How to Leverage Intent Data For Sales and Marketing in 2025

Double your conversion rates in the early stages of your sales funnel. That's not a lofty goal – it's a real-world result achieved by an IT services provider using intent data and predictive analytics. This isn't an anomaly. It's the new standard in B2B sales, where data-driven strategies are rapidly separating market leaders from the competition. Forrester reports that over 85% of companies using intent data are reaping tangible business benefits.

But here's where it gets even more interesting: over 70% of companies leveraging intent data aren't putting all their eggs in one basket. They're diversifying their approach, with almost half tapping into three or more data providers.

I've been in B2B sales for a long time, and let me be clear: intent data is NOT a quick fix. It's a powerful tool that, when used correctly, can transform your sales process. The emphasis here is on "correctly" – because like any tool, its effectiveness hinges entirely on how you use it.

That's precisely why I've created this comprehensive guide. I'm going to walk you through exactly how you can leverage intent data for sales today. No hypotheticals. No theories. Only practical and actionable strategies.

What is Intent Data?

Intent data is a type of behavioral data that indicates a person’s intention to purchase a product or service. It is collected from various sources, including website interactions, social media, and online searches. Intent data provides insights into a person’s interests, needs, and pain points, allowing businesses to tailor their marketing efforts and sales outreach to meet those needs.

Benefits of Intent Data for Sales and Marketing Teams.

Intent data offers various benefits for sales and marketing teams. Having a clearer picture of buyer intent can help teams prioritize high-potential leads, personalize their messaging, and engage prospects at the right time with the right content.

By leveraging intent data, businesses can:

• Improve the accuracy of their sales outreach efforts
• Increase the effectiveness of their marketing campaigns
• Enhance the customer experience
• Gain a competitive edge in the market
• Drive revenue growth

Intent data can also help sales and marketing teams to better understand their target audience, identify new business opportunities, and optimize their sales and marketing efforts.

Step 1: Understand the Different Types of Intent Data.

Intent data can be categorized into three main types: first-party, second-party, and third-party intent data.

First-party intent data

First-party intent data is derived directly from user interactions, such as behavior and interests, collected through channels like CRM systems, forms, and social media. This data is invaluable for forming detailed customer insights.

Website Visitor Tracking is the rising star in the intent data world. At CustomerBase AI, we’ve found this to be particularly valuable in identifying high-potential leads. When a prospect visits your website, it’s like they’re raising their hand in a crowd – a direct indication of interest in your specific solution.

Second-party intent data

Second-party intent data is sold by another company and represents first-party actions taken on a publisher's site. It complements first-party and third-party data by providing insights about in-market prospects who are closer to the consideration and decision stages of their buying journey.

Companies like Sixth Sense aggregate research activity from partner websites and publications, assigning scores based on prospect behavior. It’s valuable, but comes with a caveat. During my time at Sumo Logic, we encountered situations similar to the Wells Fargo case, where intent signals suggested cloud interest despite the company’s firm stance against cloud adoption. This taught me an important lesson: never take intent data at face value.

Third-party intent data

Third-party intent data, collected from various external sources, is crucial for understanding buyer behavior and market trends. It helps generate awareness at the top of the funnel, allowing brands to identify potential prospects early in their buying journey and tailor their marketing strategies accordingly.

For instance, Technographic Data gives you a peek into a prospect’s technology stack, offering insights into their potential needs and readiness for your solution.

Another example would be Firmographic Data, it provides the context – company size, industry, location, and other structural characteristics. And let’s not forget about News and Social Media Monitoring, which can provide valuable context for intent signals by tracking company announcements, leadership changes, and social media activity.

Now, here’s your first action item: take a good, hard look at your current intent data sources. Are you relying too heavily on one type? It’s time to diversify. Think of it as creating a balanced diet for your sales strategy – you need a bit of everything to stay healthy and effective.

Step 2: Combine Intent Data with Detailed Company Profiling.

Now that we’ve got our intent data sources sorted, it’s time to add some depth to our approach. The most sophisticated sales organizations are now combining intent signals with detailed company profiling and real-time monitoring of company changes.

At CustomerBase AI, we’ve developed a powerful data science framework to analyze past won and lost deals, helping companies validate their Ideal Customer Profile (ICP). Your ICP should be more than just a list of firmographics – it should be a living, breathing representation of your perfect customer. Think about company momentum, leadership attitudes, technology stack, growth patterns, and industry-specific challenges. These factors paint a much more vivid picture than simple demographics ever could.

