Buyer intent

Buyer intent is the set of signals suggesting an account is actively researching or preparing to purchase in a category: visits to comparison pages, review-site activity, hiring patterns, third-party intent data feeds. Intent is probabilistic: it indicates likelihood, not commitment.

Why it matters

Intent data helps sequence effort, since reaching out while the account is in-market beats reaching out at random. Its limits matter equally: by the time strong intent signals fire, the shortlist is often formed, which is the argument for building relationships before intent appears. Intent sources split into first-party (activity on your own site and content) and third-party (review sites and data co-ops such as G2 or Bombora). First-party intent is more accurate but smaller; third-party is broader but noisier, and both work best for prioritising existing lists rather than generating new ones.