Define age precisely
Ask whether age means time since the business submitted an inquiry, time since a supplier collected the record, or time since the most recent verification. Those dates answer different questions. A recently delivered file can contain an old inquiry, and a fresh inquiry can already have been contacted by several providers.
Fresh inquiries need appropriate capacity
Newer inquiries may align with a current funding need, but your team still needs to confirm intent and eligibility. Do not buy more records than staff can review responsibly. Establish delivery times, ownership, coverage outside business hours, and an escalation process for incomplete records before increasing the daily order.
Aged inquiries need requalification
A business may have received funding, stopped trading, changed its contact details, or abandoned its request. Re-establish the current situation rather than presenting an earlier inquiry as a new application. Respect opt-outs and applicable contact restrictions. A lower price per record can be offset by more research and follow-up work.
Run a fair pilot
Keep source definitions and reporting windows consistent. Compare valid contacts, conversations, applications, funded outcomes, and labor hours. Track duplicate and invalid-record rates separately. Set an affordable pilot budget and review the results before scaling either source; avoid judging the whole program by one unusually good or bad day.