Buyer intent data plays a crucial role in understanding potential customer behaviors and interests, thereby improving sales efficiency. By analyzing behavioral signals, companies can align their strategies with customer needs, ultimately enhancing conversion rates and driving more effective marketing campaigns.

But it's important to remember that your ICP isn’t a set-it-and-forget-it kind of deal. The business world is constantly changing, and your ICP should evolve with it. Keep your finger on the pulse of real-time company changes. Leadership shifts, hiring patterns, funding rounds, product launches, mergers and acquisitions – these are all signals that can help you understand when a company might be ready for your solution.

The real magic happens when you align these intent signals with your ICP. Not all intent signals are created equal, so you would nee to prioritize signals from companies that closely match your ICP.

Your next action item is to give your current ICP a thorough review. Is it based on real data from your successful deals, or is it more of a wishlist? Use tools like CustomerBase AI to validate and refine your ICP based on actual market data. Trust me, the results might surprise you.

Step 3: Create a Coordinated Effort Between Sales and Marketing Teams.

One of the key learnings from my experience at CustomerBase is the importance of aligning marketing and sales teams around intent data. This collaboration is super important for maximizing the value of your intent data. Marketing and sales need to move in perfect harmony to create a performance that wows your prospects.

Start by validating intent signals against your ICP. Before your sales team starts chasing every blip on the radar, have your marketing team run a detailed analysis to see if the company truly matches your ICP. This step alone can save your sales team countless hours of chasing unqualified leads.

Next, implement a tiered engagement strategy. Think of it as a funnel, but with more nuance. At the top, you have companies showing high intent and a strong ICP match – these are your golden opportunities, worthy of immediate sales outreach. In the middle, you might have companies with moderate intent but a strong ICP match – these are perfect for marketing nurture with a plan for sales follow-up. At the bottom, you have companies with low intent but a strong ICP match – keep these on your radar with marketing nurture. And don’t forget about those high intent, weak ICP match companies – these need further qualification before you decide how to engage.

The key to making this strategy work is developing personalized content for each tier. This is where the alignment between sales and marketing really shines. Work together to create tailored content that addresses the specific needs and challenges of each tier. Your marketing team can craft compelling narratives, while your sales team can provide insights from their direct interactions with prospects.

Here’s an action item that can make a big difference: set up a weekly meeting between sales and marketing to review intent data, discuss engagement strategies, and ensure alignment on messaging and targeting. This regular check-in can prevent miscommunications and keep everyone moving in the same direction.

Step 4: Implement a Framework for Qualifying Leads Beyond Intent.

Now, let’s talk about lead qualification. Intent data is a powerful tool, but it’s not the be-all and end-all of lead qualification. To truly determine the potential of a prospect, you need a framework that considers multiple factors.

Start by developing a comprehensive lead scoring model. This should include factors like intent strength, ICP fit, engagement level (think website visits and content downloads), technographic alignment, and recent company events like funding rounds or leadership changes. Each of these factors provides a piece of the puzzle, and when combined, they give you a much clearer picture of a prospect’s potential. Additionally, regularly analyzing behaviors and actions that indicate high purchase intent among potential customers is crucial. Identifying specific intent signals that reflect genuine interest in the brand can help tailor marketing strategies and improve conversion rates.

Next, set clear criteria for what constitutes a sales-ready lead. This goes beyond just intent signals – it might include a combination of intent strength, ICP fit, and specific actions taken by the prospect. The goal here is to ensure that when a lead is passed to sales, it’s truly ready for that level of engagement.

To make this process as smooth as possible, implement a lead routing system. This ensures that leads are automatically directed to the appropriate sales rep based on your defined criteria.

Your action item for this step is to take a critical look at your current lead qualification process. Are you relying too heavily on intent signals? It’s time to implement a more comprehensive scoring model that incorporates multiple data points. This might take some time to set up, but it’s well worth the effort.

Step 5: Develop Proactive Engagement Strategies.

Now we're getting to the heart of the matter – how to actually use all this intent data and lead qualification to engage with prospects. The key here is to be proactive, not reactive. The most effective use of intent data isn't just about responding to buying signals, but about identifying and engaging with prospects throughout their buying journey.

Start by mapping out your typical buyer's journey. At CustomerBase, we've found that modern B2B buyers conduct significant research before engaging with sales teams. Understanding this journey allows you to create targeted content for each stage. Think educational content about industry trends for early-stage prospects, case studies and product comparisons for mid-stage, and detailed product information and ROI calculators for those in the late stages.

