The short answer
Buying signals are observable events or behaviors that suggest a company or person is more likely to buy now. They come in three types: company signals (hiring, funding, launches, tool changes), person signals (a new role, a promotion, public posts about the problem) and behavioral signals (site visits, content engagement, replies, questions about pricing or timelines).
On this page
Key takeaways
Three types, three plays: Company signals set the topic, person signals set the timing and behavioral signals tell you to move fast.
Rank by strength and recency: A pricing question this week beats a funding round last quarter. Score signals before you act on them.
Stack signals for priority: One signal is a hint. Two or three on the same account, close together, is a reason to drop everything.
Use it, don't announce it: Lead with public signals in your message. Use private behavior like site visits for timing, never as your opening line.
The 3 Types of Buying Signals
Every buying signal answers a different question. Company signals tell you what to talk about, person signals tell you who and when, and behavioral signals tell you how hot the account is right now.
| Type | Examples | Where you see it | Typical strength | Play |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Company | Hiring, funding, launches, new leaders, tool changes | Careers page, newsroom, press, job posts | Medium | Lead with the change and its likely problem |
| Person | New role, promotion, public posts about the problem | LinkedIn, interviews, podcasts | Medium | Reach out in their first months or right after the post |
| Behavioral | Pricing page visits, replies, link views, pricing questions | Your analytics, inbox, CRM, calls | Strong | Respond within a day with a clear next step |
Quote public signals, time with private ones. Company and person signals are public, so you can reference them. Behavioral signals are often private: use them for timing, not as your opening line.
Company Buying Signals and the Play for Each
Company signals are changes at the account that create new problems or new budgets. They're the most reliable reason to start a cold conversation. The full list lives in sales trigger events; here are the ones that matter most.
| Signal | What it often means | The play |
|---|---|---|
| Hiring for a role you support | The work is growing faster than the team | Offer to make the new hires productive faster |
| New funding | New targets, pressure to scale | Tie your product to the growth plan they announced |
| New leader in your area | Tools and processes up for review | Offer a quick win for their first 90 days |
| Launch or expansion | New workflows, new markets | Speak to the operational load the launch creates |
| New tool adopted | Gaps around the new system | Show how you fit next to it |
Hiring is the most underrated signal. Job posts tell you the team, the tools and the problem, in the company's own words. Check them in your prospect research routine before any other source.
Person Buying Signals
Person signals tell you when a specific buyer is open to a conversation. They're about the individual's situation, not the company's.
- New in role. New leaders review their stack and want early wins. Their first few months are usually the most open window.
- Promotion. More scope, often new problems to own.
- Public posts about the problem. If they've written about the pain you solve, they've done half your discovery for you.
- A champion who moved companies. A past customer who changed jobs already knows your value. This is one of the warmest signals you'll get.
Respond to the signal, not the event. "Congrats on the new role" is noise. Tying the new role to a likely priority is a reason to reply.
Behavioral Buying Signals
Behavioral signals are things the buyer does, and they're the strongest of the three because they show active interest. They come in two flavors: digital behavior and what they say in conversation.
- Digital. Pricing page visits, repeat visits to a link you shared, content downloads, webinar attendance, replies and demo requests. Some come from your own analytics; others, like review-site research, come from intent data providers.
- Verbal. Questions about pricing, contracts, implementation or timelines. Asking if you integrate with their tools. Bringing a colleague or their boss into the conversation. Talking about your product in the future tense.
Never quote private behavior back to them. "I saw you on our pricing page" makes people close the tab. Use the signal to time a useful message instead.
Verbal signals need a next step, not more pitching. When a prospect asks about implementation, answer briefly and propose a concrete step: a technical call, a pilot plan or a meeting with the person who signs.
How to Rank Buying Signals by Strength
Not every signal deserves the same speed. Score each one on strength, recency and fit, then work the list from the top. A simple rubric your team can apply in seconds:
Strength: 3 = behavioral (pricing question, demo request, repeat visits)
2 = person or company change tied to your problem
1 = general company news
Recency: 3 = this week 2 = this month 1 = this quarter 0 = older
Fit: 3 = ideal customer 2 = good fit 1 = partial fit
Priority = Strength + Recency + Fit (max 9)
7 to 9: act today 5 to 6: this week 4 or less: nurture
Stacked signals jump the queue. A new VP plus three related job posts plus a visit to your pricing page is a different account from one with only a funding round. Treat stacks as your highest priority, and qualify them fast with your lead qualification criteria.
