Data Madness 2025: The B2B Bracket Showdown You Didn’t Know You Needed (But Absolutely Do) 🏀

March isn't just for buzzer beaters and busted brackets anymore. In the chaotic world of B2B data, we decided it was time to bring the drama, the hype, and the heartbreak to something even more cutthroat than college hoops: the business of contact data.

That's right, we're back—welcome to Data Madness 2025, where 64 data vendors enter the arena... and only one gets to cut down the proverbial nets.

🏆 The Four Regions That Matter Most in GTM:

Instead of East, West, Midwest, and South—we’ve got four battle-tested, budget-sucking regions where data vendors live and die by the accuracy of their enrichment and the strength of their Chrome extensions:

1. International Data 🌎

Because selling globally with US-only data is like bringing a Nerf gun to a knife fight.

1. LeadGenius 🔥 (Real-time global data across 190+ countries. Custom account building, localized context, and signal-powered enrichment. This is what ZoomInfo wants to be.)
2. Cognism (Especially strong in EMEA, GDPR compliant, with great SDR tooling and dial data.)
3. Datarade (Data marketplace for global enrichment and niche vertical lists. Think “Amazon for datasets.”)
4. UpLead (Pretty good global email coverage—solid for mid-market campaigns.)
5. Bright Data (Formerly Luminati. Huge proxy network used for global web scraping and data extraction.)
6. Rhetorik 🧠 (A serious upgrade—strong EU & UK B2B coverage, deep compliance roots, especially valuable for security-conscious orgs.)
7. Adapt.io (Decent for international, especially APAC and LATAM, though not as dynamic as LeadGenius or Cognism.)
8. SalesIntel (Getting better globally—strongest in North America, but building global integrations.)
9. LeadEngage (India-first data partner with growing SEA and MEA datasets.)
10. Ampliz (Another India/SEA-based player with good healthcare and B2B lists.)
11. Dealfront (formerly Echobot + Leadfeeder) (Built for DACH + EU markets. Think of it as Demandbase for Germany.)
12. Clearbit (Good enrichment API for companies outside the U.S., but mostly mid-funnel usage.)
13. Hunter.io (Email-only tool, but global coverage makes it useful in certain campaign layers.)
14. Snov.io (Similar to Hunter, more email-focused, but strong user base in Eastern Europe.)
15. FindThatLead (Scrappy global list builder for SMB campaigns. We love a bootstrapped hero.)
16. Voila Norbert (The original email hunter. Global-ish coverage but still more useful for freelancers and SDRs.)

2. Technographics 🖥️

Who's using what? When did they install it? Do they love it or want to rip it out like a bad tattoo? Tech data is your B2B cheat code.

1. HG Insights 🔥 (The category king—hands down the most enterprise-ready technographic solution on the market. Precision-level insights at scale.)
2. BuiltWith (The original gangster of tech tracking. Great for surface-level installs, browser-based detection, and historical trends.)
3. Datanyze (Now owned by ZoomInfo, but still usable as a lightweight Chrome extension for fast, high-level technographics.)
4. Wappalyzer (Browser-based, easy to use, very dev-friendly. Nice for surfacing niche stacks and open-source tools.)
5. Slintel (Focused on buyer intent + technographics. Great hybrid approach for sales and ABM teams.)
6. Demandbase (Blends tech data with firmo, intent, and account-based marketing layers—great for advanced segmentation.)
7. Enlyft (Great for modeling lookalike accounts based on shared tech stacks. Solid for vertical playbooks.)
8. LeadGenius (Yep, we’re here too. Real-time technographic crawls, specializing in Contact Technographics)
9. OceanFrogs (Specializes in India/APAC. Super valuable if you're targeting emerging markets with SaaS offerings.)
10. Coresignal (Surprisingly strong at capturing dynamic digital footprint signals including tech changes.)
11. Siftery (now G2 Stack) (Mostly used for benchmarking but still has historical install insights. Good for context.)
12. Infotanks Media (Lower on brand awareness but offers highly niche, regional data options.)
13. TechTarget Priority Engine (Tech installs + buyer behavior = sales rocket fuel. Costly, but powerful.)
14. Rhetorik (Best for GDPR-aligned EMEA tech stack mapping. Very popular in security and compliance-heavy verticals.)
15. Lead411 (Small but mighty, often overlooked for its accurate SMB-level tech usage data.)
16. Techsalerator (Scrappy, scrappy, scrappy. Big on global coverage, with some nice filters baked in.)

3. Direct Dial ☎️

Smiling and dialing without actual phone numbers? Grow up. We’re only here for clean, cell-direct connects.

1. ContactOut 🔥Still the king of clean dials. Nails emails + phones for hard-to-reach personas like engineers and researchers.
2. Forager 🔥 (Emerging go-to for B2B discovery and direct dial enrichment across niche verticals. Smart filtering, solid accuracy, and built for modern GTM motions. Criminally underrated.)
3. RocketReach (The startup whisperer. Hits both personal and business emails plus mobile dials. Quietly elite for high-growth and tech-centric lists.)
4. People Data Labs (PDL) (Raw data powerhouse. Built for RevOps and data-driven teams who want to create their own direct dial engine.)
5. Cognism (Top-tier for GDPR-compliant dialing. Very strong across EMEA. Super useful when quality > quantity.)‍
6. Apollo (Volume-heavy and getting better with phone data. Strong if you’re also using their sequencing and CRM-light stack.)‍
7. ZoomInfo (Still the heavyweight in terms of volume and integrations, but connect rate complaints and stale numbers knock it down a few notches.)‍
8. Wiza (Turns Sales Nav into a verified contact stream. Great UI, easy integrations, and clean direct dial exports. Beloved by SDRs.)‍
9. Lusha (Quick-hit Chrome extension for building fast lists. Works well at the top of the funnel, but phone accuracy can be hit or miss.)‍
10. Datagma (Merges verified outreach data with intent signals. Solid when you want to hit people in the moment, not months later.)‍
11. Findymail (Email-first tool that’s expanding into phone with surprisingly strong results. Bounce-free mentality and SDR-loved.)‍
12. Nimbler (Great for smaller GTM teams that don’t want to overpay. Clean UI, solid data, and no bloat.)‍
13. Prospeo (Bootstrapped, no-nonsense platform that does what it says. Direct dials, verified emails, and smooth delivery.)‍
14. Adapt.io (Solid filtering and verified dial support. Works well as part of a layered outreach motion.)‍
15. LeadGenius (Custom-sourced direct dials enriched and uses Contact Ou to complement publically sourced data.)
16. Lead411 (Still in the game and surprisingly accurate for SMB dials. Bonus: built-in firmo and technographics.)

