A buying signal is an observable fact, outside your company, that changes what you know about an account. It has three properties: it’s public, it’s dated and it concerns an identifiable account or person. A rumour or an unsourced data point doesn’t count as a signal.
What a signal indicates
A signal indicates that a change is happening. A new role means a new person in a position; a hire, a team reorganizing; a funding round, new resources. It doesn’t say that the prospect is looking for your category of solution, or that a budget exists: both remain hypotheses to test.
The main families of signals
- People changes: new role, promotion, a contact leaving.
- Organization changes: hiring, market opening.
- Changes in resources: funding round, acquisition.
- Public statements: post, comment, reshared post, event participation.
- Interactions with you: profile view, reaction to a post, an old reply.
How to verify a signal
Before writing, check four points: the actual date of the fact, its original source, the person involved and the link between that fact and the problem you solve. A signal that fails one of these points remains context and doesn’t justify a message on its own.
Example
A founder posts on LinkedIn that they are opening the German market: the signal is public, dated and attributable. For a targeting tool, the link is direct, since their team will have to build new account lists. The message will ask a question about that work, without assuming the company is looking for a tool.
See also: Signal-based selling, Trigger event, Intent data, and Signal decay.