Prospecting Research

Prospecting Research

Systematically research target accounts and contacts to craft personalized, relevant outreach that cuts through the noise.

When to Use This Skill

• Preparing for high-value outbound
• Personalizing enterprise outreach
• Building account intelligence
• Training SDRs on research
• Creating target account profiles

Methodology Foundation

Based on Jeb Blount's Fanatical Prospecting and TOPO Account-Based Research, combining:

• Company intelligence gathering
• Contact profiling
• Trigger identification
• Angle development

What Claude Does vs What You Decide

Instructions

Step 1: Company Research

Firmographic Data:

Business Context:

Step 2: Contact Research

Professional Profile:

Personal Connection Points:

• Shared alma mater
• Previous company overlap
• Mutual connections
• Content they've created
• Events they've attended

Step 3: Identify Triggers

Timing Triggers:

Step 4: Develop Angles

Personalization Hierarchy:

1. Trigger-based - Strongest (funding, hire, news)
2. Content-based - Strong (their posts, interviews)
3. Company-based - Good (industry, challenges)
4. Mutual connection - Good (warm intro potential)
5. Generic - Weak (avoid)

Examples

Example 1: Full Account Research

Output:

## Account Research: DataFlow Systems

### Company Snapshot

| Attribute | Value | Source |
|-----------|-------|--------|
| Company | DataFlow Systems | |
| Industry | B2B SaaS (Analytics) | LinkedIn |
| Size | 340 employees | LinkedIn |
| Revenue | ~$50M ARR (est.) | ZoomInfo |
| Founded | 2018 | Crunchbase |
| HQ | Austin, TX | Website |
| Funding | $45M Series B (Oct 2024) | Crunchbase |

---

### Technology Stack

| Category | Tool | Source |
|----------|------|--------|
| CRM | Salesforce | BuiltWith, Jobs |
| Marketing | HubSpot | BuiltWith |
| Analytics | Mixpanel | Careers page |
| Data | Snowflake | Job posting |
| [Your Category] | None detected | Research |

**Implication:** Salesforce user = good fit for integration. No tool in our category = greenfield opportunity.

---

### Recent Triggers

| Date | Trigger | Relevance |
|------|---------|-----------|
| Oct 2024 | Series B ($45M) | Budget for tools |
| Nov 2024 | VP Sales hired | New leader = new tools |
| Dec 2024 | 12 SDR positions posted | Scaling outbound |
| Jan 2025 | G2 reviews mention "[pain]" | Known problem |

---

### Business Context

**From LinkedIn:**
- Growing 60% YoY (CEO post)
- Expanding to enterprise segment (VP Sales announcement)
- Recent product launch: AI analytics features

**From News:**
- Named to "Top 50 Startups" list
- Partnership with [Complementary Company]
- CEO spoke at [Industry Conference]

**From Job Posts:**
- Hiring: SDRs (12), AEs (5), RevOps (1)
- Reveals: Scaling sales org significantly
- Tech stack mentioned: Salesforce, Gong, Outreach (competitor!)

---

### Challenges (Inferred)

Based on triggers and context:
1. **Scaling sales team** - Need tools to support
2. **Moving upmarket** - Enterprise processes needed
3. **Rev Ops hire** - Building infrastructure
4. **Competitor in stack** - May be open to alternatives

---

### Target Contacts

| Name | Title | Priority | Angle |
|------|-------|----------|-------|
| Sarah Kim | VP Sales | Primary | New to role (90 days) |
| Mike Chen | RevOps Manager | Secondary | Posted RevOps opening |
| David Park | CEO | Executive | Series B scaling |

---

### Recommended Approach

**Primary Target: Sarah Kim, VP Sales**
- New to role = making changes
- Scaling team = needs tools
- Moving upmarket = needs process

**Angle:** "Congrats on the VP role and Series B! I noticed you're hiring 12 SDRs. Most VP Sales at your stage tell me [challenge] is their biggest issue. Curious if that's true for you?"

