Intent-based vs list-based lead generation: which finds better leads?

How they differ

• Intent-based: the person just engaged with something relevant, so the timing is right.
• List-based: the person fits a profile, but may not be thinking about your offer at all.
• Intent-based lists are small and fresh. List-based lists are large and static.

Where each wins

• Intent wins when the offer solves a problem people are discussing right now.
• Lists win when you need to reach a defined group that does not talk about the problem in public.
• Intent is cheaper per reply; lists are cheaper per name.

How to combine them

1. Write down who your best customer is. That is the list filter.
2. Find the posts, profiles and searches where that person speaks up.
3. Capture the people who engage there and rank them by how clearly they signal interest.
4. Contact the best-fitting, most interested people first.

Where Avocado Leads fits

Avocado Leads does the collecting, ranking and pacing part of this work. You paste a post, a profile or a search, and it saves the people who commented, reacted, followed or match, then scores each person from 0 to 100 on buying language, how recently they were active, how well they fit your business and how reachable they are.

It then runs a paced follow or connect campaign from your own signed-in browser, with a message after where the platform allows one. It never asks for your social passwords, and it keeps to hourly, daily, weekly and monthly caps for each network. The limits that come with each platform are on the platforms page, and the safety page explains what it will not do.

Cost and effort compared

A bought list costs money up front and little effort to start, but each name is cold, so you send more messages for each reply. Intent-based work costs time to find sources and read what people said, but each name is warmer, so fewer messages produce a conversation.

The honest comparison is cost per conversation, not cost per name. Track both for a month before you decide where to put your effort.

Compliance notes

• Where a list came from matters. Ask how the people were collected and whether they agreed to be contacted.
• Contacting people on a social network is governed by that network's rules as well as the law where you and they live.
• Keep a record of why you contacted each person, such as the post they engaged with.

A worked example

Say you sell bookkeeping software to small shops. A list gives you every shop owner in a city. An intent source gives you the shop owners who commented on a post asking which accounting tool to use. Ten of the second group are worth more than a hundred of the first, because they are choosing now.

The sensible move is to contact the intent group first, and use the larger list to find more sources where shop owners speak up.

Key takeaways

• Intent-based finds people who just engaged. List-based finds people who match a profile.
• Intent usually gets more replies per message. Lists reach more people.
• Compare cost per conversation, not cost per name.
• Use a list to define who matters and intent to decide who to contact first.

Questions people ask