How to Find and Close Big B2B Prospects Using Signal Analytics

If you’re in B2B marketing or sales, chances are you’re looking for those big hitters—the high-value clients that can generate massive revenue without draining your resources. Today, we’re going to dive into a proven methodology that has helped our clients close bigger deals consistently and grow their revenue quarter over quarter.

The secret? Signal Analytics—a structured approach to identifying key signals in your data that point to ideal prospects who are ready to convert. If you already have product-market fit and one working acquisition channel (outbound or inbound), this strategy can transform how you approach your pipeline.

Let’s break it down step by step.

Why Big Prospects Matter in B2B

Landing big prospects can be a game-changer for your business. Instead of chasing countless small opportunities, focusing on high-value accounts lets you:

• Generate more revenue with fewer resources.
• Build longer-term, more profitable relationships.
• Streamline your marketing and sales efforts for higher ROI.

But how do you find these golden opportunities? That’s where signal analytics comes into play.

What Are Signals in Signal Analytics?

Imagine you have a massive pool of data points about your customers—their behaviors, interactions, and touchpoints throughout the journey. Most of these data points are noise: they don’t contribute to conversions or business success.

However, hidden in that noise are signals—specific patterns or data spikes that correlate with high-value prospects. These signals indicate:

1. The right fit: Prospects that align perfectly with your ICP (Ideal Customer Profile).
2. Intent to convert: Prospects actively progressing toward purchase.

When you identify these signals, you can focus your time and energy on closing bigger deals with precision.

The Four Key Components of Signal Analytics

To identify signals effectively, we focus on four core data components:

1. Attribution Data

Attribution tracks where leads come from and their initial touchpoints. While imperfect, this data helps you understand the journey prospects take and where key signals appear.

2. Unit Economics

This includes your business's fundamental financial metrics:

• Customer Lifetime Value (LTV)
• Lifetime Gross Profit (LTGP)
• Acquisition Costs

By linking these metrics to your signals, you ensure you’re targeting accounts that drive maximum profitability.

3. Dimensional Data

This refers to data you collect internally or from third-party tools, such as:

• Intent data
• Industry trends
• Firmographic details

These dimensions help narrow your focus to prospects that align perfectly with your ICP.

4. Conversion Optimization Data

This includes insights on how leads progress through your funnel:

• Time spent in deal stages
• Touchpoints leading to conversion
• Key decision-making roles and moments

When combined, these four components create a clear picture of who your ideal prospects are and how to target them effectively.

Reverse Engineering Your Ideal Prospect Signals

Here’s a simple, step-by-step approach to finding and closing your biggest B2B prospects:

1. Identify Your Top Customers

Start with your top 5 customers by:

• Lifetime Value (LTV)
• Lifetime Gross Profit (LTGP)

These accounts represent your ideal clients—the ones that bring in the most revenue, are easiest to work with, and have the highest margins.

2. Map Out the Customer Journey

Analyze the full journey for each of these accounts:

• Contact-level data: When did each decision-maker enter the picture? What were their pain points?
• Account-level data: How did the entire organization progress through the funnel?

This detailed mapping helps you pinpoint the key decision points and triggers that led to conversion.

3. Find the Top 3 Signals

Once you’ve mapped out the journey, identify the top 3 common signals that influenced these accounts to convert. Look for:

• Specific data points (e.g., certain behaviors, intent signals, firmographics).
• Moments in the customer journey that indicate readiness to buy.

4. Target Similar Accounts

Use these signals to:

• Focus on accounts that are already showing those signals.
• Guide potential accounts (that match dimensional data) toward exhibiting the same behaviors.

For example:

• If a key signal is engagement with a specific content piece, use targeted outreach to guide similar accounts toward consuming it.
• If certain intent data correlates with conversions, prioritize accounts exhibiting those signals in your pipeline.

How This Drives Revenue Growth

Here’s the best part: You don’t need more opportunities to grow your revenue—you just need to close bigger deals.

For one of our clients, we implemented this exact methodology in Q1 of 2023. Here’s what happened:

• Total opportunities remained roughly the same.
• Revenue spiked quarter after quarter as they began closing bigger, higher-value deals.

By focusing on signals and targeting the right prospects, they dramatically improved their ROI without increasing resources.

Action Step: Start Using Signal Analytics Today

If you’re ready to close bigger B2B prospects, here’s your next step:

1. Identify your top customers and reverse engineer their signals.
2. Use those signals to focus your efforts on ideal accounts.
3. Optimize your sales and marketing strategies around these high-value opportunities.

Want to make this process even easier? We’ve created a free tool: the Signal Constructor Template. It allows you to:

• Pick metrics that matter most to your team.
• Define signals that indicate top prospects.
• Build actionable strategies to capitalize on those signals.

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Signal analytics is a powerful way to grow your revenue without burning out your resources. By identifying and targeting the signals that lead to high-value prospects, you can close bigger deals more consistently.

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