Top 10 sales triggers and how to track them

Sales intelligence has become essential to the success of sales professionals. In an increasingly competitive industry, both individuals and companies as a whole are recognising the need for a little something extra in their arsenal. For those wanting to maximise their lead on the competition, book more demos, and ultimately, close more deals, sales triggers are the answer.

Sales triggers act as a type of pre-intent data, getting you ahead of those relying on intent data buying signals, by recognising the process one stage earlier. What this means for a sales professional, is that you can gain up to a three-month head start on your competition. Rather than waiting for intent data to tell you when a prospect is searching for solutions (which may or may not be an accurate indicator of someone ready to buy), sales triggers map out actionable intelligence when the initial changes are happening at your prospective companies.

So, what are the best, most insightful sales triggers to track? In this article we’ve broken it down for you so you can get to grips with some of the most useful event triggers:

1. Key Person Change

2. Funding rounds

3. IPOs

4. Expansion Plans

5. New Office

6. Non-Compliance

7. Legal Dispute

8. Cybersecurity Issue

9. Financial Results Announcement

10. Job Loss/Layoffs

Here you can find the whats, the whys and the hows of our top 10 triggers for the market today – so you can start upping your outreach and intel game now.

1. Key Person Change

What is the trigger?

Changes in the senior positions within a company can be an indicator of upcoming shifts in strategies and products, and can provide an insight on future growth areas or the need for new tools and solutions for the effected team or wider company. These market movers, as they are also known, can be a great place to start if you are looking for a decision maker to reach out to for new sales opportunities. Key person change events can happen in a number of ways, most specifically:

• When an individual is changing company
• If someone is promoted from one role into a new position
• An individual may choose to step down from their role
• When retiring, a formal announcement will also be made
• Additions or changes to a company’s Board of Directors

What does it tell you?

A market mover, or senior person change, can tell a salesperson several things about the company, depending on the specific change and its context:

• Strategic direction – a change in senior leadership can indicate a shift in the company's strategic direction. For example, if a new CEO is appointed with a background in product development, it could signal that the company is placing a greater emphasis on innovation and product design. If a salesperson can recognise this, they can also understand that it may affect the company's product offerings and target markets.
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• Organisational structure – changes to senior leadership can indicate a shift in the company's structure. For example, if a company merges with another, bringing in new leadership, it may signal an upcoming change in management style or decision-making processes. This can spell good news for anyone who’s faced blockers or a lack of decision from a previous contact at that company.
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• Investor sentiment - a change in senior leadership can affect investor confidence in the company's prospects. For example, if a high-profile executive leaves the company unexpectedly, it may signal that there are internal issues or challenges.

‍Why is it in the top 10?

A market mover or senior person change can provide valuable information to a sales or marketing professional about the company's strategic direction, organisational structure, and market perception. However, senior leadership changes can be complex, so by staying on top of who’s moving where and when, you can gain a good understanding of the dynamic within a company – and know who’s the best person to reach out to. It’s also worth remembering that senior appointments are often made with a purpose in mind, so a new face in the management team is likely there to bring change and make improvements, and that can indicate huge opportunities for you.

How to track it?

To track senior management changes, you’ll need to set up some alerts. Perhaps the easiest place to do this is on LinkedIn. So whether you’ve got a Premium, Recruiter, or Sales Navigator licence, you can set up a search to show you who has changed jobs recently. Check for the last 90 days to make sure you don’t miss out on anyone who’s slow in updating their profiles! You could also try subscribing to some industry publications or services like Google Alerts to get email notifications on C-suite people moves.

Estimated time to track

Once you’ve set up your alerts, this can be done in a quick check of your emails. To actually get to that point you’re going to have to invest ten minutes to set up each alert – and you’ll need enough alerts to cover all areas of the market that you’re interested in. Obviously, the more areas of interest you have, the longer this will take... To save time and research in the long run, it’s really worth making sure these searches are set up well. It’s not just the right persona you need to focus on, but really knuckle down to make sure it’s the right ICP business you’re looking at too.

2. Funding rounds

What is the trigger?

