What is Data Decay?
Data decay is the gradual degradation of data accuracy over time as contact details, job titles, company information, and other B2B data points become outdated.
Data decay describes the natural process by which information in a database becomes inaccurate or obsolete over time. In B2B contexts, this happens because the real world is constantly changing: people switch jobs, companies are acquired, offices relocate, phone numbers are reassigned, and email addresses are deactivated. Studies consistently show that B2B data decays at a rate of roughly 2-3% per month, meaning about 25-35% of a typical CRM database becomes inaccurate within a single year.
The primary drivers of data decay in B2B include job changes (the average tenure for a B2B decision-maker is 2-3 years), company growth and restructuring (titles and reporting structures shift), mergers and acquisitions (entire domains and company records become invalid), and technology migrations (companies change their email systems or domain names).
Data decay has compounding consequences. Outdated email addresses cause bounces, which damage sender reputation and reduce deliverability across your entire domain. Wrong job titles lead to irrelevant messaging that damages brand perception. Inaccurate company data causes leads to be scored and routed incorrectly. Sales reps waste time researching prospects whose information is stale, reducing selling time.
The financial impact is measurable. Organizations with poor data quality spend an estimated 15-25% of their revenue on costs associated with bad data, according to industry research. For sales teams, stale data means lower connect rates, longer sales cycles, and missed opportunities when prospects are not reached at their current company.
Combating data decay requires a proactive, ongoing approach rather than one-time fixes. Cleanlist helps teams fight data decay through automated re-enrichment workflows that periodically refresh records in the CRM. By re-running records through its multi-provider enrichment waterfall on a scheduled basis, Cleanlist detects changes in job titles, email addresses, company details, and other fields - flagging records that have decayed so teams can take action before it impacts pipeline performance.
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See how Cleanlist handles data decay →Frequently Asked Questions
How fast does B2B data decay?
B2B data decays at approximately 2-3% per month, which translates to 25-35% annually. This rate varies by field - email addresses and job titles change more frequently than company-level data like industry or headquarters location. High-turnover industries like technology and startups experience even faster decay rates.
What are the biggest causes of data decay?
The primary causes are job changes (people switching roles or companies), company events (mergers, acquisitions, rebrands, closures), email system migrations, phone number reassignments, and office relocations. Job changes are the single largest contributor, as the average B2B professional changes roles every 2-3 years.
How can I reduce the impact of data decay on my CRM?
The most effective approach is scheduled re-enrichment, where your database is periodically refreshed against current data sources. Monthly or quarterly enrichment catches most changes before they cause campaign failures. Cleanlist automates this process by re-running records through its enrichment waterfall on a schedule, flagging records where key fields have changed so teams can update their CRM proactively.
Related Terms
CRM Data Hygiene
CRM data hygiene is the ongoing practice of maintaining clean, accurate, and complete data in your CRM system through regular validation, deduplication, enrichment, and standardization.
Data Enrichment
Data enrichment is the process of enhancing existing data records with additional information from external sources, improving accuracy, completeness, and usefulness for sales and marketing teams.
Email Verification
Email verification is the process of confirming that an email address is valid, properly formatted, and capable of receiving messages, without actually sending an email.