Finding the Signal Through the Noise

There’s a certain irony unfolding in the GTM space right now. The buzz around signals has reached a fever pitch and it is increasingly difficult to separate the meaningful signals from the overwhelming noise. Platforms like Common Room, 6sense, and UserGems promise to unlock hidden goldmines of intent data, job changes, and engagement activity. The signal-based GTM revolution is here, and we believe it’s generally a good thing. Signals can provide valuable, real-time insights into customer behavior, enabling teams to act at just the right moment, when they’re accurate.

But here’s the catch: signals are not always reliable and, when they are, they’re only part of the story, not the entire narrative. Over-reliance on signals without a broader strategy can result in wasted effort and missed opportunities. Because the time of third-party, black box signals came with mixed reviews of reliability, the key lies in thoughtfully integrating those signals into your ICP and overall go-to-market strategy. Done right, signals should complement and never overshadow the foundational elements that drive success.

Why All the Hype?

There are two types of coined “signals”: intent and engagement. The hype around intent in B2B came and went years ago with the onset of ABM platforms and tools like Bombora. Engagement that is now being rebranded as “signals” is generally considered first or second-party engagement with your brand that is being “tracked” or “identified”, still typically via tech-enabled notification. 

Both types are attractive because they can offer clarity in a landscape where sales and marketing often feel like guesswork. They enable teams to go beyond static data and generic messaging that fails to connect. Signals allow them to engage prospects based on real-time actions and behaviors.

For example:

• A job change signal might alert you that a former advocate has joined a new company, creating a warm lead.
• Intent signals might reveal that a prospect is researching solutions in your category, signaling readiness to buy.
• Engagement signals can show a prospect’s interest in your content, such as repeated visits to your pricing page or multiple webinar registrations.

These are undeniably valuable insights. They help teams prioritize outreach, personalize their messaging, and strike while the iron is hot.

What are the Pitfalls?

Despite their value, signals have limitations and should be viewed as just one part of the broader narrative.

1. Signals Without Context Are Just Noise
   Signals provide clues, they don’t provide answers. Regardless of how sophisticated the tech is or how advanced the AI is, no one can guarantee relevance and consistent reliability because the intent to purchase is rarely quantifiable. A job change might create a trigger, but it doesn’t guarantee readiness to buy. Intent data might indicate interest, but it can’t reveal whether a prospect has the budget or has the potential to be a long-term, high-value customer. When signals are treated as definitive leads without proper context, teams risk wasting time pursuing prospects that may not align with the long-term goals and health of the business.

2. Signals Can Create False Urgency
   The real-time nature of signals often creates a sense of urgency. Act now, or lose the opportunity. While urgency can be motivating, it can also lead to rushed, poorly targeted outreach that misses the mark.
3. Signals Must Align with the Strategy
   Signals are powerful tools, but they’re only as effective as the strategy guiding them. Without alignment to a broader business strategy, anchored by a strong ICP, signals risk becoming reactive rather than purposeful. While signal platforms offer impressive capabilities for tracking intent, engagement, and activity, they often lack the strategic context necessary to ensure these insights drive meaningful action.
4. Over-reliance on a Single Source
   Most organizations have a source of one or two signals - 6Sense, RB2B, Warmly, ZoomInfo Scoops, Common Room, Clay, etc - because that’s what they can afford. And there is an over-reliance on a single source of “truth” as it relates to both market signals and engagement. The problem is consistency and proven reliability. Some people have better luck than others, and everything should be taken with a grain of salt. If you’re using signals, compounded signals and weighting the values based on experience and incrementally proven success is the most important part of any signals strategy.

When signals operate in isolation, they can dominate decision-making, pulling efforts in multiple directions without clear alignment to overarching goals. To unlock their full potential, signals must take cues from your strategy, enhancing rather than steering your approach. A thoughtful, strategic foundation ensures signals are used to amplify your efforts, not dictate them.

Finding the Real Value in Signals

To cut through the noise and leverage signals effectively, you need to treat them as part of a larger strategy. Here’s how to do it:

1. Start with a Strong ICP

Your ICP is the foundation. Signals should enhance your ICP by adding dynamic, real-time context. For instance, signals can help you prioritize accounts within your ICP but shouldn’t redefine who your ideal customers are.

