You need a PLAN to deal with duplicates

You need a PLAN to deal with duplicates

Here's the thing about duplicate records: No matter what you do, you'll never get rid of them completely, because humans are human. Whether it's a staff member creating a duplicate record because they forgot to check if the record exists, or it's a customer who doesn't want to take the time to reset his password and just creates another record with a different email address, duplicates are going to happen.

And because duplicates are inevitable, you have to have a plan for dealing with them. Here are some suggestions:

  1. Create data integrity reports that will help you identify potential duplicate records, and run those reports consistently. ("Consistently" means at least once a month, if not more often.) And make sure someone (or several someones) on staff has responsibility for cleaning up this data.
  2. Make it everyone's job on staff to identify potential duplicates whenever they are using the database and make sure you have a clear process for how those duplicate records are reported. And make sure someone (or several someones) on staff has responsibility for cleaning up this data.
  3. And did I mention to make sure someone (or several someones) on staff has responsibility for cleaning up this data?

Managing duplicate records is a journey, not a destination. No matter how good your technology is, like weeds in a garden, duplicate records are going to appear. So you have to have a plan for dealing with them, not just now, but always.

Wes's Wednesday Wisdom Archives

A harsh truth about your members…

October 28, 2026

A harsh truth about your members… Just over 20 years ago, the book “He’s Just Not […]

Should you chug or sip?

October 21, 2026

Should you chug or sip? I was recently meeting with two staff at a client […]

Why bother with a consultant when I have AI?

October 14, 2026

Why bother with a consultant when I have AI? As AI becomes increasingly powerful, the […]

Guardrails can be helpful!

October 7, 2026

Guardrails can be helpful! When selecting a new AMS, I find my clients are often […]

“If you knew this information, what might you do differently?”

September 30, 2026

“If you knew this information, what might you do differently?” I had a conversation with […]

Showing is not teaching

September 23, 2026

Showing is not teaching In my experience, when new staff members are taught how to […]

Data management is improvisation

September 16, 2026

Data management is improvisation I was listening to a podcast recently featuring TV writer Rob […]

Who own the AMS company is like the weather…

September 9, 2026

Who own the AMS company is like the weather… When I work with clients to […]

“As good or better than me.”

September 2, 2026

“As good or better than me.” I was recently speaking with a software developer working […]

Documentation is insurance

August 26, 2026

Documentation is insurance In a conversation with a client about their data management needs, the client […]

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Scroll to Top