The average SDR has 12 tabs open right now. Half of them are the same prospect.
CRM in tab one. LinkedIn in tab two. ZoomInfo in tab three. Intent dashboard in tab four. Email sequences in tab five. Dialer in tab six. Chat notifications in tab seven...
You get the picture.
Your lead scoring model is lying to you.
That VP of Sales with a score of 85? Turns out they were researching for a competitor. The contact who scored 12? Just booked a demo after visiting your pricing page yesterday.
Traditional lead scoring was built for a buying journey that no longer exists. And yet, most sales teams are still using models from 2015 to prioritize 2026 leads.
Here's why it's broken — and what actually works.
Buyer intent data promises to reveal who's ready to buy. But which tools actually deliver for SDR teams?
B2B buyers complete 70% of their research before engaging with sales. By the time they fill out a demo form, they've probably already shortlisted vendors. Intent data tools help you find these buyers earlier — but not all intent data is created equal.
This guide compares the best buyer intent data tools in 2026, with real pricing, actual features, and honest assessments of what works for different team sizes.
SDRs don't need more signals. They need to know who to call today.
Intent data has become the golden child of B2B sales intelligence. Vendors promise to reveal which accounts are "in-market" before they fill out a form. Marketing teams love the targeting capabilities. Executives love the ABM metrics.
But ask your SDR team what they think of intent data, and you'll hear a different story.
