In our recent webinar with Brett Kahnke, Principal Analyst at Forrester, we breakdown the nuances and challenges of intent data and guides the audience along best practices and clear terms for success. Simply put, organizations using intent data are pulling ahead. For more insight on how to find intent data, check out Terminus’ Field Guide to Foraging Intent Data or Terminus Prospect Engine.
A Forrester study found that 85% of companies said they’re achieving benefits from their intent investment, 30% are going to increase their investment, and 75% are already buying from multiple intent providers.
Brett begins the webinar by outlining the distinctions between the three major types of intent data: first, second, and third party. He also discusses when and why each type is valuable and which phase of the buying lifecycle uses each data type. Organizations need to understand the full impact of their own first-party data, which Brett later warns is being severely underutilized, as well as the details of the “walled gardens” of second- party data that intent providers can unlock for even deeper value. He continues to
outline other key elements of a good intent provider: noise-filtering capabilities, measurement, ABM platform integration, and more.
After the types of intent data have been broken down, Brett emphasizes the importance of intent data in the relationship between sales and marketing teams. He makes a point of keying in on the stages of the buying lifecycle that different types of intent data correlate to. For instance, certain signals are early-stage signals while others are late stage and should be used and measured accordingly. Sales and marketing teams need to separate from the old-school definition of simply counting leads. Intent data can and should be critically helpful in a new definition that can align disparate team goals with
deeper insights.
Organizations looking to make use of intent data need to get the ball rolling. Most large B2B companies have already incorporated it or are actively working on it — and companies that choose to not leverage that will soon be at a disadvantage. But by using it to make the best guesses possible — to zoom in on the buyer and the buyer-to-be — intent data is fundamental to B2B success.
