Free practical resource / GTM signals

How to reverse-engineer your customers purchasing decision to discover GTM signals

I can give you the most generic signals that everyone is using like funding, new hire, etc.

By My Auto Ops · Practical field guide · Free, no signup

But it might be better to show you a practical framework so you might discover new signals itself?

For example, what we did for a commercial b2b company is build a bot that reviews looplist.com every 1 hour or so to see which posting got taken down, which could be a “possible opportunity” or assumption that the building was sold or a new tenant was in it, which means “they might” need commercial HVAC, low voltage, roofing or GC expansion services.

Now here is a practical reverse signal framework that is going to help you out.

Reverse signal framework: 1. Understand why customers buy — identify what creates the need for your service. 2. Reverse-engineer the buying event — what happened before the customer needed you? 3. Find observable evidence — what external event could reveal that change? 4. Identify the data source — where can you reliably find those events? 5. Validate the signal — does it actually produce qualified opportunities?

Let’s actually apply it as an example for an insurance broker.

Understand why customers buy
- A company may need new insurance when:
  - They hire more employees
  - They enter a higher-risk operation
  - Benefits become to expensive
  - Compliance requirements increase
Reverse-engineer the buying event
- Before they buy:
  - They start scaling headcount
  - They open a new branch
  - They add field staff
  - They move into a new labor-heavy service line
Find observable evidence
- You might observe:
  - Job postings
  - Headcount growth
  - Expansion announcements
  - New service offerings
  - Multi-location growth
Identify the data source
- Where to look:
  - LinkedIn
  - Sales Navigator
  - Job boards
  - Company websites
  - Local news
  - State business filings
Validate the signal
- Test whether companies with active hiring or expansion actually convert better than random ICP accounts.

To make it simpler

What business changes create the need for insurance?
Reverse-engineer the buying event
Find observable evidence
Identify the data source
Validate the signal

Want help putting this into practice?

My Auto Ops builds prospect enrichment, data-validation, and outbound workflows for B2B revenue teams. Explore our GTM services or tell us about your current setup.