Write the ICP as filters, not adjectives
'Mid-market manufacturers' is not a filter. Employee count 100-1,000, NAICS 31-33, at least two facilities, and a named operations lead is a filter. If a criterion cannot be turned into a data field, it cannot be sourced consistently.
Size before you source
Count the addressable accounts first. If the total is 300 companies, buying a 20,000-record database is the wrong purchase and a research project is the right one.
Verify the layer that matters most
Company-level data is cheap and mostly reliable. Person-level data — the right role, at the right site, with a reachable address — is where lists fall apart and where human verification pays for itself.
- Confirm the role against a current public source
- Test deliverability before handoff, not after a campaign
- Include a 'why this account' field so reps have an opening line
Common questions
How big should a prospect list be?
Big enough for a quarter of activity per rep and no bigger. Oversized lists reduce research per account and lower reply rates.
Can prospect lists be built for niche industries?
Yes, but usually through custom research rather than database exports, since niche segments are poorly covered by general providers.
Final thoughts
Every team has a prospect list nobody works. It is almost always because the list was built from what was easy to export rather than from who actually buys.
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