A funding round is a type of financing event in which a company raises money from investors in exchange for equity in the company or other types of securities. Funding rounds can occur at different stages of a company's growth, and the funds raised can be used for various purposes such as expanding operations, developing new products, increasing employee headcount, or paying off debts.

Funding rounds are typically classified based on the stage of the company's development, with early-stage funding rounds including seed, venture, and angel rounds, and later-stage funding rounds including Series A, B, C rounds, etc.

These sales triggers normally indicate when a company has announced they are either launching a funding round or have closed a round.

What does it tell you?

When a company receives a substantial amount of investment, it will typically then look to either develop its capabilities, perhaps with new products or services, or may look to sustain its existing expansion goals. A significant funding round will enable a company to expand its team, acquire new software, and improve and enhance its performance and capabilities. A recent funding round can tell you several things about a company:

• Investor confidence -  a company that has successfully closed a funding round indicates that investors believe in its vision, management, and future growth prospects.
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• Growth potential -  the amount of funding raised (and the investors involved) can give insights into a company's potential for future growth and success.
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• Strategic direction -  the way a company plans to use funds raised in a funding round can hint at its strategic goals and priorities.
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• Market position -  a funding round can also indicate a company's market position and its competitiveness within its industry.

‍Why is it in the top 10?

The funding round, as a sales trigger, is the epitome of growth signals. For any sales, recruitment, or marketing professional, this is one of the big ones to follow. Where there is money there can be growth, and these two things spell huge opportunity for any sales, marketing, or recruiting professional.

How to track it?

It perhaps goes without saying that Crunchbase is very often the go-to for funding round news. The Crunchbase discover tool offers an advanced search for funding rounds, meaning you can hone your funding round search down to really focus on what’s of interest to you. There are also a number of companies and resources that now collate funding news, not to mention the old standby: press release pages of the companies you’re most interested in.

Estimated time to track

How long is a piece of string? If funding rounds are all you want to focus on, then you’ll need to go big here. Setting up searches on Google Alerts can be quick, as can a daily scan of Crunchbase. If you’re going niche, and don’t want to have to filter through thousands of irrelevant leads, then a paid service will be the quickest option for you.

And press releases? If it’s ten companies or a hundred, you’ll need an RSS reader and a good chunk of time to add all of the relevant press releases to your system. This can be done fairly quickly if you know what you’re doing, but don’t forget to factor in time to manage those RSS feeds too – that could set you back hours in the long run.

3. IPOs

What is the trigger?

An IPO (initial public offering) sales event trigger refers to an event that can lead to the sale of company shares. It is when a private company offers its shares to the public for the first time, allowing investors to buy a stake in the company.

What does it tell you?

An IPO sales trigger can tell a salesperson several things about the company, depending on the specific trigger and its context. Here are some examples:

• Company performance – if the IPO is tied to changes in the company's financial performance (perhaps highlighted in a recent financial results announcement), such as revenue growth or profitability, it can give the salesperson an indication of how well the company is doing in its industry. This can be important information, as it can indicate market demand for the company's products or services.
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• Market conditions – shifts in consumer behaviour or economic trends can also impact a company, leading them to IPO. A successful IPO suggests there is significant interest in the company’s services and products, and with stronger backing, is likely set for new growth.
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• Investor sentiment – this is another event that heavily indicates investor confidence. In short, a lack of interest suggests this company could be on shaky ground. In contrast, one that is flooded with investor interest spells good things for the company in question. This event can then also be tied to further changes in investor sentiment, such as changes in the stock price.

Why is it in the top 10?

An IPO can provide valuable information about the company's financial and strategic position, as well as the broader market conditions in which it operates. However, IPOs are complex financial transactions that involve many stakeholders, and the impact of an IPO can indicate a number of things. As market intelligence, IPOs can reveal a huge amount about the future growth potential of a company.

How to track it?

Again, with a combination of Google Alerts and company press releases pages, you can get a good idea of the IPOs that might interest you. However, to get the most thorough coverage, you’ll want to be checking the stock exchanges routinely.

Some of the bigger exchanges you might want to consider in the Western market would include: London Stock Exchange (London, UK), New York Stock Exchange (New York, USA), National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations (New York, USA), Euronext the European stock exchange group with multiple locations including Amsterdam (Netherlands), Brussels (Belgium), and Paris (France), Deutscher Aktienindex (Frankfurt, Germany), Xetra (operated by the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and used primarily for trading German equities and other financial instruments), and SIX Swiss Exchange (Zurich, Switzerland).

