Here's my framework for defining your perfect customer:

1. Identify Your Power Outcomes
   • What is the #1 result your product/service delivers?
   • What are the top 3 pain points you solve?
   • What is the quantifiable ROI of your solution?
2. Map Company Characteristics
   • Industry/vertical
   • Company size (employees)
   • Revenue range
   • Geographic location
   • Tech stack/tools they use
   • Recent company events (funding, expansion, etc.)
3. Decision Maker Profile
   • Job titles (primary and secondary)
   • Responsibilities
   • KPIs/metrics they care about
   • Career background
   • Common objections they raise

WORKSHEET: Your Ideal Customer Profile

1. Power Outcomes
   • Primary outcome: _______________
   • Pain point #1: _________________
   • Pain point #2: _________________
   • Pain point #3: _________________
   • Typical ROI: ___________________

2. Company Characteristics
   • Industry: _____________________
   • Employee size: ________________
   • Revenue: _____________________
   • Location: _____________________
   • Tech stack: ___________________
   • Recent events: ________________

3. Decision Maker
   • Primary titles: ________________
   • Secondary titles: ______________
   • KPIs they own: ________________
   • Background: ___________________
   • Common objections: ____________

3 Ultra-Effective List Building Methods The "Experts" Won't Tell You About

Once you've defined your ICP, it's time to build your prospect list. Forget the standard approaches—here are three methods that will give you a massive edge:

Method 1: The Podcast Scraping Strategy

Most founders and executives in growing companies appear on industry podcasts. This gives you:

• Proof they're actively growing their business
• Talking points from their interview to personalize your outreach
• A natural reason to connect ("I heard you on...")

How to implement:

1. Identify 3-5 popular podcasts in your industry
2. Create a spreadsheet with these columns:
   • Company Name
   • Contact Name
   • Podcast Episode
   • Key Topics Discussed
   • Their Current Solution (if mentioned)
   • Pain Points (if mentioned)
3. For SaaS companies, try Nathan Latka's podcast—he interviews hundreds of SaaS founders who share revenue, growth challenges, and tech stack details.
4. Use AI tools to segment your list further (Example: for compliance solutions, segment into "has certification" vs. "needs certification")

Real Case Study: We used this exact method for a compliance services provider targeting SaaS companies. By scraping Nathan Latka's podcast guest list and segmenting companies by whether they already had SOC 2 certification, we achieved a 13.79% response rate with messaging like:

"Hi [First Name], first of all I want to say I found your interview [on podcast] very inspiring. I was actually doing some research on your company and seems like you [have/don't have] a SOC 2 certification. Just curious, [specific question about their compliance approach]?"