Bad Data In, Bad Data Out | Page 17

Welcome to my business diary! Here, I’ll be sharing my journey of building Rex Martech from the ground up. You’ll get an insider’s view of the highs, lows, and everything in between—from achieving technical milestones to navigating legal and financial challenges.

Whether you’re an aspiring entrepreneur or simply curious, this will give you a raw, authentic look at the process of launching a tech startup.

In addition, I will also share my LinkedIn posts from the previous week (listed below). Feel free to join the conversations and express your thoughts.

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A Page From My Business Diary ~

In my previous update, I introduced our latest addition to Rex Validate—the Bypass Validation feature, now available to our users.

This update, along with our most recent enhancements, serves as a reminder to both seasoned and aspiring entrepreneurs that a product is always evolving. It’s a continuous journey toward perfection—always striving but never fully arriving.

With that in mind, here’s an account of a key challenge we recently encountered and how we’re addressing it within the Rex Validate software.

The Root Problem: Garbage In, Garbage Out

Many advanced validation checks—especially the more sophisticated ones—rely on properly formatted, valid street addresses. If the address is incorrect, how can we verify homeownership or credit score? And if it’s misspelled or doesn’t exist, the validation process becomes even more difficult.

While we can take steps to improve accuracy, the root cause of the issue starts at the form level. If real-time checks aren’t in place while the consumer is engaged, bad data gets collected. As a result, validation checks can’t perform as they should, leading to poor-quality data downstream.

There’s a simple, cost-effective fix: USPS and Google Address APIs. If a consumer enters an invalid address in the form, the error is caught immediately and can be corrected—improving lead quality at the source. So why don’t more publishers implement this validation?

Take this example: If a lead submits 234 Born Street, Memphis, TN, but the correct address is 234 Barn Street, the API alerts the consumer that the street address entered doesn’t exist. They can recognize the misspelling and correct it. Similarly, if a consumer mistakenly types 123BarnStreet without spaces or enters a non-existent number, the API suggests the proper format.

By using address validation APIs at the point of entry, we can reduce formatting errors, missing characters, and incorrect structures—before bad data ever enters the system.

The Not-So-Perfect Quick Fix

To tackle the “bad data” problem, we’ve introduced a street address cleanup feature that improves accuracy. It doesn’t catch everything, but it enhances overall validation results by ensuring subsequent checks are based on higher-quality information.

However, the real solution is requiring address validation at the form level—while the consumer is still engaged.

When done correctly, lead generation forms fortified with basic real-time validation, especially for addresses, nudge consumers to correct errors before submission. This leads to:
✅ More precise leads
✅ Fewer rejected submissions
✅ Better outcomes for end buyers

The Takeaway

So here’s what I’m thinking—rather than leaving address validation as a back-end process, what if more publishers implemented it at the front end, right at the point of data entry? Seems obvious, right?

The tools, like USPS and Google APIs, already exist to make this shift. Using them ensures cleaner, properly structured data from the start.

By embracing front-end validation, we don’t just improve accuracy—we also reduce wasted leads and significantly boost validation success rates. A small shift, but a major improvement in lead quality.

Do you agree? Whether you do or don’t, I’d love to hear your thoughts!
📩 Drop me an email at [email protected]
💬 Prefer LinkedIn? DM me there!

Catch My Latest Posts From LinkedIn ~

1. Putting Up Healthy Boundaries At Work

2. Super Bowl: Teamwork Over Talent

3. Sora AI’s Hilarious Output

Meet Jennine ~

Jennine Rexon is the President of REX Direct, a pioneering performance marketing agency founded in 2001. Under her leadership, REX Direct has become a leading force in generating high-quality leads across various sectors, including home improvement, legal, health and wellness, market research, travel, and personal finance. Known for her relentless curiosity and passion for technology and creativity, Jennine is dedicated to driving innovation in the field. This September, Jennine launched REX Martech, a new technology company focused on advancing performance marketing—details of which she shares exclusively in this newsletter. Outside of work, Jennine enjoys practicing yoga, spending quality time with her family, and doting on her loyal dog, RJ.