4. Intent & Signal Data 🔥

Who’s buying? Who’s growing? Who’s hiring? Who just got a boatload of funding and now has to pretend they know how to spend it?

1. Bombora 🔥 (Still the OG for intent data, especially when paired with ad targeting and content syndication. Every demand gen playbook should have this.)
2. 6sense (A machine-learning-driven beast. Combines predictive analytics, buying signals, and orchestration tools.)
3. Demandbase (B2B intent + ABM + data = a powerful motion. Great for larger orgs running advanced GTM strategies.)
4. TechTarget Priority Engine (Like Bombora but more focused on bottom-of-funnel buyers showing intense research activity.)
5. LeadGenius (Custom signals = unfair advantage. Need to know who just raised $50M? Launched in Japan? Hired a new Head of AI? We got you.)
6. Cognism (Pairs intent with GDPR-safe outreach, making it super valuable in high-regulation environments.)
7. ZoomInfo Intent (Not bad, but based on a small publisher network. Often duplicated across tools. Worth testing, but don’t rely solely on it.)
8. G2 Buyer Intent (Super powerful if you sell SaaS. Tracks product research across G2 profiles in real time.)
9. UserGems (Focuses on job changes and champion tracking—great for customer expansion plays.)
10. SalesIntel Buyer Intent (Recently improved signal coverage. Stronger when paired with their contact enrichment.)
11. Apollo Signals (Newer to the signal game, but decent coverage when paired with Apollo’s outreach tools.)
12. Coresignal (Covers hiring, social changes, funding, and leadership signals. More raw, but highly customizable.)
13. Owler (Mostly news-driven, but great for surfacing big milestones like acquisitions or awards.)
14. BuiltWith (Tech Change Signals) (Yes, they belong here too—watch when companies install or rip and replace core tech.)
15. Leadfeeder (now Dealfront) (Strong for first-party intent when you're pairing with your own web traffic.)
16. Slintel (Intent meets tech. Use for revenue playbooks that rely on full-funnel motion data.)

👀 The Field of 64 – A Sampling of the Madness:

You’ll find the usual blue bloods like ZoomInfo, HG Data, and Bombora, scrappy upstarts like Kaspr, Clay, and Lead411 and some international wildcards like Cognism and UpLead who are always one algorithm tweak away from a Cinderella run.

But let’s talk drama…

📣 The Big Seeding Shake-Up: ContactOut Stuns the Field

In a move that sent shockwaves through the data arena, ContactOut grabbed the #1 seed in the Direct Dial Region, knocking ZoomInfo down to #2.

Why?

Because while other platforms brag about database size, ContactOut actually connects you with real people. Especially useful for sales teams trying to reach impossible personas (engineers, researchers, decision-makers hiding in the shadows).

This isn’t a hype pick—this is a tactical one. Ask any recruiter or growth hacker who’s been living in the trenches. ContactOut is that one player nobody wanted to face.

🧠 The Sweet 16: The Best of the Best

After several hypothetical buzzer-beaters, LinkedIn stalking, and form fill enrichment battles, here are your elite:

‍

🧭 International Data:

• LeadGenius
• Cognism
• Rhetorik
• Dealfront

🧠 Technographics:

• HG Insights
• BuiltWith
• LeadGenius
• Wappalyzer

📞 Direct Dial:

• ContactOut
• ZoomInfo
• Lusha
• Forager

🔥 Intent/Signals:

• Bombora
• Clay
• Demandbase
• TechTarget

If your current stack doesn’t include someone from each region, you’re not just missing out—you’re probably wasting budget. Because data without context is noise, and data without freshness is a spreadsheet graveyard.

🤔 So What’s the Play Here?

If you’re a Revenue Leader, you’ve got to ask yourself: Am I running my GTM motion with the Duke of data or some NIT-bound wannabe?

If you're in Marketing, and you’re blasting generic campaigns with stale contacts, you’re not just losing deals—you’re tanking your brand.

If you're in Sales, and you're still cold calling ZoomInfo contacts from last year, you're basically playing 1-on-5.

🧠 Challenger Take:

The game has changed. Pre-built data lakes are the past. What wins today is:

• Custom, real-time, and signal-rich data (hello, LeadGenius 👋)
• Bespoke insights tied to revenue triggers
• Flexible delivery models that match your workflow, not the other way around

This bracket isn’t just fun—it’s a reflection of how strategic your go-to-market motions are.

🏁 Ready for the Final Four?

We’ll drop our picks in next week’s post. But spoiler alert: the final won’t be ZoomInfo vs. Apollo this time.

It’s custom vs. commoditized.
Signals vs. Stagnation.
Agility vs. Asset library.

If you want to stop playing for 3rd place in your category, maybe it’s time to bring in a new recruiting class.