Buying Signals Outreach Templates
Each template uses the same structure: the signal, what it usually means, one question. Swap in your details.
Company signal
Hi [First name], saw [Company] is [hiring 3 pricing analysts].
When [the team grows by hiring], [quote turnaround] is usually what slips.
How are you keeping [quotes same-day] while you hire?
Person signal
Hi [First name], [a few months] into [the RevOps role] is usually when
[the tool review] starts. If [clean handoffs] are on your list, I have
one idea from [a team your size]. Worth a look?
Behavioral signal (timed, not quoted)
Hi [First name], following up with something useful on [topic]:
[one-line insight or short resource]. If it helps, I can walk you
through how [peer type] set it up. Does [day] work?
Open with the public fact. More openers built on signals are in these cold email opening lines.
Tracking Buying Signals Across Your List
Signals only help if you see them while they're fresh. Build a weekly routine so they don't depend on luck.
- Set alerts on your top accounts and key contacts for news and job changes.
- Check careers pages of your tier A accounts every couple of weeks.
- Review behavioral signals daily: replies, demo requests, link views and pricing-page traffic.
- Score and route. Apply the rubric, then assign each signal an owner and a deadline.
Let the research travel with the outreach. Edithly's buying signals research reads each prospect's website and public signals when it writes, and lists the facts it used with sources so you can check them. To find new companies with a live signal, Suggested Prospects shows why each one fits and links the source.
Keep a manual routine for top accounts. For the step-by-step version, see how to research a prospect.
How Edithly does it
Turn a buying signal into ready-to-send outreach in three steps
Edithly reads each prospect's website and public signals when it writes, and lists the facts it used with sources. Suggested Prospects also shows a signal and a source for every company it finds.
- 1
Click the Email Outreach tile
Open your product's Home and pick Email Outreach. Your pitch and proof points are already in your playbook from your website.
- 2
Enter the prospect and signal
Add the company name and website, and put the signal you spotted in Notes, such as 'hiring three pricing analysts'. Add the contact's name and LinkedIn if you have them.
- 3
Generate and check the sources
Click Generate email outreach. The personalization basis lists every fact used with a source link, alongside follow-ups and a LinkedIn note.
Website
Ready
- Personalization basis
- Fact + source link
- Recent move
- Hiring signal
- Do not say
- By hand
- 10 to 20 minutes per account to find, check and write
- With Edithly
- A couple of minutes per account, sources included
Frequently asked questions
What are buying signals in sales?
Buying signals are events or behaviors that suggest a prospect is more likely to buy soon. Company signals include hiring, funding, launches and new tools. Person signals include a new role or public posts about a problem. Behavioral signals include visiting your pricing page, replying, or asking about price, timelines or implementation during a conversation.
What are examples of verbal buying signals?
Questions about pricing, contract terms, implementation timelines or onboarding; asking whether you integrate with a tool they use; bringing a colleague or their boss into the conversation; asking for references; and talking about your product in the future tense, such as 'when we roll this out'. Each is a cue to propose a concrete next step.
What is the difference between buying signals and intent data?
Buying signals is the broad term for any sign a company may buy soon, including public events like hiring and private behavior like replies. Intent data is a specific kind of signal: usually aggregated research activity, such as an account reading more than usual about a topic across a network of sites or on review platforms.
How do you respond to a buying signal?
Fast and specifically. Reference the public signal in your opener, connect it to the problem you solve and ask one question. For behavioral signals, like a page view or a pricing question, respond with something useful and a clear next step, but don't mention that you tracked their activity.
Can Edithly find buying signals?
Edithly reads a prospect's website and public signals when it writes outreach, and Email Outreach lists the facts it used with source links. Suggested Prospects returns companies that fit your ICP, each with why it fits, a signal and a source. It isn't an intent data provider and doesn't track website visitors.