Paradigm Case Study

Paradigm Streamlines Pipeline Safety Outreach with Melissa Location Data
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Steve McGaffin

President @ The Paradigm Alliance, Inc.

"Melissa’s team doesn’t just provide data—they provide solutions tailored to our unique challenges."

The Challenge

Ensuring Accurate Outreach Data

Pipeline safety is one of those things that often goes unnoticed—until something goes wrong. The Paradigm Alliance mission is to prevent those “what ifs” by keeping communities informed and pipeline operators compliant with federal safety regulations.

Every year, Paradigm helps operators across the U.S. conduct public awareness campaigns, deliver safety literature, and host more than 1,000 in-person liaison meetings with first responders, excavators, and public officials. The goal is simple yet ambitious: to ensure that anyone living or working near a pipeline knows what to do in an emergency and how to prevent one.

To do that effectively, Paradigm has to find and reach the right people, fast. That means they rely heavily on accurate address and contact data for residents, businesses, public officials, and emergency personnel. For years, they worked with a single vendor to supply that data. But when that vendor was acquired, the customer support that Paradigm had come to rely on began to fade. Obtaining updated datasets became a much slower and more complicated process. Instead of having the data they needed at their fingertips, they were required to submit orders and wait, sometimes hours, sometimes longer. Paradigm president, Steve McGaffin, knew something had to give and set out on a quest to find a solution.

The Solution

A Collaborative Data Partnership

When McGaffin first visited Melissa’s website, he wasn’t expecting a game-changing partnership. In fact, it started as something of a whim. Paradigm had used Melissa’s MAILERS+4 product in the past, but McGaffin quickly discovered that Melissa had evolved far beyond direct mail support.

He reached out and was connected with a Melissa account executive, who took the time to understand Paradigm’s unique needs. This was not your typical product pitch. Members of Melissa’s data team were pulled in to explore how they could make Paradigm’s outreach faster, more flexible, and more precise. That collaboration led to a switch from Paradigm’s legacy vendor to Melissa, and the difference was immediate.

Melissa began delivering a full monthly feed of nationwide residential address data, allowing Paradigm to access and analyze the information it needs. No more submitting requests. No more waiting. Just clean, constantly updated data, ready whenever needed.

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The Results

Faster Access, Smarter Decisions

With Melissa’s data, Paradigm gained new flexibility and precision in its outreach efforts. They were able to identify and verify addresses with a high degree of confidence, even in areas where standard geocoding fell short. Melissa’s data also helped Paradigm expand its outreach across multiple channels, including mail and phone campaigns.

For Paradigm, the shift wasn’t just about technology; it was about working with a partner who truly understood their mission. Melissa’s team consistently provided proactive support and creative problem-solving, helping Paradigm adapt as their data needs evolved.

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Why Melissa?

For McGaffin, the most refreshing part of working with Melissa isn’t the technology. It’s the people. After years of dealing with large, slow-moving vendors, he found Melissa’s responsiveness and problem-solving approach to be a breath of fresh air. When Paradigm presents a new challenge, the answer is never “we don’t do that.” It’s, “let’s take a look and see how we can help.” Whether it’s collaborating on a custom dataset or getting a quick answer from the support team, Melissa has consistently shown a willingness to engage, listen, and deliver.

“We’ve worked with hundreds of data providers over the years,” McGaffin said. “Melissa stands out. They listen, they collaborate, and they deliver."

Conclusion

Paradigm’s outreach mission depends on accurate data and the ability to engage stakeholders quickly. Melissa delivered a trusted, scalable solution—one that supports faster outreach and more reliable connections to communities across the U.S. The result: smarter programs and a stronger foundation for pipeline safety.

Melissa helps organizations like The Paradigm Alliance connect with their audiences through reliable location and identity data. How can we help you?