The Basic Principles of Buying Business Leads

Lead generation is a hard process requiring a lot of effort and resources. It is also one of the most crucial processes for B2B companies. If you do not find new leads and make new sales, you will not be able to drive growth – it is as simple as that.

Buying relevant leads is an alternative way to generate new business that B2B companies turn to. Thus, this week's newsletter will explore the differences between buying leads and building your own lead list, how to buy leads, and what data is needed for quality lead generation.

Buying leads vs. creating a lead list yourself

When the means to create a lead list yourself are available, it is usually the better option. There are many reasons for that.

• You can customize your list specifically to meet your ideal customer requirements.
• You are in control of the entire lead generation process. Thus, you can make sure that quality standards are followed, and regulations are met.
• No additional validation is needed except for the normal due diligence in ensuring data quality.
• Time, money, and resources that you dedicate can be flexibly adjusted at all times.
• You can go after exactly those data points that you deem most valuable.

On the other hand, buying potential #leads can be the better option for small businesses or companies entering a new market. Any firm can benefit from purchasing business leads in the following ways.

• It might be cost-effective to buy leads.
• Sales reps can dedicate more time to other tasks across the sales pipeline, like appointment setting and lead nurturing.
• Professional data providers will be able to share their lead generation expertise. Thus you might end up with higher-quality leads than you could have acquired on your own.
• Companies professionally providing business lead data are also likely to be able to get more varied lead information than you could gather on your own.
• Keeping lead lists fresh is an ongoing process. Thus, even if you can create a lead list,?data enrichment?through purchasing is advisable.

At the end of the day, only you can tell which way to go is the most viable for you. The better option this week might not be the same next week.

How to buy leads?

You can buy business leads online from various lead generation platforms, lead providers, and websites offering lead lists. There are important preparation steps you should take before you buy leads.

1. Know what you need

Developing an ICP or a buyer persona is a good way of knowing what type of customer you are looking for. You can, however, go beyond that and figure out which data points are of most value to you. Audit your?sales process?to identify what helps your #sales professionals the most in determining buyer intent.

2. Buy business leads from trustworthy providers

Many of the lead list providers that you will find online are scams or amateurs who do not know what they are doing.?

Thus, to avoid problems with data regulation or bad quality leads, look for well-reviewed, professional-looking #LeadGeneration platforms or data brokers. Make sure that the providers specialize in B2B and not consumer leads.?

3. Compare key offerings

When choosing among the professional providers, compare their key offerings, such as how data-rich is the lead list, do their offer a free plan as a trial, and whether you can contact them for custom lead lists. Additionally, their tools and key features related to data export, delivery, and?CRM integration?should be considered.

4. Look into pricing

Of course, you want to get the best deal possible. Thus, it is wise to compare prices for the cheapest offer of the same value to your company. However, be suspicious of extremely low prices, as it might signal that the lead list provider is selling the same outbound leads to multiple firms.

If possible, look at the logic behind the pricing and see if it is reasonable. In other words, if the price is grounded in the provided services and value.

5. Validate the lead list for quality leads

Actively check the product you have received to ensure that you are getting your money’s worth. Use tools like email verification tools to make sure that there are no duplicates and that the business leads on your lead list are actually unique, high-quality leads. If the list requires a lot of #DataEnrichment to become useful, it might be a good idea to purchase leads from a different lead data provider next time.

What kind of data do you need for quality lead generation?

Before the #data revolution, contact details were often considered enough to make up a lead list. Although now email lists are also bought and sold, people usually expect more from high-quality lead generation.

Below is the lead information you might be after when buying #B2Bleads, listed from the most basic to more advanced.

Lead contact information

Usually, this will be an email address. Additionally, you might receive company address and website data.

Mobile phone number?

Although basically also contact information, a direct phone number makes the lead more reachable. Thus, it deserves to be considered a more advanced kind of lead information.

Firmographic data

For B2B businesses, firmographic data is everything. You want to know as much as possible about the business you might be selling to. Thus all the details regarding their size, industry, revenue, and other features might help your lead generation and qualifying #B2B leads.

Demographic and psychographic data on the key decision-makers

Even though your customer is a business, when you get a lead list, the contact details will have you contact a single person or a small team. Thus, high-quality lead data will include accurate information about who those key decision-makers are and what their position is in the company.

Technographic data

This comes from truly more advanced data providers, but it is crucial for companies selling technological solutions. You want to know what the current tech stack of the firm is and how your product plays into that, so if you can get technographic data, the lead becomes very well-rounded for you.

Intent data

Finally, a lead list with buying intent is invaluable. Intent data consists of behavioral signals, like online behavior, that suggests someone is interested in your product.

Want to learn more about quality #B2BLeadGeneration, the pros and cons of buying leads, and the best lead list providers in 2023? Read our blog post. ??

Coresignal is a leading public business data provider in the web data sphere with an extensive focus on firmographic data and public employee profiles. Leveraging data of 713M professional profiles and 101M company records enables companies to build data-driven products and generate actionable insights. Coresignal is exceptional in terms of data freshness, with 419M records updated monthly for unprecedented accuracy and relevance.