Estimated time to track

Hours. Unfortunately, to do this right (and thoroughly), there are no free shortcuts. Yes, your saved searches and alerts will notify you of a good number of IPOs, but if you’re really looking to get ahead of your competition, you’ll want to know about them all – that's where a sales trigger market intelligence platform will really help you cut back on your admin time!

4. Expansion Plans

What is the trigger?

When a company announces its expansion plans, a number of factors can come into play. In short, if a company says it’s growing (in whatever manner that may be), it is indicating that growth is on the cards and budget is in play.

What does it tell you?

A company announcing its scaling plans is a good indicator of them being in buying-mode. With this announcement comes a shift in the company’s focus as it looks to grow its outbound performance and improve its capabilities. This event could indicate anything from headcount growth to a new product or shift in strategy. With such a broad spectrum of growth to consider, keep track of these different types of expansion plan:

• New team/unit – a new team can have a wealth of unrealised needs. Reaching out now can get you ahead of the curve so you can help to solve their problems before they’ve even arisen.
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• Team growth – with a growing headcount comes new HR and operational needs. This can also lead to aneed for better organisational solutions, so SaaS salespeople could be in luck here.
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• Regional growth – expansion into a new region or market can often lead to new regulatory or compliance needs, language barriers, or cultural differences. With a need to solve new pain-points, this business trigger can create the ideal atmosphere for sales opportunities.
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• Business area – when scaling an existing business function, companies will look to align themselves with their competition as industry leaders. To be at the top of their game they will need a fool-proof system behind them. There will be plenty of scope for new sales and upselling here.
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• General expansion – general growth announcements offer a great opportunity to form a new connection. Find out what growth they’re looking at, and whether there's an existing opportunity or not, this event trigger could lead to more specific needs in your field soon.

Why is it in the top 10?

It’s a no-brainer that a company that’s scaling has budget to support those expansion plans. This sales trigger is a clear indicator of opportunity. Whether it’s new business or upselling potential, any company announcing its expansion will be focusing on securing positive growth.

How to track it?

Again, using Google Alerts you can set up search strings for relevant phrases such as “company plans to expand”, “announces new office”, etc. Further to this, you can also track listing changes on some real estate sites too. By using an RSS reader, you can also add the press release pages of any companies you’re interested in so you can track all of their directly published news first-hand.

Estimated time to track

Again, this can vary from a few minutes for a rudimentary Google Alerts setup, to hours for adding all the RSS feeds you might want to track (and manage).

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5. New Office

What is the trigger?

Perhaps one of the most visible signs that a company is in spending mode, a company’s announcement of a new location is a clear indicator of growth and budget.

What does it tell you?

Depending on the type of new office announcement you’re considering, these trigger events can tell you different things. Here are some types of new office announcements to consider:

• Headquarters – a new company or regional HQ is suggestive of general scaling. Here there’s a possibility for new and/or improved operational solutions.
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• Office – these announcements will normally be centred in an underserved location or new market for the company in question.
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• Branch – these announcements are normally associated with financial and legal organisations with a customer-centric focus. Improving customer service and growing client numbers will likely be the focus here.
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• Centre of Excellence – this tends to be a shared facility where a focus is placed on best practice, research, and development. These can be a great opportunity for referrals, so this is a good one to focus on for maximum outreach potential.
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• R&D/Tech hub – these locations are designated spaces for research and development of new or improved products, services, or processes. A new hub will need the best solutions in place to allow for innovation and creativity – and top of the line security is a must to protect these developments.
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• Data centre – a data centre is a site dedicated to housing the company’s computer and storage systems. High levels of security will be needed to avoid weaknesses in their data storage and protection and to ensure the company in question avoids hefty fines or lawsuits. The need for a new data centre also indicates recent or upcoming growth.

‍Why is it in the top 10?

There’s no smoke without fire. These are all good, clear signals that growth is underway or imminent. To get your prospect’s attention, you’ll need to reach out to them nice and early, before they get swamped in the noise of your competitors.

