2024’s 12 Best Sales Prospecting Tools [Tried and Tested]

We analyzed 30+ sales prospecting tools, reviewed customer experiences, and tapped into the expertise of our sales team and peers on LinkedIn and Slack. Here's our list of must-try prospecting tools in 2024:

12 Best Sales Prospecting Tools for Your Business: In-Depth Analysis ‍

1. G2 Buyer Intent

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Best for: Identifying high-growth, in-market prospects.

G2 Buyer Intent is a sales intelligence tool that helps businesses identify companies actively researching their products or product categories. It leverages data from G2's platform, where millions of business professionals research and compare software solutions.

Key Features:

• First-Party Intent Data generated from more than 90  million annual users.
• G2 Buyer Intent scores account for two core factors: Buying Stage and Activity Level.
• Integrating intent data with CRM, marketing automation, and ABM tools to enable automated workflows, lead scoring, and enriched data. 
• Real-Time Notifications and Tech Stack Data on email or Slack.

Pros:

• Real-time insights into which companies are researching your category and product page, and comparing you to competitors.
• Helps prioritize outreach efforts towards leads with high buying intent.

Cons:

• Requires a paid G2 subscription (typically bundled with other G2 features).
• Pricing can be expensive for smaller businesses.
• Relies on data from the G2 platform, which may not capture all potential buyers.

Pricing: Starts at $10,000/year (typically bundled with a G2 subscription).

2. LinkedIn Sales Navigator

Best for: Reaching the right decision-maker.

LinkedIn Sales Navigator is a sales prospecting tool with advanced search capabilities. It allows users to create prospect lists based on industries and job titles and send out InMails for on-platform outreach.

Key Features:

• Advanced lead and company search filters (14+ account filters to find the best opportunities across 61M+ accounts).
• Lead nurturing features like insights on the company hiring trends, department headcount, and recent hires.
• Buyer-persona segmentation.
• Data integration and CRM-generated lists for HubSpot, Salesforce, and Microsoft Dynamics 365 Sales.
• InMail messages to reach out directly to prospects.

Pros:

• First-party data from its social network with over 950 million contacts.
• Drill-Down search functionality.
• Engagement with your prospects & customers using your team's network. 
• Suggests other prospects based on your searches.

Cons:

• Does not offer a free trial.
• InMail messaging quota can be increased from 50/month.
• Has a limited number of industry verticals.
• Expensive compared to similar tools.

Pricing:

LinkedIn Sales Navigator Core: $99/month

LinkedIn Sales Navigator Advanced: $149/month

LinkedIn Sales Navigator Advanced Plus: Starting at $1600/seat per year

3. Apollo.io

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Best for: Multi-channel prospecting (email, social, phone).

Apollo is an end-to-end sales platform with a data-first engagement approach. It is the ideal B2B sales prospecting tool for sales teams that value automated outreach.

Key Features:

• One of the largest and most accurate B2B databases in the world, with more than 275 million contacts.
• All tools to build a sales pipeline in one place- sequences, emails, calls, social, and task management.
• AI-powered automation to create custom workflows.
• 65+ filters and attributes like buyer intent, job postings, headcount growth, etc.

Pros:

• Cost-effective.
• Advanced In-built analytics.
• Easy to use and navigate.
• Integrates seamlessly with most CRM platforms.
• Has a Startup Ecosystem Partnership to give discounts to startups.

Cons:

• It has a cluttered UI.
• In comparison to the US market, coverage in India is still limited.
• There is a small learning curve involved in setting up the email sequence.

Pricing:

Offers a free plan and paid plans start at: 

Basic: $49/month

Professional: $79/month

Organization: $119/month

4. Storylane

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Best for: Getting accurate firmographic data for anonymous demo viewers.

Storylane may not look like a prospecting tool at first glance, but it's a powerful solution for identifying high-intent leads and implementing PLG. 

Key Features:

• Account reveal to turn anonymous demo visitors into identified opportunities.
• Embed product tours on the website, support docs, ad landing pages, blogs, etc. 
• Lead capture by including a lead form either inside or outside the demo or by using the URL parameter to relay emails.
• Account-based enrichment with firmographic data.
• Advanced analytics to track demo engagement at the individual lead level.

Pros:

• Easy-to-use interactive demo tool that helps you create clickable product demos in under 10 minutes. Start free here!
• Supports both marketing and sales use cases like demo embeds, live demos, and guided leave-behind demos
• Low entry barrier as compared to other tools.
• Offers both video/screenshot and HTML capture formats.

Cons: 

• A comparatively newer product, but the team is prompt in taking feedback and adding features.
• Integrations may be required for comprehensive lead nurturing. Check out the integrations here.

