Signal-based selling: 15 buying signals to act on

Signal-based selling is a way of prospecting where you contact a company because something just changed, such as a funding round, a new leader or a burst of hiring, rather than because it fits a list. The signal gives you a reason to write now and a topic to write about. That makes your message timely, relevant and easier to answer.

Key points

• A buying signal is an event that suggests a company's priorities have shifted. It is a reason to get in touch, not proof of intent to buy.
• Buyers decide early: 6sense found the winning vendor was on the buyer's Day One shortlist 95% of the time.
• First-party intent data comes from your own channels. Third-party intent data comes from activity elsewhere on the web.
• Act within days, name the signal in plain words and tie it to a likely problem.
• Stick to public, work-related facts. Never mention tracking or personal details.

What is signal-based selling?

Signal-based selling is prospecting timed by events that suggest a company has a new need. Instead of emailing everyone who fits your profile at once, you wait for a reason, then write about that reason.

It matters because buyers make up their minds before they talk to you. As of October 2026, the most recent 6sense B2B Buyer Experience Report, from 2025 and drawing nearly 4,000 responses to its main survey, found:

• Buyers "choose from one of the four vendors on their Day One Shortlist 95% of the time", up from 85% the year before.
• The point of first contact shifted from about 69% of the way through the buying journey to 61% in 2025.
• "In 2025, buyers initiated 79% of engagements", compared with 82% in prior years.
• "94% of buyers said they ordered their shortlist according to preference."
• Buyers "now evaluate an average of 5 (5.1) vendors."

So by the time a buyer fills in your demo form, they have probably ranked you already. Signals are the practical way to show up before that list is written, at the moment a company's needs change.

A trigger event is the same idea under another name: a specific change at a company that opens a window for a sales conversation.

What are examples of buying signals?

Buying signals include funding, hiring, new leaders, expansions, acquisitions, technology changes and visits to your own pricing page. The best ones for you are the events that most often come just before someone buys what you sell.

Here are 15 B2B buying signals examples, with what each suggests and a first line you could use.

A few notes on using the table:

• Combine signals. Funding plus a new VP of Sales plus SDR hiring tells a much clearer story than any one alone.
• Read past the headline. The tools and goals in a job description are often the most specific clue you will get.
• Some signals are for timing only. Pricing page visits and third-party intent tell you when to write, not what to say.

What is the difference between first-party and third-party intent data?

First-party intent data is what you collect from your own channels, such as website visits, content downloads and replies. Third-party intent data comes from activity on other sites, gathered by a provider and sold as company-level research signals.

Intent data is information about what a company or person is researching that suggests they may be in the market.

First-party intent is the most reliable, because you can see exactly what happened: someone from the company read your pricing page, attended your webinar or replied to an earlier email. It is also limited, because it only covers people who already found you.

Third-party intent covers the wider web. Bombora, for example, says its intent data is "derived from our one-of-a-kind Data Co-op", which includes "thousands of media destinations" and tracks "millions of B2B domains", as described on its intent data page. It describes this as mostly account-level: "Account-level Intent shows you where to look."

In practice, use intent data to decide who to look at this week, and public events to decide what to say. Never quote someone's browsing back to them.

How do you act on a funding or hiring signal?

Use a three-step chain: signal, reason, specific message. Name what happened, explain why it might matter to this person, then offer something useful that connects the two.

1. Confirm the signal. Read the press release or the job post itself, not just a headline.
2. Find the right person. For SDR hiring, that is usually the Head of Sales. For a first data hire, the CTO or the hiring manager.
3. Write down the reason. One sentence on the problem this signal usually creates.
4. Write a short email. Name the signal, state the likely problem and make one small ask.
5. Follow up a few times, then stop. Each follow-up should add a new angle.

Here is an example for a hiring signal.

• Signal: The company posted three SDR roles last week.
• Reason: A growing SDR team needs a steady flow of good leads, and new reps take time to ramp.
• Message: A short note to the Head of Sales about keeping new reps productive while they ramp.

A good subject line might be Ramping three new SDRs. A weak one would be Quick question.

Saw you're hiring three SDRs. The usual problem at this stage is new reps spending their first month building lists instead of talking to buyers. We help teams hand new reps researched, ready-to-contact leads from day one. Worth a 15-minute look before they start?

Funding works the same way, but founders get flooded after a public raise. "Congrats on the raise" is not enough. Connect the round to a specific plan they announced, such as entering a new market or doubling the sales team, and to the problem that plan creates.

For more on writing emails that get answered, see our cold email reply rate benchmarks.

How fast should you act on a buying signal?

Act within days, not weeks. Aim to send a relevant first message within a week of the signal, and sooner for new leaders and funding.

A signal is most useful while the change is fresh and the buyer has not formed a view. After a few weeks, a new leader has usually made their first decisions and a funded company has already met the vendors who moved first. That fits the 6sense finding that most buyers commit to a shortlist early in their process.

What makes a signal-based message feel creepy?

A message feels creepy when it shows you watched the person rather than the company. The test: would the buyer see the information as public and work-related, and did you use it to help them rather than to show how much you know?

Good examples:

• "Saw the Series B announcement. Teams at your stage often hit X. Here is how others handled it."
• "Noticed the new Head of RevOps role on your careers page."
• "Your blog post on moving to a new CRM mentioned data clean-up as a pain."

Creepy examples:

• "I saw you viewed our pricing page three times yesterday."
• "Congrats on the new job! I noticed you also changed your profile photo."
• "I see you liked a post about churn on Tuesday at 9pm."

Stick to company-level news and what people publish in a professional role. Never mention personal details, browsing you tracked, or anything the person did not choose to make public for work.

Where Outbind fits

The hard part of signal-based selling is the daily work: spotting the signal, researching the company, finding the right person and writing a specific email while the news is fresh. Outbind watches for hiring and funding signals on every plan, with new leaders, expansions and acquisitions on Pro Plus and up. It then researches each person and writes emails that cite real sources. See what each plan includes on the pricing page.

FAQ

What is a buying signal in sales?

A buying signal is an event or behaviour that suggests a company's needs have changed, such as a funding round, a new leader or a visit to your pricing page. It gives you a reason to get in touch, but it does not prove the company will buy.

What is the difference between a buying signal and intent data?

Intent data is one kind of buying signal, based on what a company or person is researching online. Buying signals also include public events like hiring, funding and leadership changes.

Which buying signals are the strongest?

It depends on what you sell. New leaders, funding and hiring in the team you sell to are strong for most B2B products, and combining two or three signals at one company is stronger than any one alone.

Should I mention the signal in my email?

Yes, if it is public and work-related, such as a job post or a press release. Do not mention tracked behaviour like website visits or anything personal.

Sources

• 6sense: The B2B Buyer Experience Report for 2025
• Bombora: Intent data