# Intent data vs trigger events: which signals should you use?

> Intent data infers that a company is researching a topic from its online behaviour. Trigger events are public changes, such as a contract award, a new hire or an expansion, that create a reason to buy. Most B2B teams should start with first-party intent and trigger events, and add third-party intent data only when the market is large enough to justify it.

Source: https://www.fyadvisers.com/compare/intent-data-vs-trigger-events/  
Author: Fiona Wang, FYAdvisers  
Last updated: 2026-10-05

Intent data tells you a company appears to be researching something. Trigger events tell you something has changed at a company. They answer different questions: intent data suggests who might be in the market, while a trigger event gives you a concrete, verifiable reason to get in touch. For most small and mid-sized B2B sellers, the best order is first-party intent (your own enquiries and website activity), then public trigger events, then third-party intent data if your market is big enough to need it.

## Three kinds of signal

| | Third-party intent data | First-party intent | Trigger events |
|---|---|---|---|
| What it is | Research behaviour on other websites, aggregated by a provider | Behaviour on your own website and channels | Public changes at a company |
| Example | A company's employees reading more than usual about warehouse automation | A visit to your pricing page, or an enquiry | A contract award, a relevant hire, a new site |
| Level | Usually company or account level | Account or individual, depending on what they share | Company level, sometimes a named person |
| How certain | An inference from patterns | Direct, but you only see your own visitors | A fact you can check |
| Gives you a reason to write | Not one you can mention | Yes, if they contacted you | Yes, the event itself |
| Cost | A paid subscription | Mostly tools you already have | Mostly time; many sources are free |

## Third-party intent data

Third-party intent providers collect signals about research activity across many websites and turn them into account-level scores by topic. Two examples show how this works in practice.

- **Bombora** describes its Company Surge data as coming from a data co-op of publishers and B2B sites. According to [Bombora's own description](https://bombora.com/intent/), it monitors company research activity against more than 25,300 topics, and scores each account-topic pair by comparing the most recent three weeks of activity with a 12-week baseline.
- **G2** offers Buyer Intent data based on activity on its software review sites. Its [documentation](https://documentation.g2.com/docs/buyer-intent) describes signals such as viewing a product's profile, comparing it with a competitor or viewing alternatives, reported at company level rather than for named individuals.

### Strengths

- **Coverage.** It can show interest from companies that have never visited your site.
- **Early warning.** Research tends to come before an enquiry, so you may see interest sooner.
- **Prioritisation at scale.** Across thousands of target accounts, a score helps decide where to look first.

### Limits

- **It is an inference.** A spike in reading about a topic might mean a purchase, a student project or a competitor doing research.
- **You cannot mention it.** Writing "we noticed your team has been researching X" usually feels intrusive. The data shapes who you contact, but you still need another reason to write.
- **Coverage varies by market.** How well a provider covers smaller companies, or companies in Singapore and the region, depends on its data sources. Ask for coverage of your actual target accounts before you buy.
- **Cost.** It is a paid product. We do not quote prices here, because they change and are usually set by quote; check with each provider.

## First-party intent

First-party intent is behaviour you observe directly: enquiries, demo requests, replies to your emails, return visits to pricing or service pages, and webinar or event sign-ups.

### Strengths

- **It is the strongest signal.** An enquiry is someone telling you they are interested. No inference is needed.
- **You already own it.** Most of it sits in your website analytics, forms, inbox and CRM.
- **It is the easiest to act on well.** The main lever is speed: getting each enquiry to the right person fast. That is the focus of our [speed-to-lead](/services/speed-to-lead/) service.

### Limits

- **You only see your own visitors.** Buyers who have not found you yet are invisible.
- **Anonymous browsing is hard to use.** Most website visits are anonymous. Treat any attempt to identify individual visitors with care, and check the PDPA position before doing it.

## Trigger events

Trigger events are public changes that make a purchase more likely. In Singapore, useful ones include:

- **Government contract awards.** MOF publishes awarded open tenders, with the supplier name and amount, in [Government Procurement via GeBIZ](https://data.gov.sg/datasets/d_acde1106003906a75c3fa052592f2fcb/view) on data.gov.sg. A company that has just won a contract may need suppliers, subcontractors, staff or equipment. Search it with our free [GeBIZ award finder](/tools/gebiz-award-finder/).
- **Open tenders.** For suppliers that sell to government, a relevant opportunity on [GeBIZ](https://www.gebiz.gov.sg) is itself the signal. See [tender and award signals](/services/tender-signals/).
- **Hiring for a relevant role.** A company advertising for its first procurement manager, or a team you support, is building a function.
- **Expansion and new locations.** New sites need fit-out, equipment, services and systems.
- **Leadership changes.** A new head often reviews suppliers and processes in their first months.
- **Funding.** New capital often comes with growth plans and new purchases.

### Strengths

- **They are facts.** You can check the award, the job advert or the announcement.
- **They give you something to say.** Referring to a public contract win or expansion is natural and relevant, unlike mentioning someone's browsing.
- **They suit smaller, defined markets.** You do not need thousands of accounts for them to be useful.

### Limits

- **Not every event leads to a purchase.** Signals should be tested against what happened before your past sales.
- **Timing matters.** Events go stale. Award data on data.gov.sg, for instance, lags behind GeBIZ itself, so recent awards need checking on GeBIZ directly.
- **Research takes effort.** Each event needs reading and checking for fit before anyone is contacted.

## Which should you use?

1. **Start with first-party intent.** Make sure every enquiry reaches the right person within minutes. It costs least and converts best.
2. **Add two or three trigger events** that match how your customers buy. Work them out from your last ten or twenty wins: what happened at each company shortly before it bought?
3. **Consider third-party intent data** only if you target a large number of accounts, the provider can show good coverage of them, and you have the process to act on the scores.

Whichever signals you choose, the outreach should refer only to what is public or what the prospect told you. Our guide to [B2B outreach under the PDPA and DNC rules](/blog/b2b-outreach-pdpa-dnc-singapore/) covers the compliance side, and [intent data explained](/blog/intent-data-explained/) goes deeper into how providers build their scores.

FYAdvisers' [signal-based lead generation](/services/signal-based-lead-generation/) service is built mainly on first-party intent and public trigger events, chosen from your past wins. If you want help working out which signals predict your sales, [tell us about a few recent deals](/#contact).

## Frequently asked questions

### What is intent data?

Intent data is information about online research behaviour that suggests a company may be interested in a product or topic. Third-party intent comes from activity on other websites, aggregated by a data provider. First-party intent comes from activity on your own website and channels.

### Is intent data legal to use in Singapore?

It depends on the data and how it is used. Company-level signals generally raise fewer issues than data about identifiable individuals. Ask any provider how the data is collected and what consent it relies on, and check the PDPA position for your use before buying.

### What is a trigger event in sales?

A trigger event is a change at a company that makes a purchase more likely, such as winning a contract, hiring for a relevant role, opening a new location, raising funding or appointing a new leader. Many are publicly visible.

### Is intent data worth it for a small B2B company?

Often not at first. Third-party intent works best across a large number of target accounts. A small team in a defined market will usually get more from its own enquiries and website activity plus a few well-chosen trigger events.