Pricing: 

Has a generous free plan, and paid plans start at: 

Starter: $40

Growth: $100

Enterprise: Custom pricing based on needs

5. Clearbit

Best for: B2B companies using Hubspot CRM

Clearbit is an AI-powered B2B data enrichment tool that can be used to enrich existing records, prioritize leads, and uncover purchasing signals from your website visitors. It is a premier HubSpot Native Data Provider. 

Key Features:

• The most detailed industry classification that is feasible includes SIC, GICS, and NAICS six-digit codes.
• Recognizes parent companies and subsidiaries to assign the appropriate lead to the appropriate rep.
• More than 250 data sources and millions of data points with 100+ B2B attributes.

Pros:

• Company size and job seniority targeting are available.
• Automatically refreshes records as soon as a change is detected.
• Constant improvements powered by machine learning and highly-trained QA.
• GDPR compliant.

Cons:

• The platform can be expensive for small businesses.
• Little to no training is provided.
• Enrichment of companies can be poor at lead level.

Pricing: Starts at $99/month for 275 data enrichment requests. Custom pricing is also available.

6. Leadfeeder

Best for: Converting website visitors into qualified leads.

Leadfeader is a sales prospecting tool that can identify anonymous traffic on your website. It can help you reach out to high-intent leads quickly with a better sales pitch.

Key Features:

• Sort contacts by seniority, position, or area.
• Find decision-maker's social media pages and emails.
• Creates feeds for your sales team according to web activity, employee count, industry, and other criteria.
• Shows the precise "path" visitors follow on your website.
• Automatically send accounts to your marketing automation system or CRM software. 

Pros:

• Easy integration with CRM and email marketing platforms.
• Provides real-time alerts for timely follow-ups.
• Provides Context (source, pages visited, location, time on-site) to qualify a lead.
• Notifies your team through Slack or email whenever businesses come to your website.

Cons:

• Some users have reported that the tool can occasionally miss some website visits.
• Beginners may find the user interface complex.
• Team collaboration can be improved.

Pricing:

Paid plans start at €99/month.

7. ZoomInfo

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Best for: Lead enrichment for B2B companies.

ZoomInfo is a B2B sales prospecting tool with a comprehensive contact database for lead enrichment.

Key Features:

• Extensive B2B contact database of over 70M direct dial phone numbers and 174M verified email addresses.
• Analyze customer calls, meetings, and emails to inform process improvements.
• Website visitor tracking capabilities.
• Seamless integration with CRM and sales platforms.
• Access to company insights and buying intent signals.

Pros:

• Offers advanced search filters for targeted prospecting.
• Delivers sales intelligence for better decision-making.
• Provides real-time sales alerts for timely action.

Cons:

• The customer support and onboarding process could use improvement.
• Information accuracy could be improved.
• Workflow automation requires better filtering options.

Pricing:

Starts at around $8,000/yr (Custom pricing is also available).

8. Hunter.io

Best for: Expanding your contact list.

Hunter is an all-in-one sales prospecting tool that can help you build your email list and launch your campaigns.

Key Features:

• Email finder to locate professional email addresses.
• Email verifier to check the deliverability of any email address.
• Discover all email addresses associated with a domain through domain search.
• Automate cold email marketing campaigns.
• Integrate with native CRMs, Zapier, and APIs to sync data with over 5,000 destinations.

Pros:

• Offers easy data export options.
• Affordable for small businesses and startups.

Cons:

• The free version has limited searches.
• Some users have reported that the tool can occasionally miss some email addresses.
• Limited email campaign features, including no A/B testing or email warm-up.

Pricing:

Paid plans start at: 

Starter: $34

Growth: $104

Business: $349

9. Salesloft (also called Modern Revenue Workspace™)

Best for: Combining revenue ops with sales engagement.

Salesloft is an all-in-one sales engagement platform for enterprise sales teams. It combines sales engagement, conversation intelligence, and revenue operations.

Key Features:

• End-to-end pipeline management and forecasting.
• Advanced email sequence capabilities.
• Automated signals indicating buyer intent and AI-driven insights help pinpoint top prospects.
• Multichannel sales communication.
• Native dialer & calendaring.

Pros:

• Responsive customer support. 
• Integrates well with LinkedIn Sales Navigator.
• Conversation intelligence for call recording and analysis.

Cons:

• The platform's search functionality could be improved.
• No free trial or freemium version.
• High cost, especially for small to medium-sized businesses.

Pricing:

Costs between $75 and $125/month (Custom pricing is also available)

10. HubSpot Sales Hub

Best for: Growing teams that need an easy-to-use sales CRM. 

