Crunchbase account research template for outbound
last updated: Sep 3, 2025
TL;DR
Use this crunchbase account research template to pull a clean list, score accounts with simple rules, map the right people, then push to LinkedIn and email in one afternoon.
How to:
How to:
- Filter companies with clear fit and recent activity.
- Export, normalize, score, and tag owners.
- Find stakeholder titles, then hand off to outreach.
Glossary
- Firmographics: company facts like size, industry, HQ.
- Technographics: tools a company uses.
- Trigger events: changes that raise buying odds.
- ICP: ideal customer profile.
- MQL: marketing qualified lead.
- CSV: comma-separated values file.
How to build a list for account research
This is account list building before people research.
1. Set filters that actually move reply rates
Work from your ICP. In Crunchbase, use filters like Industry, Location, Organization Size, Last Funding Date, and Keywords. Use advanced filters (Query) for complex criteria. support.crunchbase.com
2. Layer trigger events to spot timing
Prioritize companies with recent funding, leadership changes, hiring spikes, or acquisitions. These are classic purchase signals. about.crunchbase.com, about.crunchbase.com, cognism.com
3.Build and save your search
Name the search clearly. Example: “EU seed-A fintechs. 11–250. Funded 12m.” Save it for refreshes.
4. Export your list to CSV
Crunchbase Pro and Business let you export searches and lists. Business includes higher monthly export limits. Click Export on the results, confirm, and download the CSV. support.crunchbase.com.
5. Normalize the CSV
6. Score accounts with simple points
Use a 10-point model. Example: +3 recent funding. +2 headcount 11–250. +2 ICP industry. +2 HQ in your territory. +1 hiring for relevant roles. Set a working threshold. If your fit rules are fuzzy, draft your value proposition for startups first.
7. Identify the buying group quickly
For each account, list 3–5 likely roles you will contact. Expect multiple stakeholders in modern B2B deals. Many studies show typical groups often reach 6–11 people. challengerinc.com, corporatevisions.com
8. Handoff to LinkedIn and email
For outreach playbooks, see LinkedIn outbound for founders and cold email for B2B startups.
1. Set filters that actually move reply rates
Work from your ICP. In Crunchbase, use filters like Industry, Location, Organization Size, Last Funding Date, and Keywords. Use advanced filters (Query) for complex criteria. support.crunchbase.com
2. Layer trigger events to spot timing
Prioritize companies with recent funding, leadership changes, hiring spikes, or acquisitions. These are classic purchase signals. about.crunchbase.com, about.crunchbase.com, cognism.com
3.Build and save your search
Name the search clearly. Example: “EU seed-A fintechs. 11–250. Funded 12m.” Save it for refreshes.
4. Export your list to CSV
Crunchbase Pro and Business let you export searches and lists. Business includes higher monthly export limits. Click Export on the results, confirm, and download the CSV. support.crunchbase.com.
5. Normalize the CSV
- Standardize country and industry values.
- Create clean domains.
- Fill missing HQ city where possible.
- Dedupe by domain.
- Add an Owner column for handoff.
6. Score accounts with simple points
Use a 10-point model. Example: +3 recent funding. +2 headcount 11–250. +2 ICP industry. +2 HQ in your territory. +1 hiring for relevant roles. Set a working threshold. If your fit rules are fuzzy, draft your value proposition for startups first.
7. Identify the buying group quickly
For each account, list 3–5 likely roles you will contact. Expect multiple stakeholders in modern B2B deals. Many studies show typical groups often reach 6–11 people. challengerinc.com, corporatevisions.com
8. Handoff to LinkedIn and email
- Push top-scoring accounts to your CRM.
- For people search, start with LinkedIn.
- Build 1–2 contacts per account first. High scatter kills reply rates. belkins.io
For outreach playbooks, see LinkedIn outbound for founders and cold email for B2B startups.
Benchmarks
Sample math. 480 exported companies. 210 score ≥6. You contact 300 people across those accounts. 4.5% reply rate yields ~14 replies. Half qualify to meetings. Seven meetings from one afternoon. Directional only.
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Crunchbase vs LinkedIn Sales Navigator
- Crunchbase: best for account discovery and timing signals like funding and exec changes. about.crunchbase.com
- LinkedIn Sales Navigator: best for people discovery and outreach messaging inside those target accounts.
Templates and examples
Account research template fields
Simple scoring formula
score = 0. If last_funding_date within 12 months: +3. If employee_band 11–250: +2. If industry_primary matches ICP: +2. If hq_country in target markets: +2. If hiring_signal_note present: +1.
Sample row
AcmePay | acmepay.com | DE | Berlin | Fintech | 51–200 | 2025-04-10 | Series A | “Hiring RevOps” | “New VP Sales” | 8 | Dana | — | — | — | — | — | — | New | “Warm intro via TA lead”
Buying committee roles to capture
- company_name, domain, hq_country, hq_city, industry_primary, employee_band, last_funding_date, last_funding_stage, hiring_signal_note, trigger_event_note, score, owner, contact_1_name, contact_1_title, contact_1_linkedin_url, contact_2_name, contact_2_title, contact_2_linkedin_url, status, notes
Simple scoring formula
score = 0. If last_funding_date within 12 months: +3. If employee_band 11–250: +2. If industry_primary matches ICP: +2. If hq_country in target markets: +2. If hiring_signal_note present: +1.
Sample row
AcmePay | acmepay.com | DE | Berlin | Fintech | 51–200 | 2025-04-10 | Series A | “Hiring RevOps” | “New VP Sales” | 8 | Dana | — | — | — | — | — | — | New | “Warm intro via TA lead”
Buying committee roles to capture
- Start list: VP Sales, Head of Operations, RevOps Manager, CFO for budget, Security for vendor review. Adjust to your niche. For deeper discovery, use these customer interview questions.
Risks
- Over-filtering early. You miss good accounts.
- Exporting junk. Don’t import before normalizing.
- Chasing too many contacts per account. Reply rate drops. belkins.io
- Ignoring email hygiene. Bounce rate spikes. mailtrap.io
FAQ
- You:Do I need Pro or Business to export?Guide:Exports are available on Pro and Business. Business has higher limits. Click Export in the search or list view. support.crunchbase.com
- You:Which filters give the biggest lift?Guide:Recent funding, employee band fit, and territory match. Add leadership changes for timing. about.crunchbase.com
- You:How often should I refresh the list?Guide:Monthly for active outbound. Weekly during a sprint. Funding and people's events change fast. about.crunchbase.com
- You:Can I add technographics later?Guide:Yes. Start with firmographics and timing. Layer tech stack data from enrichment tools later.
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