Intent data isn’t magic. It’s a way to stop guessing in outbound.

A lot of teams feel it: outbound isn’t broken, but it’s definitely not as forgiving as it used to be. In my interview on the Evolve (Pipedrive) Podcast, we unpacked what’s changed—and why intent data, used properly, is less about “predicting buyers” and more about stopping guesswork. This article is the written version of that conversation: the key ideas, the practical lessons, and a simple operating rhythm you can actually run.

Not because people forgot how to write emails. Not because “sales is dead.” It got harder because the easy arbitrage disappeared: audiences are noisier, attention is scarcer, and acquisition costs keep rising. So you can’t afford to spray-and-pray. You have to be more deliberate—more specific—about who you’re going after, when, and why now.

That’s the real job of intent data.

Not “predict the future.” Not “replace your reps.” Just: reduce guesswork and concentrate effort on accounts that are already moving.

What intent data actually is (in plain English)

Intent data is any signal that suggests a company is in-market—researching a problem, comparing options, or lining up a purchase.

Radiate B2B was built around a simple idea: monitor activity on your website and across the wider internet so you can see which companies are showing buying signals today, then operationalise that inside your revenue motion.

This is especially relevant if you’re a smaller team selling into mid-market or enterprise. When you only have a few reps, every hour matters—and wasting a week chasing accounts that won’t buy is a tax you don’t need to pay. (In the interview, the “sweet spot” described was roughly 3–5 salespeople, scaling well beyond that too.)

ABM changed. Most teams didn’t.

A lot of people think ABM means “pick a bunch of dream logos and run ads at them.”

ABM was always more than that: A defined set of target accounts, a clear view of what they care about, and coordinated plays across sales + marketing. Intent data can sit inside that system as the “timing layer”—helping you decide which accounts to prioritise this week, and which message to lead with.

Two practical points that matter more than the tooling:

1. Know where the data comes from. Different providers mean different signals, different coverage, and different levels of reliability. If you can’t explain the data, you can’t build a process around it.
2. Give it an owner. This only works when sales and marketing are aligned (or when a CRO owns the system end-to-end). Otherwise it becomes yet another dashboard nobody trusts.

The 5-step playbook that actually works

If you want to use intent data without creating a mess, start here.

1) Tighten your ICP and target list (seriously tighten it)

The fastest way to break intent is to aim it at “everyone.”

Pick a focused set of accounts you genuinely want. If your target list is massive, your signal-to-noise ratio collapses—then people stop paying attention. (But equally too small, and you risk wasting money on companies not actively buying anytime soon).

2) Decide what “intent” means for your business

Intent isn’t a universal scoreboard.

Define 3–5 themes that map to real buying journeys in your category (the problems you solve, the outcomes buyers want, the triggers that create urgency).

3) Attach a next action to each signal

A signal without a play is just trivia.

For each meaningful intent pattern, define:

• who should act (SDR, AE, marketing)
• what they should do (call, tailored email sequence, targeted ads, personalisation)
• what “good” looks like (reply rate, meeting set rate, pipeline created)

4) Push it into your CRM and workflow

The point is not “more data.”

The point is making action easier. In the podcast you discussed weaving signals into the CRM (including Pipedrive) so that sales teams can move quickly without manual admin overhead.

5) Run a weekly operating rhythm

Intent is only useful if it changes behaviour.

Review it weekly:

• Which accounts spiked?
• Which plays worked?
• Where did the signal mislead you?
• What needs to be re-scoped?

That rhythm is where the compounding happens.

The part most teams miss: messaging direction, not just timing

One of the most useful frames from the interview was this: intent can tell you when to reach out—and also, directionally, what to lead with.

If you can see what topic someone is investigating, you can stop sending generic outreach and start meeting them where they already are.

That’s how you earn the right to be early in the journey without being irrelevant.

Why this matters beyond marketing: it’s an operating decision

Your website is positioned around translating tech into business moves that make sense—product bets, go-to-market plans, and practical execution.

Intent data, used well, is exactly that kind of move:

• It’s not a “marketing tactic.”
• It’s a decisioning layer for revenue teams.
• It’s how you stop over-investing in the wrong conversations.

Or said differently: it’s a way to design a simpler, more effective outbound system—one that can scale without adding chaos.

If you’re trying to make this real in your company

If you’re wrestling with questions like:

• “What does ABM even mean for a team our size?”
• “How do we avoid buying another tool that becomes shelfware?”
• “How do we turn signals into a process sales actually trusts?”

…this is the kind of work I do with founders and functional leaders: turning technical possibilities into a practical operating plan your team can execute.