Glossary Prospecting
What is an intent signal in B2B sales?
Also called Buying signal, trigger event
An intent signal is an observable event or behavior suggesting that a company or person may be ready to buy, such as raising funding, hiring for a related role, opening a new location or talking publicly about a problem.
Signals come in two kinds: first party (things people do on your own site or product) and third party (public events like job posts, funding announcements, leadership changes and news).
A signal is a reason to write now, not proof of interest. The best emails name the signal and ask a question about it, rather than assuming what it means.
Why it matters
- Timing often matters more than the pitch: the same email lands differently after a funding round.
- A signal gives you a true, specific opening line.
- Signals help rank a long list so the warmest people come first.
How Reach Crew handles it
Scout counts buying signals when it scores a lead: a funding round from the last 12 months and hiring add points even when your goal did not ask for them. A post from the last 60 days or fresh company news counts as a reason to write today, and Writer can open with it, linked to its source.
Related terms
- Lead scoring. Lead scoring is a method of ranking prospects with a number or grade that reflects how well they fit your...
- Personalization. Personalization in cold email is writing each message around something specific and true about the recipient...
- Ideal customer profile. An ideal customer profile (ICP) is a description of the type of company that gets the most value from what you...
- Template: A cold email that starts from a job posting