Are your B2B sales reps spending their time chasing leads that rarely turn into sales? Do they keep getting lost in the endless research and data entry grind of prospects? 

If so, you're not alone. Many sales teams struggle with inefficient prospecting and lead management processes that drain productivity.

Solution? Intuitive and intelligent B2B sales prospecting software that can help your reps focus on what they do best —  building relationships with prospects who represent an opportunity. In fact, businesses that choose the right sales prospecting software generate 35% more leads.

In this article, we will elaborate on the B2B sales prospecting tools your team needs and how to choose the right one. Plus, we will help you with a comprehensive list of the top 10 B2B sales prospecting tools. 

What tools does a sales team need for B2B sales prospecting?

For driving efficient and effective B2B prospecting, sales teams need an all-rounder tech stack that covers the following key tools. 

1. CRM 

CRM (Customer relationship management) software is the central hub where sales reps manage all of their customer and prospect data. It usually stores detailed profiles of leads, including demographics, company info, interactions, etc.

Using a CRM, you can visualize the sales pipeline, forecast revenue with customizable deal stages, and automate workflows like follow-up reminders, data capture, etc. Further, CRM integration with other tools can help build seamless workflows. 

2. Sales intelligence software 

A sales intelligence software adds to your CRM capabilities with enriched company and contact insights for targeted prospecting, like the tech stack used by prospects, organizational charts to identify key decision-makers, or critical updates like funding rounds, M&As, etc. Users can also get signals like website interactions and job postings that reveal purchase readiness.

3. Lead generation software 

While CRMs store leads, dedicated lead gen solutions help build targeted prospect lists from scratch. They allow you to extract contacts from company websites, and social platforms using advanced searches.

You can also tap into massive aggregated datasets of businesses and professionals, rank leads based on fit for efficient outreach, and find direct emails/phone numbers bypassing gatekeepers.

4. Sales automation software 

These tools take over tedious, repetitive tasks so reps can spend more time selling. Sales automation includes email automation to send personalized multi-touch drip campaigns with open/click tracking, call automation to dial numbers from a click, and record call dispositions.

You can also share availability and let prospects self-book meetings while automatically logging activities and updating CRM records as interactions happen.

Top 10 B2B sales prospecting tools

Successful B2B sales prospecting is a multi-dimensional process, and you often need multiple tools to effectively execute the key stages.

For researching & qualifying prospects

As you engage prospects, the following tools provide the context to qualify and prioritize. 

1. Happysales

Happysales’ is an AI-powered sales prospecting platform that uses DISC personality assessments, intel on prospects’ professional challenges, company news, personalized emails and messages, and company updates to personalize your prospecting. Happysales’ mission is to end sales reps’ dependencies on multiple tools and act as a one-stop platform for all sales prospecting and intelligence needs.

It employs AI-powered buyer intent signals to prioritize and tailor outreach so that every interaction is data-backed and relevant. By leveraging Gen AI in sales, it brings AI coaches to life. 

Features

• Personalized emails and icebreakers 
• DISC personality assessment 
• Prospect insights and intelligence 
• Buyer-specific conversation starters 
• Lifelike AI persona for pitch practice 
• Chrome extension to understand your buyers
• Readily available news on the prospect’s company

Pros 

• Natively AI-powered platform 
• Reduces research time to less than 30 seconds
• Instantly equips reps with AI-personalized messages and emails

2. Overloop 

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Overloop is a sales automation platform that allows you to dig up verified email addresses of professionals on the internet for sales outreach. With an email scheduler, you can reach recipients at the right time. With advanced customization options, you can stand out from the same old cold emails and significantly improve lead engagement.  

Features

• A/B testing for emails 
• Weekly performance reports
• Automated email campaigns 
• Email personalization options 
• Integration with your existing tech stack 

Pros 

• Easy to use
• Integrations add a lot of value  

Cons

• Expensive compared to others 
• The platform becomes slow over time 

For building a prospect list 

The first step is building a strong pipeline, starting with identifying the right prospects. Some of the top tools to do this include: 

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3. Apollo.io

Apollo, a sales intelligence and engagement platform, that can help you target 275 million+ verified contacts with 65+ filters like buyer intent, job postings, headcount growth, and more. It adds AI in sales enablement with role plays and can act as an all-in-one tool for lead generation, contact database management, and email outreach. 

Features 

• Lead scoring 
• Multi-channel sequences 
• AI-powered automation
• Auto-updation of records
• AI role plays and recommendations 
• B2B database of 275+ million contacts.

Pros

• It’s easy to use and navigate
• Better data accuracy compared to others 

Cons

• Frequent errors and bugs
• Sequences and outbound functions are not advanced 

4. Lusha

The next one on our list is Lusha. It is a sales intelligence platform that helps you find B2B contacts and company data for sales prospecting. Lusha’s Chrome extension makes it easier to connect and engage with leads faster and yields desirable sales outcomes for your business. 

Features 

• Behavioral data 
• Advanced targeting filters
• Intent, job change, and tech stack filters
• Automated CRM updation and workflows 

Pros

• User-friendly interface 
• Responsive support team

Cons

• Filter choices are limited 
• Data quality is substandard in comparison to similar solutions 
• Expensive, with a complex pricing structure 

5. Cognism 

Cognism is another popular software for finding lead contact data in the EMEA, NAM, and APAC markets. Its database has validated email IDs, so you can turn your cold emails into warm leads. Its integration capabilities with CRMs and existing tools make it easy to get started. 

