Intro

Intent data is one of the hottest buzzwords in B2B sales and marketing. Vendors promise that if you know who’s “in-market,” your SDRs can swoop in at the perfect moment and close deals faster.

Sounds great in theory. But here’s the uncomfortable truth: most intent data is broken.

Instead of surfacing real buying signals, intent data often floods teams with noise — contacts that don’t fit your ICP, companies that aren’t really evaluating, and signals so vague they’re useless for outreach.

In this post, we’ll uncover what intent data really is, why most of it doesn’t work, and how to turn intent signals into something that actually creates pipeline.

What Is Intent Data (Really)?

Intent data is supposed to measure when a prospect shows buying intent for a product or solution. Vendors usually track this through:

• Content consumption (blog reads, downloads, webinars)
• Search behavior (keywords searched, topics researched)
• Third-party data (aggregators pulling from websites and ad networks)

The pitch: if a company is researching your category, you should target them now.

The reality: most intent data doesn’t tell you who’s actually ready to buy.

The Problems With Today’s Intent Data

Despite the hype, intent data often fails to deliver for one reason: it’s not actionable. Here’s why:

1. Signals Are Too Vague

If an anonymous employee at a company reads two blog posts about “sales automation,” does that mean they’re ready to buy? Probably not. But vendors will flag it as “intent.”

2. Wrong Level of Detail

Intent often comes at the company level, not the contact level. That means SDRs know a company might be interested — but not who to call.

3. Poor Fit With Your ICP

Just because a company is researching a topic doesn’t mean they’re in your ICP. Intent signals without ICP filters waste SDR hours.

4. Data Lag

By the time intent is detected and packaged, weeks may have passed. That “hot lead” may already be cold.

Why Bad Intent Data Hurts Sales

Intent data that isn’t accurate or specific doesn’t just fail — it actively damages your sales process.

• SDR Wasted Time → reps chase companies that will never buy.
• Lower Morale → outreach feels random and ineffective.
• Marketing Misalignment → campaigns target the wrong accounts, leading to poor ROI.
• Bloated Pipeline → leaders believe there’s more opportunity than there actually is.

Instead of helping SDRs strike at the right time, bad intent signals create confusion and false hope.

The Truth: Intent Alone Isn’t Enough

Here’s the truth most vendors don’t admit: intent data by itself is useless.

Why? Because knowing a company might be interested means nothing if you don’t know:

• Who the decision-maker is
• Whether they fit your ICP
• Whether their contact data is accurate and verified

Without those layers, intent is just noise.

Turning Intent Into Sales-Ready Signals

Intent data can work — but only if paired with verification and context.

Step 1: Filter by ICP

Not every company showing intent is worth chasing. Focus only on accounts that fit your ICP (industry, size, geography, tech stack).

Step 2: Map to Verified Contacts

Intent must be tied to real, verified decision-makers at those companies. Otherwise, SDRs waste time guessing who to contact.

Step 3: Prioritize Buying Triggers

Job changes, funding rounds, or new initiatives paired with intent data create true sales-ready signals. That’s when outreach works.

Why Verified Intent Wins

When intent is layered with verified, sales-ready data, everything changes:

• Higher Connect Rates → reps reach out to the right person at the right time.
• Personalized Outreach → SDRs can tailor messaging to real pain points.
• Faster Pipeline → instead of chasing noise, reps focus on true opportunities.
• Lower CAC → less wasted activity means lower acquisition costs.

How A-Leads Fixes Intent Data

At A-Leads, we don’t believe in selling vague intent signals. We believe in verified intent.

Here’s how we do it:

• Triple-verified contacts → every intent signal is tied to a real, accurate contact.
• Job change signals → layered on top of intent to create the highest probability of conversion.
• Direct CRM integration → no manual filtering, no guesswork, just clean, actionable data.

The result? Instead of bloated lists of “maybe interested” companies, you get sales-ready buyers.

FAQs

Is intent data useless? No — but intent without verification and ICP filtering is. When tied to real contacts and signals, intent becomes powerful.

What’s the biggest problem with intent data? Most intent signals are too vague (company-level, not contact-level) and too outdated to be actionable.

How can I improve ROI on intent data? Filter by ICP, layer with verified contacts, and pair intent with other triggers like job changes.

Does A-Leads provide intent data? We don’t provide raw intent. We provide verified, sales-ready signals that combine intent with real-time verification.

Final Word

Intent data has been overhyped as the silver bullet for B2B sales. The truth? Raw intent is noise. Without verified contacts and context, SDRs waste time chasing companies that will never buy.

The fix isn’t to abandon intent altogether — it’s to demand verified intent. Pairing verified data with true buying triggers turns intent into real pipeline.

👉 Want to see what verified intent looks like in action? [Book a demo with A-Leads]