**Secondary Path:**
- RevOps Manager Mike Chen (operational angle)
- Mutual connection: [Name] (former colleague)

Example 2: Contact Deep Dive

Output:

## Contact Research: Sarah Kim, VP Sales

### Profile Summary

| Attribute | Value |
|-----------|-------|
| Name | Sarah Kim |
| Title | VP of Sales |
| Company | DataFlow Systems |
| Location | Austin, TX |
| Tenure | 3 months (started Oct 2024) |
| LinkedIn | linkedin.com/​in/​sarahkim |

---

### Career Path

| Period | Company | Role | Relevance |
|--------|---------|------|-----------|
| 2024-Present | DataFlow | VP Sales | Target |
| 2021-2024 | ScaleUp Inc | Director Sales | Previous tools? |
| 2018-2021 | BigCorp | Sales Manager | Enterprise exp |
| 2015-2018 | StartupXYZ | AE | SMB background |

**Insight:** Rose through ranks. Enterprise + SMB experience. First VP role = motivated to succeed.

---

### Content Activity

**LinkedIn Posts (Last 90 days):**
- "Excited to join DataFlow!" (Oct)
- Shared article on "Scaling SDR teams"
- Commented on post about sales forecasting
- Posted about team offsite (Dec)

**Themes:** Sales leadership, team building, scaling

**Quote-worthy:** "The hardest part of scaling isn't hiring—it's making sure every rep can sell like your best rep."

---

### Connection Points

| Type | Detail | Approach |
|------|--------|----------|
| Mutual Connection | John Smith (2nd degree) | Ask for intro |
| Content | Scaling article | Reference in outreach |
| Alma Mater | Stanford MBA | Mention if relevant |
| Previous Company | ScaleUp used our competitor | Migration angle |

---

### Professional Interests

Based on activity:
- Sales enablement
- Team scaling
- Forecasting accuracy
- Rep productivity

---

### Personalization Angles

**Angle 1: New VP + Scaling** (Strongest)

Hi Sarah,

Congrats on the VP role at DataFlow—and jumping into a Series B scaling mode!

I noticed you shared that article on scaling SDR teams. The quote "making every rep sell like your best rep" really resonated.

That's exactly what [Similar Customer] focused on when they went from 5 to 50 reps.

Curious: what's your #1 challenge as you build out the team?

**Angle 2: Content-Based**

Hi Sarah,

Loved your take on the hardest part of scaling: "making every rep sell like your best rep."

I work with a lot of VP Sales going through exactly that transition. The common thread? [Insight from our customers].

Worth comparing notes?

**Angle 3: Mutual Connection**

Hi Sarah,

John Smith mentioned you just took over sales at DataFlow—congrats!

He thought we should connect given your focus on [area].

Would love to hear what's top of mind as you build out the team.

---

### Red Flags / Cautions

- Just started (Oct) - may not have full authority yet
- Previous company used competitor - could be loyal
- No public content about specific pain points

---

### Recommended Sequence

**Day 1:** Email (Angle 1 - New VP + Scaling)
**Day 1:** LinkedIn connection (mention scaling article)
**Day 3:** Follow-up email with customer story
**Day 5:** LinkedIn voice note
**Day 7:** Final email with value offer

**Expectation:** 20-30% response rate with this level of personalization

Skill Boundaries

What This Skill Does Well

• Structuring research process
• Identifying personalization angles
• Finding trigger events
• Synthesizing intelligence

What This Skill Cannot Do

• Access paid databases
• Verify data accuracy
• Replace genuine relationship building
• Write final message copy

References

• Jeb Blount's Fanatical Prospecting
• TOPO Account-Based Research
• SalesLoft Personalization Guide
• Outreach.io Research Best Practices

Related Skills

• icp-matching - Qualify before research
• signal-monitoring - Trigger identification
• outbound-sequencer - Use research in sequences

Skill Metadata

• Domain: SDR Automation
• Complexity: Intermediate
• Mode: cyborg
• Time to Value: 15-30 min per account
• Prerequisites: Research tool access