How to track it?

Google alerts, press releases, general industry news – they'll all cover this one. Set up search strings for phrases like “company announces new building” to capture some of the best leads.

Estimated time to track

Generally, this can be quite a quick and easy one to track once you’ve done the initial setting up of alerts. For more generalised industry news, which can indicate growth for centres of excellence, you’ll still need to set aside a good few hours on your favourite industry news sites.

6. Non-Compliance

What is the trigger?

A non-compliance sales trigger is a signal that a company has failed to fulfil one or multiple compliance requirements. As a result of this, the company in question could be facing fines from a number of regulating bodies.

What does it tell you?

Any company impacted by this sales trigger will be looking to fill gaps in its policies or improve its operating standards. They will likely seek the help of legal, compliance, and regulatory solutions to avoid similar problems reoccurring. The company in question might also risk reputational damage or legal action, which means that immediate action is essential. The type of non-compliance event will provide a lot of insight into what this sales signal means for a company. Here are some types to consider:

• Investigated by regulator – this event trigger is announced when a company is suspected of non-compliance. A company will likely take immediate action to strengthen its procedures and ensure compliance with all governing requirements in light of an investigation. There can be huge opportunity here, and the threat of more serious action to a company, such as the 291 payment firms the FCA has just written to, can be a serious motivating factor in your favour.
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• Investigated for data privacy failure – where a possible breach of data privacy has been reported, a company will look to tighten up on its processes ensuring rules and regulations around GDPR are fully addressed.
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• Investigated for Section 166 – Section 166 of the UK Companies Act 2006 requires directors to promote the success of the company and to exercise reasonable care, skill and diligence in their roles. If a company is investigated under Section 166, it means that there are concerns about whether the directors have fulfilled their responsibilities under this section of the Act. The purpose of the investigation is to determine whether there has been any wrongdoing or negligence by the directors, and to take appropriate action to address any such issues.
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• Fined by regulator – this can happen following any non-compliance situation. Having been fined by a regulator, a company will take immediate action to restore client confidence and make sure sufficient action is taken to address the original issue and avoid future reoccurrences.
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• Fined for data privacy failures – like being fined by a regulator, being fined for data privacy failures can amount to a hugely costly bill for the company. Remedial action and damage control will be essential in a situation like this.

Why is it in the top 10?

While this event trigger can spell bad news for the company in question, it’s a perfect opportunity for regtech, legal, compliance, and PR companies to step into the breach and help provide the solutions or mitigate any negative fallout following such an event.

How to track it?

Generally, this isn’t the sort of news a company will want to broadcast, so watching out for these event types in general industry news will be useful, but not the most efficient way of tracking. You can also use Google Alerts and set up alerts to match key phrases of interest. To get the most thorough coverage you’ll want to get this news straight from the horse's mouth. There are a few sites that will collate news for a region, but routine checks of the below sources will give you the best coverage for the Western markets:

• Information Commissioner's Office covers GDPR and data privacy regulation violations in the UK
• Office of the Controller of the Currency covers regulatory violations in the US
• European Data Protection Board covers GDPR violations across the European Union
• Financial Conduct Authority covers financial and other regulation violations in the UK

Estimated time to track

Tracking these sales event triggers can be a lengthy process taking anything from a couple of minutes to save a few quick Google Alerts, to several hours a week for a more thorough overview. If your focus is broad and you’re covering several geographies, an automated solution will save you hours of time every week.

7. Legal Dispute

What is the trigger?

A legal dispute refers to a conflict or disagreement between two or more parties that arises from a business-related matter and requires resolution through legal means. Legal disputes can arise from a wide range of business-related issues, such as breach of contract, intellectual property infringement, employment disputes, or consumer complaints.

What does it tell you?

Any company facing a legal dispute will likely be looking to tighten up on its procedures. The outcome of a legal dispute can have significant consequences for the parties involved, such as financial penalties, damages, or other legal remedies.