Hubspot Sales Hub is a sales automation tool that includes sales engagement tools, configure-price-quote (CPQ) functionality, and robust sales analytics and reporting.

Key Features:

• Hubspot AI to create compelling emails for prospects.
• Custom quote management.
• Advanced sales analytics & reporting.
• Conversation intelligence.

Pros:

• Custom email templates and advanced email tracking.
• The task management tool is efficient.
• Customizable and interactive sales playbooks to help the sales team.

Cons: 

• There are too many mandatory fields to complete on deals by default.
• Call history is extremely hard to read.
• No autosave functionality.

Pricing: 

Paid plans start at: 

Starter: $20/month 

Professional: Starts at $100/month

Enterprise: Starts at $150/month 

11. Lusha

Best for: Finding a prospect's direct contact information (phone, work, and personal email IDs).

Lusha is a B2B sales intelligence tool that can enrich the data in any system, database, or app with its API and provide buyer intent information.

Key Features:

• Accurate B2B contact enrichment with Lusha's 7 Trust-Filters™, their seven-step data verification system.
• Access up to 1,000 contacts and enriched data with a single search.
• Effortlessly export lists to your CRM or CSV format.
• Lusha Engage for sending email sequences to prospects.

Pros:

• Self-serve platform with little to no training.
• First ISO-27701-compliant sales intelligence platform.
• Advanced Dashboard analytics.
• Chrome extension for easy access.

Cons:

• Importing contacts is cumbersome.
• Limited free version.
• Inaccurate role and company information at times.

Pricing:

Starts from $29/month.

12. Pipedrive 

Best for: Startups looking for a CRM cum sales prospecting tool.

Pipedrive is an intuitive and versatile CRM system to optimize sales processes. LeadBooster is an add-on for Pipedrive that helps businesses find and manage leads efficiently. It offers four tools: Prospector, Smart Contact Data, Live Chat, and Web Forms. 

Key Features:

• LeadBooster add-on for enhanced lead generation.
• Prospector with a huge database of over 400 million professionals and 10 million companies. 
• Smart Contact Data for lead enrichment.
• Live Chat to chat with visitors on your website in real-time.
• Web Forms can directly collect leads from your website.
• Native iOS and Android integration.
• Integration with other tech tools like Calendly, Zapier, Slack, and Microsoft Teams.

Pros:

• Intuitive functionality and simple layout.
• Fully customizable sales pipeline.

Cons:

• Reporting and automation can be improved.
• It was time-consuming to export leads from Pipedrive.
• Support is limited for small accounts.
• Limited integration with other sales tools.

Pricing:

Essential: $12/month

Advanced: $24/month

Professional: $49/month

Power: $59/month

Enterprise: $79/month

Final Verdict: Which Is the Best Sales Prospecting Tool? 

There is no one-size-fits-all answer to the best sales prospecting tool. It truly depends on factors like industry, target audience, and specific needs. But we've found the following tools highly effective for sales prospecting:

• G2 Buyer Intent Data: Highly effective for offering real-time insights into companies actively researching your category and comparing you to competitors. It helps prioritize outreach efforts toward leads with high buying intent.
• LinkedIn Sales Navigator: Offers powerful search and targeting features for identifying potential B2B leads and direct outreach through InMail messages.
• Apollo: Empowers sales teams to reach prospects through multiple channels and maximize their prospecting efforts.
• Storylane: Storylane's account reveal feature is a game-changer for sales prospecting. It identifies high-intent leads across your website, ads, and landing pages with embedded demos.

We also recommend that you incorporate sales intelligence tools into your sales strategy. These tools offer deeper insights into market trends, competitor analysis, and customer behavior.

If you wish to know more about how we can help with your sales prospecting needs, book a demo. 

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is a sales prospecting tool?

A sales prospecting tool is software designed to help sales professionals identify and connect with potential customers or leads. It typically includes features for lead generation, outreach automation, and performance tracking.

2. What are the 5 prospecting methods?

The five prospecting methods are:

• Cold calling
• Email outreach
• Networking events
• Social media prospecting
• Referrals and introductions

3. How do you score a prospect?

Scoring a prospect involves evaluating various factors to determine their likelihood of becoming a customer. This includes assessing their level of interest, fit with your product or service, buying authority, and potential value as a customer.

4. What is pipeline sales?

Pipeline sales refers to the process of managing and tracking sales opportunities from initial contact with a prospect through to closing the deal. It involves organizing leads and prospects into different stages of the sales pipeline and moving them through each stage until they convert into customers.