06 Prospect Research Brief

# Skill: Prospect Research Brief

## What This Skill Does
Generates a 1-page intelligence brief on a target account before an outreach, discovery call, or strategic meeting. Covers company background, business signals, likely pain points, buying triggers, and personalization angles — so every touchpoint feels researched and relevant.

## When to Use
- Before sending a cold outreach to a key account
- Before a discovery or demo call with a new prospect
- When preparing for an executive meeting with a strategic account
- When a rep says "I don't know enough about this company to reach out"

## Inputs Required
Before running this skill, ask the user for:
1. **Company name** and website URL
2. **Target contact name and title** (if known)
3. **Your solution** — what you sell and the core problem it solves
4. **Call/outreach goal** — what outcome are you trying to drive?

## Step-by-Step Instructions

### Step 1 — Company Intelligence Gathering
Research and compile the following (use web search for current information):

**Company Basics:**
- Founded, HQ, employee count (and growth trend)
- Funding stage and most recent round (amount, date, lead investor)
- Revenue range (if public or estimated)
- Business model (what they sell, to whom, how)
- Key products/services

**Recent News & Signals:**
- Last 90 days: press releases, news articles, product launches
- Executive hires or departures (especially C-suite)
- Acquisitions or partnerships
- Expansion announcements (new markets, new offices)
- Any public challenges (missed earnings, layoffs, regulatory issues)

**Digital Presence:**
- LinkedIn follower count and posting frequency (signals growth focus)
- Key themes in their recent LinkedIn content
- Job postings that signal priorities (what are they actively building?)

### Step 2 — Contact Intelligence
Research the specific person being contacted:

**Professional Background:**
- Current role and time in role
- Previous companies and titles
- Career trajectory (rising star, seasoned exec, recent hire)

**Online Presence:**
- LinkedIn activity — what have they posted or engaged with recently?
- Any talks, podcasts, or articles they've published
- Shared connections or warm paths in

**Inferred Priorities:**
- Based on their title and tenure, what is likely their #1 KPI?
- What would make them look good to their boss?
- What would stress them out or keep them up at night?

### Step 3 — Pain Point Hypothesis
Using company signals + contact profile, build a hypothesis:

```
PAIN HYPOTHESIS:
"Based on [signal — e.g., 'recent Series B and rapid hiring'], [Company] is likely
experiencing [pain — e.g., 'difficulty tracking and coaching a fast-growing sales team'].
[Contact Name], as [Title], probably feels this as [specific manifestation — e.g.,
'inconsistent ramp times and forecast unpredictability']. Our solution addresses this by [...]."
```

### Step 4 — Personalization Hooks
Identify 3 specific angles to personalize outreach:

**Hook 1 — Trigger Event:**
Something that happened at the company recently (funding, product launch, hire)

**Hook 2 — Content Engagement:**
Something the contact posted, shared, or said publicly

**Hook 3 — Mutual Signal:**
Shared connection, shared experience, shared perspective on an industry trend

### Step 5 — Assemble the Research Brief

```
═══════════════════════════════════════════════
ACCOUNT BRIEF: [Company Name]
Prepared: [Date] | Contact: [Name, Title]
═══════════════════════════════════════════════

COMPANY SNAPSHOT
Industry: | Size: | Stage: | HQ:
Founded: | Revenue est.: | Website:

RECENT SIGNALS
• [Signal 1 — what happened + why it matters]
• [Signal 2]
• [Signal 3]

CONTACT PROFILE
Name: | Title: | Tenure:
LinkedIn: | Previous:
Likely KPI: | Likely Pain:

PAIN HYPOTHESIS
[One paragraph connecting signals to pain to your solution]

PERSONALIZATION HOOKS
1. [Trigger event hook]
2. [Content/public hook]
3. [Mutual/warm signal hook]

RECOMMENDED OPENING LINE
"[First sentence of outreach — hyper-specific, not generic]"

CALL GOAL
[One sentence — what outcome are you driving from this interaction?]

KEY QUESTIONS FOR DISCOVERY
1. [Question to confirm hypothesis]
2. [Question to understand current state]
3. [Question to surface urgency or trigger]
═══════════════════════════════════════════════
```

## Output Format
Deliver:
1. Completed 1-page Account Brief (from template above)
2. 3 personalization hooks (ready to use in outreach)
3. Recommended opening line for cold outreach
4. Top 3 discovery questions for the call

## Pro Tips
- Spend 10–15 minutes max on research per account — this brief should take 15 minutes total
- The job posting section is criminally underused: if a company is hiring 5 SDRs, they have a sales growth problem. If they're hiring a data engineer, they have a data problem. Hiring = priorities.
- Never use research to show off ("I saw you posted...") — use it to add value ("Given what you're building...")
- The best opening line references something specific that could NOT apply to any other company
- Keep the brief to one page — if it's longer, you're researching, not selling