Choosing the best B2B Data provider for generating Leads

Ascentrik Research
11 min readJan 25, 2024

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B2B data for lead generation

Are email finder tools and software platforms your best option for generating leads?

The question on most marketing and sales teams minds, is can data cleaning tools give you highly qualified and targeted leads for your email and advertising campaigns?

Most users of list building tools complain about b2b data inaccuracies. 43% of sales and marketing teams say a lack of accurate data remains a challenge. It is an accepted fact that data accuracy rates are between 60% and 80%. This eventually leads to at least a 5% bounce rate on your email marketing campaigns. This insight has led many vendors to improvise how data is sourced.

The pursuit of highly qualified and targeted leads often prompts sales and marketing teams to explore the efficacy of software tools. However, when evaluating the suitability of data sales intelligence tools for campaigns, key factors such as accuracy and pricing take centre stage.

Reviews and user experiences often highlight two prevalent concerns with most online databases: high costs and incomplete accuracy, leading to erroneous contact details like incorrect emails and phone numbers. Many tools, based on expansive databases housing millions of contacts, struggle to maintain real-time data refreshment, resulting in staleness and diminished accuracy. Only the popular industries and job titles are refreshed quarterly or monthly by automated software programs. This is why they are low on accuracy.

Despite the availability of different subscription plans offering varying search quotas, bulk features, and technical support, the pricing structure poses long-term concerns. The potential for inaccuracies in purchased leads may necessitate additional payments for refreshing stale data, leading to bounced emails, decreased engagement, and ultimately, higher marketing campaign costs.

One downside about the pricing is that in the long run, the pricing tends to be higher. In case the leads you paid for are inaccurate, you may go on to pay more for refreshing these stale leads. With inaccurate contact details in your email campaigns, you end up with lots of bounced emails, contacts unsubscribing to your lists, and overall low open rates. This way you end up incurring a greater cost on your marketing campaigns.

What are the common alternatives to database vendors and software tools available on the market?

Custom data research providers, recognized interchangeably as custom list builders or bespoke data vendors, are specialised entities that offer finely tailored email lists explicitly curated for individual campaign needs. In stark contrast to conventional data cleaning tools reliant on vast databases, these providers prioritise precision through tools for data cleansing. By focusing on smaller, purpose-driven datasets, these providers effectively reduce the risk of outdated or irrelevant information, thus elevating accuracy and substantially mitigating email bounce rates.

The hallmark of these bespoke data vendors lies in their unwavering commitment to compliance with stringent data privacy standards like GDPR, CCPA, and others. Unlike the rigid structures associated with data cleansing tools, these custom list builders offer flexible pricing models, making high-quality, accurate data more accessible to businesses across diverse scales and needs.

As accuracy and consent are essential for a seamless email marketing campaign, the perfect alternative to data enrichment tools are custom data research providers. By incorporating these innovative approaches to data accuracy, businesses can navigate the challenges of precision and compliance more effectively.

How does custom data research resolve the problems with email finder tools?

Since the main problem is data inaccuracy, we need to understand that a tool that runs on software automation will never be able to give you 100% accuracy. Secondly, building a database of contacts from niche industries and job roles, and updating them in real time is practically impossible. The solution lies in doing away with pre-built databases that rely solely on software automation. Today companies that function as data partners have found a way to circumvent the problem of outdated databases by using a combination of automated processes along with human research and validation.

You’ll have a team of data researchers working as partners on your marketing and sales campaigns. They build your contact list, and validate your existing database from the ground up.

This allows the research partner to give you a replacement contact immediately, and also charge only for successful contacts. There is no auto updation of your subscription plan, no credit system, and you are not stuck with 20% to 30% of stale data.

Data is never stored in databases that are accessible to hundreds of users. Each database is built or validated and enriched for every individual client. Email addresses and phone numbers are manually validated through phone research as well as email verification tools. Consent is obtained through single and double opt-ins. Data privacy is given highest priority, and so is GDPR and other data privacy compliances.

How do I choose the right b2b data provider for me?

When choosing the best data provider, you need to start by figuring out your specific needs. What data points do you need to manage your marketing campaigns and sales outreach, CEO phone numbers, technology-use, budget etc. Or are there any must-have features? Once you’ve answered these questions, start researching email enrichment tools and evaluating them against this checklist. Below are some factors to consider:

Data Availability and Accuracy:
Identify the crucial data points and geographic areas where information gaps exist. Choose a data enrichment platform renowned for offering high accuracy in these specific areas, ensuring the data aligns with your intended objectives.

