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Guide

How to build a B2B prospect list from scratch

To build a B2B prospect list, define your ideal customer in one sentence, turn it into filters (industry, company size, location, job title and seniority), pull a small sample, check twenty records by hand, tighten the filters, then export only people with a deliverable email or a direct phone.

Key takeaways

  • A smaller list of the right people beats a large list every time.
  • Always sample before you export. Twenty records tell you if the filters are wrong.
  • Exclude existing customers and anyone you already contacted.

Step by step

  1. Describe your best customers. List five customers you would clone. Note their industry, size, location and the title of the person who bought.
  2. Turn that into filters. Industry or keywords for the company, employee or revenue band, geography, then department, seniority and titles for the person.
  3. Sample and inspect. Open twenty results. If more than a few are wrong, fix the filter that let them in, usually industry codes or a too-broad title.
  4. Require a way to reach them. Keep people with a verified work email, a mobile or a direct dial. Drop the rest or save them for later.
  5. Save, de-duplicate and export. Save the list, exclude contacts you already have, and export to a spreadsheet or your CRM.

What to know

Industry codes are the most common reason lists go wrong. Many companies are filed under a code that does not describe what they do, which is why a search for a trade or a niche often needs company-name and description evidence, not the code alone.

In Buzzlist you can build the list with filters on any plan, or describe it in a sentence with BuzzAI on Starter and above. Searching, filtering and saving never use your limit. A contact is only used when you reveal or export a real email or phone.

Written by Mike Berens, founder of Buzzlist. Published , last updated .

Common questions

How big should a prospect list be?

Big enough to test, small enough to personalize. For most small teams that is 100 to 500 people per campaign.

How often should I rebuild it?

People change jobs constantly, so refresh active lists every one to three months.

Can I build a list for free?

Yes. The Buzzlist free plan includes 100 contacts every month with the standard search filters, no credit card required. deeper business profiles and filters come with Growth and Scale.

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