Cold Call Lists: How to Build & Where to Buy Them?

Where, oh, where can you get lists for cold calling? 

You’ll likely find B2B data providers, list sellers, and more if you search the web. These options have pros and cons, so building your own list might be better. 

In this article, we explain how you can build an effective list for cold calling. And, if you just don’t have that kind of time - where you can find a reliable and legal vendor who can have you on the phones with hot leads in no time. 

Let’s start 👇

What is a cold call list? 

A cold call list is nothing more than a list of people you are going to cold call, with their contact details and extra relevant information if necessary.

Some providers offer pre-made cold calling lists for sale. But if you’re tired of hit-or-miss cold call lists, build custom lists through a B2B platform like Cognism. The tool helps you connect with the right buyers and its AI Search feature speeds up prospecting by 74%!  

Reps can run searches and filter down results depending on who you want to call (e.g., include or exclude job titles, seniority, departments, etc.). There’s no need to worry about data compliance because Cognism B2B cold calling data is CCPA and GDPR-compliant.

Even better, Cognism scrubs numbers against DNC lists in over twelve countries - more than any other provider! 

If you don’t have access to a sales prospecting platform, you can build cold cal lists manually.

However, this alternative method is time-consuming, frustrating for the sales team, and prone to errors. It involves cross-checking the lead data from multiple sources or cold calling company numbers to try to reach your prospect.

What are the benefits of building cold call lists?

With a well-crafted cold call list, you can reach your best prospects and get your message across quickly—with a human touch you don’t get with other communication channels.

However, many companies slip up by not getting accurate data for the list.

Prospecting software uses advanced technology and implements manual reviews to ensure the highest-quality data. It brings many benefits to your sales team, especially compared to buying unverified or non-compliant cold calling lists online:

• Cold call lists save time – the hard work of digging up contact details is done for you.
• A well-targeted list maximises your chances of success.
• Lists help salespeople create momentum. They can progress through the list quickly, improving their technique as they go.
• If your list is well-targeted, you can compose a cold call script that is likely to hit home with everyone on it.
• You can revisit your list and enrich the data to make sure it’s always up-to-date.

Here’s how it helped Salesloft build cold call lists and book 70% of monthly meetings:

“Approximately 4,000 leads each month are enriched by our SDR team using Cognism’s database. On average, 70% of monthly meetings are booked over the phone and every mobile number is pulled from Cognism.”

Read the full case study

Michael Iannuzzi

Director of Marketing & Sales Development

@Salesloft

What are the steps for building cold call lists?

The most effective cold call lists are full of the names of people with a problem your product can solve. These people are more likely to be receptive to what you have to say. 

Therefore, your list doesn’t have to be long, but it must be targeted and include good-fit prospects.

Developing your Ideal Customer Profile (ICP) is a great place to start. When you have a clear picture of the kind of person you want to target, it’s much easier to go out and find them. Here’s how you develop your ICP:

• Analyse your existing customer base and look for common features between your highest-spending users.
• Look at their industries. Consider company size, locations, and job titles. If you excel at selling to one category of company, you can find others that fit into that category.
• Talk to your best customers about the challenges they face and how your product helps to resolve them.

Once you have a picture of your dream customer, you can start searching for others like them in B2B databases.

What data should a good cold call list include?

How much data will be on your cold calling list is up to you, but the minimum information you need is:

• Name.
• Job Title.
• Company.
• Phone number (cell phone numbers are better than direct dials).

It’s often helpful to have their email address and LinkedIn details as well to develop a winning sales cadence.

The more you know about your lead before you call them, the more likely you’ll make a connection. You’ll find it easier to address what you say to the prospect’s situation. You can enrich your cold calling list with additional data points, like:

• Buying intent signals.
• Sales events triggers.
• Technographic data.

Thanks to intent data, you can gauge the level of prospect’s interest in what you’re selling and their company’s need for it. It’s beneficial if you’re running account-based marketing campaigns. Intent data providers can capture prospects’ web searches and the content they consume to indicate their level of interest in a product or service. 

Sales triggers help you prioritise contacts on your list. For example, if the prospect has just been promoted, they may want to make a mark with a new purchase. Another useful sales trigger is if the company has just received a new round of funding; this shows that they have an influx of new budgets available and may be looking to spend.

Cognism's Sales Companion helps increase prospecting efficiency with next-best buyer recommendations that cut out the guesswork.

Singlestore saw how actionable data gets your reps connected faster👇After all, there’s no point in building a cold calling list without accurate data. 

“We've actually seen a drastic improvement in terms of the amount of dials that each SDR is making, the amount of conversations that they're having, and also the amounts of meetings that they're booking. We're seeing over 300% more dials than were being made on a weekly basis since using Sales Companion.”

Alex Porter

Global Sales & Business Development Director

@Singlestore

How to get the right phone numbers for cold calling outreach?

Cognism provides unrivalled accuracy and Europe’s leading B2B database of senior-level contacts. Through precise targeting and consistently refreshed, compliant data, it enables businesses to build strong pipelines and repeatably solidify their revenue growth.

It provides multiple options to create targeted cold-calling lists in the EMEA, NAM, and APAC markets. It offers a CCPA and GDPR-compliant cold calling database, including prospects’ cell phone numbers, an exclusive phone-verified cell phone numbers dataset, and direct dials.

Cold call lists: key takeaways

• Building a targeted cold call list allows you to reach prospects who are most likely to convert.
• It’s important to have accurate contact data for the list to ensure you reach the right people.
• Intent data and sales triggers help you prioritise contacts on your cold calling list.
• If you want to buy a cold call list online, remember that it can be outdated, incompliant, or inefficient.
• Over 1800 sales teams worldwide trust Cognism’s compliant B2B data.
• Cognism's cell phone numbers database helps reduce the time spent on building cold call lists and hitting revenue goals.
• Sales Companion works well with your other sales tools and makes outbound sales much easier and more efficient.

More questions about cold calling prospects?

We’ve collated our best and most entertaining resources for SDRs and sales leaders to access on-demand:

• Cadences.
• Cold calling examples.
• Scripts.
• On-demand training.

Build cold calling lists with Cognism

Take your cold call list building to the next level with Cognism. Not only can you automate the process for faster, easier prospecting, but you also get: 

✔️ AI-powered insights tailored for every user.

✔️ More mobile numbers that go through to the right contacts. 

✔️ More confidence when prospecting. 

✔️ More targeted leads.

✔️ And more incoming revenue.

Click 👇 to book your demo today!