Keep these three things.
- Define fit using your real customers and delivery limits.
- Separate account selection from contact selection.
- Keep evidence, exclusions and stop conditions in the record.
Start with the work you can deliver
Describe the customers who get the most value from your work. Include the problem you solve, the team that uses it, company stage or size when it matters, geography and delivery requirements. If your evidence is thin, label this as a working hypothesis and plan to revise it.
Add exclusions before searching. A smaller list that rules out poor fit is easier to review and less likely to produce irrelevant outreach. Exclusions can cover geography, business model, minimum engagement size, incompatible tools or a segment you cannot serve responsibly.
Choose accounts before names
An account can fit your offer without having a timely reason to hear from you. Keep fit and timing as separate fields: one describes why the company could benefit, the other records an observable change worth checking.
Define what qualifies as a signal and how recent it must be for your work. A new role, product launch or expansion may merit investigation; it does not prove a budget, problem or buying intent. Record the source and its date so a reviewer can distinguish an event from an inference.
Verify who owns the work
Use responsibilities and current role information to identify a plausible contact. Job titles vary by company size, so describe the work the person owns rather than searching only for one title. If ownership is uncertain, preserve that uncertainty instead of turning a likely contact into a verified decision-maker.
Use contact information from an appropriate source and respect applicable privacy, marketing and suppression requirements. A valid-looking address is not proof that it belongs to the person or that a message is welcome.
Make the list reviewable
For each account, keep the fit reason, observed signal, source, checked date, contact role, remaining unknowns and next decision. A short evidence trail is more useful than a score whose meaning no one can explain.
Remove accounts that no longer fit, have stale or unverifiable information, or have asked not to be contacted. Review a small sample before expanding the list. If the reasons sound interchangeable, sharpen the selection rules before adding more names.
Account record · fictional business
Fit: independent agencies with client-facing delivery teams.
Exclusion: companies outside the service region or below the minimum engagement.
Observed: a current client-services role is advertised on the company careers page.
Unknown: who owns sign-off and whether the new hire changes that process.
Continue the method
Record what changed without assuming what the change means internally.
Set the audience, evidence and exclusions before prospect research begins.
This is practical editorial guidance, not a report of customer performance. Product previews show example work; available actions depend on the live Scout service and the permissions you configure.