• Facing legal action – a tarnished company reputation is likely the first impact on an organisation. Reassuring clients and investors will be top of the to-do list in the first reaction to this news.
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• Undertaking legal action – a company looking to pursue legal action might do so for many reasons, such as protecting intellectual property from being stolen or copied. Companies in this position are likely to spend on protecting their products from future similar scenarios.
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• Settles legal dispute – a company settling and putting an end to a legal dispute can mean one of several things. Generally speaking, settling is less risky than going to court and guarantees the company at least some reparations.
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• Loses legal battle – bad news for any company in this situation. Not only will it now be facing a costly bill, but also damage to reputation and brand image can have a huge impact.
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• Lawsuit dismissed – once a case has been thrown out, attention will turn to reputation repairing. The company will now look to invest in customer relations and marketing to fix any broken relationships and address any client’s trust concerns.

Why is it in the top 10?

Adversity leads to opportunity. This can benefit both you and the company in question. While it’s not a situation any company will want to find themselves in, it does bring into sharp relief the areas in which a company is weak or negligent. Of course, strengthening its processes will be necessary to avoid future reoccurrences – which is where your opportunity kicks in. Companies facing legal action will likely be in the market for improved compliance and regulatory solutions, will address gaps in HR, and may well look to marketing and PR for damage control too.

How to track it?

Very similar to non-compliance event triggers, legal action news can be found using industry news feeds, Google Alerts, or by keeping an eye out for the non-compliance events that might lead to legal action.

Estimated time to track

Again, due to the complexity of these events, and the company’s natural inclination to try and keep them out of the press as far as possible, successful tracking can eat into hours of your working week.

8. Cybersecurity Issue

What is the trigger?

Due to the implementation of strict data protection laws, cybersecurity concerns have become a high priority for businesses. Any form of data (whether it's confidential information, personal health records, or intellectual property) that is left vulnerable to theft or harm can result in significant penalties for the affected company.

What does it tell you?

With stringent laws now around data protection, cybersecurity issues are taken very seriously. If data is left accessible to theft or damage, companies can now be expected to pay huge fines that could even spell bankruptcy for the victim of the cyber-attack. Fast action is needed in light of a cybersecurity issue.

• Potential breach – in the event of a potential breach caused by a cyber-attack (putting customers or internal systems at risk), the company being investigated will often take reparative measures. These measures may include strengthening its existing protocols to mitigate damage and reassure its clients, while also providing future protection against similar incidents.
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• Confirmed breach – if a cyberattack or internal failure results in a confirmed breach of a company's security, there are several potential consequences. The company may experience a loss of trust from its clients, leading to a decrease in clients and future sales. To mitigate the damage, the company will need to implement stronger, improved security measures and focus on damage limitation.
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• Ordered to enhance protocol – companies facing this mandate will need to demonstrate that they are taking the appropriate measures to strengthen their security and prevent the recurrence of similar failures.

Why is it in the top 10?

With the increasing frequency and severity of cyber-attacks, customers and companies alike are becoming more concerned about cybersecurity. This means there is a growing demand for new and improved security solutions. By staying up to date with the latest developments in cybersecurity, a salesperson can build trust with customers and position themselves as a valuable resource for their clients. Not only will those impacted by a cybersecurity issue be ready to hear you out, but their competition will view them as a cautionary tale too – so make sure you’re speaking to those impacted and their peers to really reap the benefits from this sales trigger.

How to track it?

Using either Google Alerts or Google’s Advanced Search Operators, you can track these event types relatively easily. If you read or watch the news, you can be sure to hear about the bigger companies suffering in this arena too. Or for more specific news, setting yourself up with an RSS reader and lots of cybersecurity news feeds will do the job.

Estimated time to track

The media loves a scandal, so cybersecurity breaches will be well covered here. Whether you have your trusty alerts in place, or you have a routine of reading the business news section, it won’t take you too long to come across these event types.

9. Financial Results Announcement

What is the trigger?

A financial results announcement is a public statement made by a company that discloses its financial performance for a specific period, usually a quarter or a year. The announcement typically includes information such as revenue, profit or loss, earnings per share, and other financial metrics that provide insights into the company's financial health and growth prospects.

What does it tell you?

As an official public statement of a company’s profitability, these are always worth looking out for. Financial results announcements are typically made by publicly-traded companies to provide transparency and accountability to their shareholders and investors. The announcement may also include details on the company's plans and strategic initiatives.