Implement trigger-based campaigns that activate based on specific intent signals or actions. This allows you to provide the right information at the right time, nurturing prospects along their journey. But remember, it's not just about timing – it's about personalization. Use intent data to inform not just when to reach out, but how to reach out and what messages will resonate. At CustomerBase, we've developed AI solutions to enhance personalization for sales reps, reduce writer's block, and boost confidence in client outreach.

Your action item here is to audit your current content library. Do you have appropriate content for each stage of the buyer's journey? Identify any gaps and create a plan to fill them. The goal is to be a helpful guide on your prospect's journey, not just a salesperson pushing for a deal.

Step 6: Leverage AI and Machine Learning.

We’re living in the age of AI, and it’s time to put it to work in your sales process. AI and machine learning can significantly enhance your ability to leverage intent data effectively. At CustomerBase, we’ve seen firsthand the power of these technologies in driving sales efficiency.

Start by implementing predictive lead scoring. Machine learning algorithms can analyze historical data and predict which leads are most likely to convert, allowing your sales team to focus their efforts where they’re most likely to pay off. But don’t stop there – use AI to automate personalization, generating outreach messages based on intent signals and other data points. Third-party intent data can provide valuable insights for AI and machine learning algorithms to enhance sales efficiency by identifying potential prospects early in their buying journey.

Timing is everything in sales, and AI can help you nail it. Use machine learning to determine the optimal timing for outreach based on intent signals and engagement patterns. And here’s where it gets really interesting – AI can identify hidden patterns in your data, uncovering non-obvious correlations between intent signals and sales outcomes.

Your action item is to take a good look at your current tech stack. Are you fully utilizing AI and machine learning capabilities? If not, it’s time to consider implementing solutions like CustomerBase AI to enhance your data analysis and personalization efforts.

Step 7: Measure and Optimize.

You’ve put all this effort into leveraging intent data – now it’s time to make sure it’s paying off. To truly leverage intent data effectively, you need to continuously measure your results and optimize your approach.

Start by defining key metrics that directly tie to revenue impact. Focus on:

• reduction in disqualified meetings after first calls
• increase in sales velocity
• improvement in win rates
• increase in average deal size

These metrics will give you a clear picture of how your intent data strategy is impacting your bottom line. Additionally, consider incorporating second-party intent data as a complement to first-party and third-party data to gain deeper insights into in-market prospects who are closer to the consideration and decision stages of their buying journey.

Implement A/B testing to continuously refine your approach. Test different content types, outreach messages, or engagement timelines. The goal is to always be improving, always be learning.

Don’t forget to regularly review and refine your ICP. As you gather more data on successful deals, use this information to keep your ICP up-to-date and relevant. And after each deal – won or lost – conduct a post-mortem analysis. Look at the intent signals and engagement patterns to identify areas for improvement.

Your action item here is to set up a monthly review of your intent data strategy. Analyze your key metrics and identify areas for optimization. Remember, the goal is continuous improvement – there’s always room to get better.

Step 8: Address Privacy and Ethical Considerations.

Last but certainly not least, let's talk about privacy and ethics. As privacy regulations evolve, it's important to ensure that your use of intent data remains compliant and ethical.

Stay informed about regulations like GDPR, CCPA, and other emerging laws. Implement transparent data practices – be clear about how you collect and use intent data, and provide easy opt-out options for prospects. Respect user preferences by honoring do-not-track requests and other privacy choices. And of course, implement robust data security measures to ensure all intent data is stored and transmitted securely.

Your final action item is to conduct an audit of your current data practices. Are you fully compliant with all relevant privacy regulations? Develop a plan to address any gaps. Remember, building trust with your prospects is just as important as identifying them in the first place.

Conclusion

Leveraging intent data effectively is not about chasing every signal or treating it as a magic solution. It's about integrating intent data into a comprehensive sales and marketing strategy that considers the full complexity of the B2B buying journey. By combining intent signals with deep company insights, aligning marketing and sales teams, and utilizing advanced technologies like AI, you can create more meaningful and timely sales conversations that drive real results.

At CustomerBase AI, we've seen the power of this approach in action. Every day, we enabled our clients to achieve more efficient and repeatable growth by helping them validate their ICP, segment their market effectively, and align all stakeholders around a unified data layer.

The intent data landscape is constantly evolving, and so should your strategies for leveraging it. Stay curious, keep testing, and always focus on providing value to your prospects and customers.