Features 

• Integration with Zapier and major tools to build a sales tech stack 
• Global mobile numbers database 
• Sales triggers and firmographics
• Lead list cleansing and enrichment 
• Chrome extension for individual prospecting 

Pros

• Data is fully compliant 
• AI-driven insights for prospects 

Cons

• Minor glitches while performing normal tasks like exporting contacts
• Phone number availability is limited 

For sales engagement

Once you've built your lists, dedicated sales engagement platforms take over multi-channel cadence execution. These tools include

6. SalesLoft 

AI is positively impacting multiple business functions, including sales. SalesLoft is an AI-powered sales engagement platform that allows you to automate contacting prospects and create a good first impression. It helps you establish multi-touch cadences allowing you to reach the right people at the right platform. 

Features 

• Two-way CRM Sync
• Native conversation intelligence 
• Deal health and pipeline visibility 
• Mobile app for better accessibility  
• Conductor AI to prioritize workflows 
• Detailed revenue and engagement data

Pros

• Intuitive dashboard 
• Easy email scheduling 
• Integrations for smoother workflows 

Cons

• Steep learning curve 
• Occasional downtimes 

7. Mailshake

Mailshake is a sales engagement platform carefully engineered for modern sales teams. It can assist you in personalizing messages on multiple channels be it through email, social, and voice calls. Its robust features allow your sales reps to improve performance and your sales leaders to track progress.  

Features 

• Email templates 
• A/B testing for emails
• Native and 3rd party integrations
• Mail merge for personalized emails
• Data finder to find and filter prospects 
• Lead drivers to see which part of the sequence converted 

Pros

• Easy to use and intuitive
• Customer support is quick to respond

Cons

• Pricing is on the higher end 
• Integrations are limited 

For crafting the perfect message

Finally, create a message that resonates with your audience and addresses their specific pain points. The below tools can help with just that. 

8. Yesware 

Yesware is a platform that helps you automate outreach at scale. It can save your precious time while crafting cold emails with personalized and ready-to-go email templates. You can see how your email is performing by analyzing open rates, reply rates, and more and optimize your email messaging accordingly.

Features 

• Email open and attachment tracking 
• Recipient engagement report
• Shared templates & campaigns
• Meeting scheduler 
• Bi-directional activity sync with Salesforce 
• RingCentral phone integration 

Pros

• Email templates for quick communication 
• Easy to use and implement

Cons

• Frequent occurrence of bugs
• Occasional data inaccuracies when tracking data 

9. Quickmail

Quickmail is an easy-to-use cold email software that supports smart automation capabilities. It allows you to set up automated follow-ups when there is no response and centralizes all your replies in one inbox. Its AI features allow you to get rid of repetitive admin work that comes with cold outbound.

Features 

• A/B test campaigns 
• Built-in audit log
• Automate contact import and follow-ups 
• Improve campaigns with reports 
• AI to assign sentiment to responses
• Detect out-of-office responses 

Pros

• Simple and easy to navigate
• Importing contacts is hassle-free

Cons

• Some parts of the interface need refinement 
• Integrations are difficult to set up

10. Lemlist 

Last, but not the least, we have Lemlist. It is a multi-channel prospecting platform that uses advanced AI for creating highly personalized multichannel campaigns. You can easily personalize emails at scale with custom intro lines, images, dynamic landing pages, and more.

Features 

• Custom text variable, image, and video personalization
• Customizable email campaigns
• AI-generated sequence 
• A/B tests and advanced conditions for campaigns 
• Liquid syntax(flexible coding) to adapt to the lead attributes 

Pros

• Good customer support
• Easy-to-use automation

Cons

• Expensive for smaller teams
• Limited amount of emails on basic plans

How to choose the right B2B sales prospecting platform for your business?

Before you settle down with one of the B2B sales prospecting software listed above, evaluating these key areas is important to get the ideal bang for your buck.  

1. Evaluate key features

The ROI of a platform depends on the features it offers. Go with tools that offer built-in databases, ideal customer profiling features, AI-based account intelligence like DISC personality assessment, and predictive insights like buyer intent.  

It should also support multi-channel cadences across email, voice, and social media with AI-driven personalization for messages. Built-in calling, messaging, engagement tracking, and task automation that reduce admin workload are also essential. 

Look for Examples of AI in sales and understand where it can add value to your processes and choose a solution accordingly.

2. Look for integrations 

Very few standalone applications meet all the business needs, so prioritize B2B sales prospecting tools that integrate with your existing tech stack to automatically create leads/contacts, nurture them, and continually push updates. See if they have open APIs that enable easy integration. 

3. User adoption and support 

If you’re investing in a software, you’d want your team to make the most of it, so assess the user experience, training resources, and ongoing platform support. 

Look for a simple, intuitive UI designed with the sales rep's workflow in mind, along with quick onboarding tools like tours and knowledge bases. Also, an active product roadmap that incorporates user feedback is important.

4. Review data compliance

Data privacy has become more important than ever with the emergence of more digital businesses. Prioritize providers who maintain transparency around their data acquisition practices and handling protocols. Data governance that aligns with mandates like GDPR and CCPA must be cross-checked. 

That’s a wrap! You must note that smart sales teams should look for platforms that bring together multiple functions into one system. An all-in-one prospecting solution that combines multi-channel engagement automation, sales intelligence, email optimization tools, and more can simplify your tech stack.

A unified prospecting platform also ensures seamless data flow and aligned processes. This approach keeps software costs low and reduces implementation overhead. 

Happysales is the most complete solution that puts AI in sales prospecting and has all you need to future-proof your sales engine. Don’t just take our word for it and try Happysales for free today.