DATABASES
"If you start by thinking about lists, you will end by understanding databases and what they can do rather well." Drayton Bird, Commonsense Direct Marketing
Databases are only as good as their reporting systems and the care taken
to maintain their data integrity (clean, consistent and valid).
Without such underlying data integrity many reports will be worse than useless and without those reports
why bother to record the data?
Third-party products such as Business Objects and Crystal Reports may also
be used to interrogate and report on the underlying details.