Integrations:
Pick a tool that integrates with your CRM, marketing platforms, and other apps in your stack.

Compliance:
To avoid legal risk, make sure the company is sourcing its data ethically and in compliance with the GDPR.

Verification Methods:
Opt for a tool employing reliable verification methods involving human intervention, ensuring the database’s credibility and accuracy. Additionally, confirm the frequency of database updates to access the freshest and most relevant information available.

Databases:
Some data enrichment tools rely on stale databases. You need to ensure that yours regularly updates its databases to provide the freshest information.

Pricing:
Delve into pricing structures to grasp any limitations or hidden costs associated with the tool. Certain data enrichment tools may offer free searches but restrict access to results behind paywalls, emphasising the importance of reviewing the terms and conditions beforehand.

Why Ascentrik is the Best B2B Data Provider

Custom Research

Unlike fully-automated databases or data sourcing solutions, our unique data gathering process is human research driven with a layer of data verification that assures complete data accuracy, and 100% campaign ROI.

We provide replacement email addresses for bounced emails, and also provide single and double opt-ins for consent based email marketing. This ensures you contact prospects only if they have opted in to receive emails or phone calls. Read more here.

Compliances in B2B Email Database Building

Compliance laws have come into existence to protect customers against various internet scams and misuse of personal data. They aim to prevent the sending of unsolicited emails.

GDPR Compliance

GDPR deals with the processing of personal data in the EU. Following these regulations not only protects individual privacy, but helps increase engagement and click-through rates on your email marketing campaigns. Since the GDPR was introduced in 2018, sending a marketing email now requires obtaining consent. This consent has to be freely given, specific, informed, unambiguous and provided by some form of clear action, such as ticking a box.

Consent

Wherever you choose to get your data list from, you need to make sure you follow GDPR norms, and receive the consent of the contacts on your list. This consent is also referred to as single and double opt-in data, and is provided by top b2b data companies like Ascentrik Research. This is how we capture consent:

  • Opt-ins are captured necessarily at staff level.
  • If the staff is not available, opt-in is captured from the Secretary/Personal Assistant, only after the staff is authorised to do so.
  • If the staff is not available for the call, details other than opt-ins are verified at the operator level to authenticate the data updated through secondary research.

Our Process

If you are looking to buy a b2b contact or company database, you will need to know the process followed by your data team. Here is the complete process we follow at Ascentrik, right from obtaining the client brief, signing NDA’s and Intellectual Property Agreements, to sourcing b2b data through primary and secondary research, to communicating with the client and adding the database to their API, in the format of their choice.

API Integration

No matter which CRM you use, we are capable of directly integrating our data into your CRM system.
CRM API Integration

Infrastructure

At Ascentrik Research, we understand that the foundation of reliable data enrichment lies in robust infrastructures. Here’s how our strategic approach to human resources, hardware, and software not only saves you money but also ensures unparalleled data quality:

1. Human Resource Excellence: Our strength lies in our people. We have an extensive team of over 200 dedicated primary and secondary researchers stationed at 3 sophisticated delivery centres, which allows us to handle large volumes of information with precision and efficiency.

2. Cutting-Edge Hardware and Software: To deliver the highest standards of data enrichment, we invest in cutting-edge hardware and software infrastructure.

3. Cost-Efficiency and Savings: Our infrastructure setup is designed not only for excellence but also with cost-efficiency in mind. By leveraging the collective power of our human resources, optimised hardware, and advanced software, we create a streamlined process that maximises cost savings for our clients.

4. Beyond Data Delivery: At Ascentrik Research, we go beyond mere data delivery. Our team of dedicated researchers ensures the seamless provision of large volumes of well-researched and accurate data. We deliver strategic insight and intelligence to fuel the growth of your business’s.

Ascentrik Research- The best place to buy a b2b database

If you are looking to buy a b2b database, you might have considered various data vendors who store databases that can be accessed online through monthly subscriptions. While doing so you need to factor in 3 important criteria, Data Accuracy, Niche Targets and Pricing.

Data Accuracy:

Data that is stored in online lead databases gets stale very quickly as employees change jobs at a very high rate, and many forget to update their details on social platforms. This may happen right in the middle of your marketing campaign, causing emails to bounce, or phone numbers to be invalid, and affects the overall performance of your marketing campaign. Your brand name is also affected since the emails are sent from your company’s domain.

