-255 can optimize the assignment of up to 255 different product or product/channel combinations across a company’s customer or prospect database.

Opt-255 will optimize Revenues, Responses or Profits. The user determines the objective to be optimized. David Shepard explained the product this way. To use the optimizer a company must first estimate the outcome of promoting (mailing or telemarketing) each of its products to each of its customers or prospects.

The outcome may be a revenue or profit number or an expected probability of response. Once this is done the user can place any number constraints or restrictions on the system. For example, minimum and maximum promotion quantities for each product, for any combination of products, or product/channel combinations, as well as overall constraints, such as the total number of pieces mailed or calls made in a single promotion period. In addition, the system supports any number of decision rules with regard to eligibility.

Dhiraj Sharma, who developed Opt-255, explained its unique characteristics this way. Most optimizer products use some form of linear programming against a sample of customers or prospects. After the allocation has been made using the sample population, another statistical method is used assign all of the customers or prospects to the right product or product/channel combination. Opt-255, does not use sampling, but instead relies on a set of algorithms derived from a branch of mathematics called Combinatorial Numerical Methods, and on the speed of its Fast-Count database engine to assign each and every customer to one product or one product/channel combination, such that Revenues, Profits or Responses are maximized.

This process eliminates sampling and assignment errors. What’s more, because of the speed of the computational methods employed, marketers can execute and evaluate “what if” allocation scenarios in real time. For example, a file of 1 million customers was assigned to one of nine potential product/channel combinations in approximately 30 seconds.

To use Opt-255 a company does not have to be a Fast-Count DBMS client, and DSA, through its data mining and modeling capabilities will assist companies in building the required customer estimates and business rules.

For additional information call David Shepard at 631-271-5567 or Dhiraj Sharma at 908-647-3273.