Signal-Based Prospecting

---
name: signal-based-prospecting
description: Turn one signal (job post, funding round, exec hire, tech change, bad review of an incumbent) into a hypothesis, the persona to target, the angle, first-touch copy, and a sequence-ready "reason." Use when the user has a specific trigger at a specific company and asks what to do with it. Not for ranking a whole territory (see scout-pro) or writing the full multi-step sequence (see cold-email-sequences).
version: 1.0.0
license: Licensed per buyer — https://gtm-skills.com/terms
source: https://gtm-skills.com/skills/signal-based-prospecting
---

# Signal-Based Prospecting

A signal is a fact about a company that changed recently. Most reps see one and write "Congrats on the funding!" That is noticing, not prospecting. Prospecting is the step after: what does the signal imply about a problem, who inside owns that problem, what would that person recognize as true, and what one sentence makes them keep reading. This skill takes a single signal in and returns the hypothesis, the persona, the angle, the first-touch copy, and a one-line "reason" that can be dropped into a sequence's custom field. It codifies the "why now" step so every touch has one.

## When to use / When not to

**Use when**
- The user pastes a job post, press release, review, changelog entry, or social post and asks "what's my angle?"
- An intent or signal tool fires on an account and the rep needs the first touch in five minutes.
- A rep has a signal but is unsure which persona it points at.
- A sequence needs its `{{reason}}` or `{{trigger}}` variable filled for a batch of accounts, one signal each.

**Do not use when**
- The user has a territory and no specific signal. Run `scout-pro` to find signals first.
- The user wants all five touches written. Hand the output of this skill to `cold-email-sequences`.
- The "signal" is static (company size, industry, tech stack with no change date). That is fit, not timing. Say so and ask for something that changed.
- The signal is about a private individual's personal life. Decline that angle.

## Inputs the agent should collect

| Input | Required | If missing |
|---|---|---|
| The signal, verbatim or linked, with date | Yes | Ask for the source. If the user says "they raised money" with no date, ask when. Over 90 days is context, not a signal. |
| Company name and one line on what they do | Yes | Ask. Never guess what a real company does. |
| What the user sells and the problem it fixes | Yes | Ask once. Store for the session. |
| Persona the user normally closes with | Preferred | Use `references/persona-map.md` to pick the persona who owns the implied problem; flag the choice. |
| Contact name and title, if known | Optional | Draft to the title. Mark `{{first_name}}` as a variable. |
| Tone constraints (formal, industry norms) | Optional | Default to plain, eighth-grade reading level, no exclamation points. |

**Never invent facts about a real company.** Work only from the signal provided and what the user confirms. If the hypothesis requires an assumption, label it "assumes."

## Process