Therefore data accuracy is of prime importance in the success of your campaign, be it an email or cold calling campaign. But since online databases contain millions of contacts, they cannot update them all in real time. They have quarterly or monthly data updates. Some claim to have real time updates and verification of data before sharing it with you, but this happens largely for popular industries and job positions that are commonly accessed by the masses. The niche industries and job positions are not updated very often as that is not feasible considering that millions of contacts cannot be updated daily. Many times you will notice that niche industries are not even available in online lead databases.

This is where you will need a custom database provider who builds made-to-order databases for each individual client project. Custom data researchers like Ascentrik support you all through your marketing campaign. We give you replacement email addresses for every person that has changed their job during your campaign, solving the problem of email bounces.

Moreover we provide you with the all important single and double opt-ins required for consent based marketing.

This ensures complete data accuracy, and 100% ROI on your email marketing campaigns, and cold calling campaigns.

Niche Targets:

Ascentrik is one of the only data partners that has the capability to source b2b contact databases for very niche targets. Niche industries are specialised sectors focusing on a specific product or service. These industries cater to a smaller target audience and have lower competition. Some examples of niche B2B industries include oil and gas, metals and mining, specialised healthcare, etc.

On the other hand, mainstream industries include popular sectors that may have a bigger market, multiple competitors, high growth potential, or cater to a mass market need. Mainstream industries are usually commoditised by many players. Software development, IT, marketing, etc can be classified as examples of mainstream B2B industries.

Since most database solutions need to maintain large databases, the sourcing and verification of data needs to be automated with software. It is not feasible to verify millions of contacts on a daily or even a weekly basis. Therefore only the most popular, mainstream categories are updated regularly, while the industries and markets that are niche or less in demand are not.

Here is where Ascentrik Research outperforms the others. We can source and verify data from niche categories and industries. This data is unique and is hard to find anywhere else. No matter what your industry, job title, job role, or any other data point, we can source data in line with privacy norms and user consent, using our specialised team of data researchers.

Pricing:

In the situation mentioned above, where an employee changes his job and joins another company, while forgetting to update his details on social media, you end up with incorrect information. Many b2b data providers will charge you for this incorrect data anyway. This necessitates you to pay for refresh of these stale data records, adding to your marketing expense.

But working with custom data research companies is valuable in the long run. The cost may be a bit higher compared to the databases sold to multiple users, but eventually you will save on your marketing budget in the long run because you will not be charged for inaccurate data records, and you won’t be paying additionally for data cleansing. Lastly, the single and double opt-in data will be very beneficial to the success of your marketing campaign.

This is why a custom b2b data company like Ascentrik Research gives you the most qualified b2b databases, beyond what the usual data vendors provide.

For details on what kind of pricing structure we follow, please follow this link.

Conclusion -

B2B email finder tools offer undeniable benefits by providing deeper insights and enhancing prospect or lead databases. However, businesses must be aware of the potential challenges and pain points associated with these tools. Companies should carefully evaluate their data sourcing and enrichment needs, and then choose between a tool or a custom data research partner. By navigating these challenges effectively, businesses can leverage the power of validated and enriched email lists to thrive in the competitive b2b landscape.

In the world of b2b databases, accuracy reigns supreme. Ascentrik Research goes beyond the ordinary list builder tools, offering custom and precise email list building services that outshine standard tools. Our commitment to customised solutions, paired with our human expertise, ensures refreshed and highly accurate B2B data. With a focus on data sourcing and database building, Ascentrik offers comprehensive data solutions that cater to various business needs.

Our custom approach ensures that your data never gets stale, empowering your marketing strategies with data precision, and ensuring that businesses make decisions founded on the most reliable insights.

Choosing Ascentrik as your B2B data provider isn’t merely a transaction; it’s a strategic partnership. Our focus on delivering comprehensive solutions is rooted in the understanding that success in the B2B arena hinges on informed decisions driven by unparalleled insights. Opt for our customised data enrichment solutions that not only meet but exceed your expectations, propelling your business towards unprecedented growth.

Visit us for more information : https://www.ascentrik.com/b2b-database-providers/

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Ascentrik Research
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Ascentrik Research is a B2B Data Research and Intelligence company, that provides customized, high-quality data and insights to top businesses around the world.