2. Focus on Meaningful Signals

Not all signals are created equal. Job changes, intent data, and high-engagement behaviors often carry more weight than less actionable signals, like a single-page view. Prioritize signals that align with your sales and marketing goals.

3. Pair Signals with Data Validation

A signal is only as good as the data backing it up. For example:

• A job change signal should be cross-referenced with firmographic data (is this company in your target market?) and engagement data (is the company interacting with your brand?).
• Intent signals should be validated by checking whether the account fits your ICP and has shown consistent interest.

4. Use Signals to Enhance Personalization

Signals are most powerful when used to tailor your approach. A job change signal might prompt a warm email congratulating the prospect on their new role, while intent signals can guide your team to share relevant case studies or product information.

Leveraging Signals with BoostIdeal

Signals are tools, not strategies. They work best when paired with a holistic strategy that guides teams on their best-fit accounts to help optimize resources.

1. Aggregating Signals from Multiple Sources

BoostIdeal pulls in diverse signals that provide a 360-degree view of your accounts. These signals come from:

• Intent Data Platforms: Insights into what prospects are researching or purchasing (e.g., keywords, content consumption, competitor visits).
• Engagement Data: Interactions with your brand, such as email clicks, website visits, and webinar attendance.
• Firmographic and Demographic Changes: Signals like leadership shifts, funding rounds, or geographic expansion.
• Product Usage Data: For existing customers, tracking login frequency, feature adoption, and support interactions.
• Market and Competitive Insights: Broader trends and customer shifts that influence buying behavior.

By consolidating signals from disparate systems, BoostIdeal provides a comprehensive view of account activity and readiness.

2. Turning Signals into Scores

Not all signals are created equal. BoostIdeal organizes these signals into three key categories, aligning them with your ICP attributes:

• Fit Signals: Assess how closely the prospect or account matches your ICP criteria, such as industry, company size, or revenue potential.
• Engagement Signals: Measure how actively the account interacts with your brand, such as attending demos or repeatedly visiting high-value content.
• Market Signals: Capture external dynamics like industry trends, competitive activity, or funding announcements that indicate readiness or opportunity.

This categorization ensures signals are filtered and weighted appropriately, rather than treated as raw data points with equal importance.

3. Dynamic Lead and Account Scoring

Once signals are categorized, BoostIdeal applies its scoring model to evaluate accounts holistically. This scoring integrates:

• Static Attributes: Fit metrics based on your ICP (e.g., firmographics, technographics).
• Dynamic Engagement: Real-time activity and intent signals to prioritize high-interest accounts.
• Market Context: External factors influencing timing or strategic opportunities.

These scores are updated dynamically, reflecting both long-term alignment with your ICP and short-term shifts in behavior or market conditions.

4. Full Funnel Scoring 

BoostIdeal ensures that scoring is actionable at every stage of the customer journey:

• Lead Prioritization: Scores help identify the most promising leads by combining fit and engagement signals, enabling teams to focus on high-value prospects.
• Opportunity Management: Mid-funnel accounts are scored dynamically to prioritize deals with the best mix of intent and strategic alignment.
• Customer Health Monitoring: Scores evolve post-sale, incorporating product usage and market signals to highlight upsell opportunities or prevent churn.

This full-funnel scoring approach provides consistent, data-driven prioritization across sales, marketing, and customer success teams.

The Takeaway

The flurry of activity around signals reflects a real shift in how sales and marketing operate, with real-time insights becoming increasingly critical. But like any new trend, it’s essential to approach signals with a clear strategy.

Use signals to enhance, and not replace, the foundational elements of your strategy. Pair them with a robust ICP to ensure alignment with your business goals, validate them with additional data for accuracy, and integrate them thoughtfully into your workflows. When done right, signals enable you to act smarter and faster, turning potential opportunities into meaningful wins without losing focus.BoostIdeal takes this concept further by unifying signals from multiple sources, distilling them into actionable scores, and anchoring them to your ICP. With full-funnel scoring, BoostIdeal ensures signals are valuable insights that drive alignment and efficiency across sales, marketing, and customer success teams. It’s not just about acting on signals; it’s about using them strategically to create a consistent, scalable system that delivers results from lead to long-term customer success.