Building a lead list used to take days. Scrape LinkedIn. Cross-reference company websites. Buy a list from a broker. Manually copy-paste names into a spreadsheet.
Now it takes 5 minutes.
Here's how.
The Problem: Starting from Zero
Every new campaign, new market, or new sales hire faces the same cold start: you need a list of people to reach out to and you have nothing.
Your options for sourcing contacts used to be:
- LinkedIn Sales Navigator: Browse profiles, but can't export at scale
- List brokers: Buy a static list that's already decaying
- Manual research: 3-5 hours to build a list of 50 contacts. Doesn't scale.
- CSV from a conference: Outdated the moment the event ends
None of these work when you need 100 targeted contacts in the next hour for a campaign launching tomorrow.
The Solution: People Search
People Search is Cleanlist's contact sourcing tool. Think of it like a search engine for B2B professionals - search across 500M+ profiles, find the people who match your criteria, and export them into Cleanlist.
It's one of several ways to get contacts into the platform, alongside CSV import, CRM sync, and LinkedIn Sales Nav import. The difference: you don't need an existing list to start.
What makes it different:
- 500M+ professional profiles searchable in real-time
- Natural language search: Describe your ideal customer in plain English or use 30+ structured filters
- AI-powered matching: The search engine understands intent, not just keywords. "VP of Marketing at mid-market SaaS companies" returns exactly that.
- Instant sourcing: Go from zero contacts to a full list in minutes - no manual research, no list purchases
Step-by-Step: 100 Leads in 5 Minutes
Step 1: Describe Your Ideal Customer (60 seconds)
Open People Search and describe who you're looking for. You can use natural language or structured filters - or both.
Natural language example:
"Directors and VPs of Sales at B2B SaaS companies with 50-500 employees in the United States"
Or use structured filters:
- Job title: Director of Sales, VP of Sales, Head of Sales
- Industry: Software, SaaS, Technology
- Company size: 50-500 employees
- Location: United States
- Seniority: Director, VP
People Search returns matching profiles in seconds. Typical queries surface hundreds to thousands of results.
Step 2: Refine Your Results (60 seconds)
Scroll through the results. Too broad? Add filters:
- Revenue range: $5M-50M ARR
- Tech stack: Companies using Salesforce, HubSpot, or Outreach
- Funding stage: Series A through Series C
- Location specifics: West Coast, specific metro areas
Too narrow? Loosen a filter. Remove the seniority constraint to include Managers, or expand geography to include Canada.
The goal: find a result set where 80%+ of contacts match your Ideal Customer Profile.
Step 3: Select and Add to Cleanlist (60 seconds)
Select the contacts you want - up to 100, 500, or more. Add them to your Cleanlist workspace.
Each sourced contact includes:
- Full name
- Job title
- Company name
- Company size, industry, location
- LinkedIn profile URL
100 contacts sourced. Total time: under 5 minutes. From here, they're in Cleanlist - ready to enrich, score, and export just like contacts from any other source.
What Comes Next: Enrich, Score, and Outreach
People Search gets contacts into Cleanlist. That's the sourcing step - the same starting point as a CSV import or CRM sync.
Once your contacts are in the platform, the real value kicks in:
Enrich with Waterfall Enrichment
Waterfall enrichment takes your sourced contacts and fills in the data you need: verified work emails, direct dial phones, mobile numbers, company revenue, employee count, technographics, and more. Every data point is sourced from 15+ providers and cross-verified.
This is where accuracy happens. The enrichment step queries multiple sources per contact and verifies every email before returning it - 98% deliverability.
Score with ICP Scoring
ICP Scoring ranks your enriched contacts against your Ideal Customer Profile automatically. Upload your best customers, and Cleanlist scores every lead on a 0-100 scale.
Instead of working 100 leads equally, you focus on the 20 that score above 80. Your connect rate goes up. Your close rate follows.
Clean with Smart Columns
Need to normalize job titles? Convert "Sr. Dir. of Rev Ops" into "Senior Director of Revenue Operations"? Smart Columns transforms messy data into clean, standardized records - automatically.
The Workflow
Source → Enrich → Score → Export → Outreach. People Search handles the first step. The rest of Cleanlist handles everything after.
Real-World Use Cases
SDRs starting a new territory
Scenario: You just got assigned the Pacific Northwest. No accounts. No contacts. No pipeline.
Action: Search People Search for "VPs and Directors of IT at companies with 200-1000 employees in Oregon and Washington." Source 200 contacts into Cleanlist, enrich them, and start outreach the same day.
Agencies onboarding a new client
Scenario: A client just signed up and needs a launch campaign next week. They have zero prospect data.
Action: Define the client's ICP. Run People Search to source 500 contacts across 3 segments. Enrich and score the list, then deliver a campaign-ready export within an hour.
Founders validating a new market
Scenario: You're considering expanding into the healthcare vertical. You need 100 contacts to cold email and validate demand.
Action: Search for "Directors of Operations at healthcare companies with 100-500 employees." Source 100 contacts, enrich for verified emails, and run a 3-email sequence to measure response rates before committing to the market.
Frequently Asked Questions
What data do I get from People Search?
People Search gives you the sourcing data: full name, job title, company name, company size, industry, location, and LinkedIn URL. For verified emails, phone numbers, and deeper firmographics, run waterfall enrichment on your sourced contacts.
Can I search by tech stack or intent?
Yes to tech stack - you can filter by technologies a company uses (Salesforce, HubSpot, AWS, etc.). Intent data is not currently included in People Search filters.
How is People Search different from CSV import or CRM sync?
It's another way to get contacts into Cleanlist. CSV import and CRM sync bring in contacts you already have. People Search lets you discover and source new contacts you don't have yet - then enrich them through the same pipeline.
Is there a limit on how many contacts I can source?
No hard limit. You can source as many contacts as your credit balance allows. Larger batches (1,000+) process quickly and land in your Cleanlist workspace ready for enrichment.
How is this different from buying a list?
Bought lists give you static, pre-packaged data that decays immediately. People Search lets you define exactly who you want, source those contacts in real-time, and then enrich them through waterfall enrichment for verified, accurate data. You control the criteria, the volume, and the timing.
Building a lead list shouldn't require an enterprise subscription or 5 hours of manual work. People Search sources 100 targeted contacts in 5 minutes - then Cleanlist enriches, scores, and cleans them so you can start outreach with confidence.