• Positive results – a company with increased profits is likely to be particularly interested in business development, recruitment, and tech stack solutions.
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• Monetary loss – a company losing money will likely be re-evaluating its existing resources; this is a great opportunity to show that your product is the solution it needs to turn things around.
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• Profit warning – a profit warning can result from a variety of issues but offers great insight into a company’s current challenges. A company forced to issue a profit warning will likely be looking for cost-cutting solutions and customer service or sales support.
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• Pre-release announcement – this usually spells bad news with most pre-release announcements indicating that earnings will be significantly lower than expected.
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• Dividend announcement – companies “sharing the wealth” through dividend pay-outs are usually more established and stable. This is a good indicator a company has stable cash flow and is generating profits. With good cash flow they will likely have a decent budget and will be more open to spend.

Why is it in the top 10?

Financial results announcements can be the gift that keeps on giving. The amount of information published and freely available here is huge. From revenue and profitability to future growth and product development, these announcements tend to cover it all.

How to track it?

SEC filings, earnings calls, and industry news will all cover this one. For the best coverage here, an RSS reader and a list of all the companies you’re interested in is all you really need.

Estimated time to track

Unfortunately, this one will boil down to a hefty chunk of time. Not only will you have to get all the companies you’re interested in fed into the RSS reader, but you’ll also have to dedicate a good hour, routinely, to manage those RSS feeds. Then comes the reading of those announcements themselves. They are lengthy, wordy documents that can take a good 20 minutes each to read and draw any findings from. For a simpler, quicker answer, a paid service can do all of the hard work on this one (and lots of others) for you.

10. Job loss / layoffs

What is the trigger?

Layoffs or job cuts refer to a (normally) permanent termination of employment of a group of employees by a company. They can happen for a variety of reasons, such as restructuring, downsizing, or as part of cost-cutting measures. Layoffs are typically initiated by employers to reduce expenses and ensure their company can remain financially sustainable.

What does it tell you?

Unfortunately, job loss sales event triggers are normally a sign of bad news for a company. Typically, cuts are only made when a company has a need to realign its spend to avoid more critical scenarios. Mass layoffs suggest a large cost-cutting exercise. However, it’s worth remembering that where headcount is cut, normally the company will need improved services and increased efficiencies to ensure its working as efficiently as possible.

Why is it in the top 10?

As sad as layoffs are for those impacted, they are an incredibly useful buying signal. To neglect these event triggers simply because they indicate a cost-cutting exercise, rather than budget for spend, would be rash. While the company may be looking to reduce its spend on salaries, that doesn’t mean there isn’t opportunity here to show how your product can help them save in other areas too.

How to track it?

Following the COVID-19 pandemic and the business troubles that followed, a number of layoff tracker tools have arisen. Use sites such as layoffs.fyi/tracker or layoffs.tech/tracker. Or there’s the old standby, Google Alerts, to fall back on. You’ll also want to keep an eye on LinkedIn as increasingly companies (or their CEOs) are taking to the platform to announce the latest cuts.

Estimated time to track

A quick check of the layoff tracker of your choice will only take you a few minutes. Even at it’s worse these trackers only tend to report a handful of events a day. If you’re taking to LinkedIn to pick up the latest... well, we all know you can get lost scrolling the feeds for hours.

Takeaway points

With these top ten sales event triggers in hand, not only will you be better informed and have a great overview of the big happenings in your markets of choice, but you’ll also be armed with a stack of business intelligence that will enable you to reach out and provide your products or services when and where they are needed most.

Although prospecting and research can eat into a huge chunk of your working week, the intel you can take from the best sales event triggers is invaluable. If you’re looking to get the best information but can’t afford the costly time to set up all those triggers and alerts, an automated process will serve you best.

Selligence currently tracks 45 unique sales triggers and a further 71 sub-event types. Yes, that means all of the above breakdowns (and plenty more) can be delivered to you by Selligence at the touch of a button. If your time is precious, avoid wading through too many irrelevant leads from your Google Alert searches, and reach out to a provider who can tailor things to suit your needs more specifically.

To learn more about sales triggers and how they can help your close rate without the time-cost, reach out for a demo of the Selligence platform and start uncapping your full sales potential.