How to Build a List of 100 Leads in 5 Minutes with People Search

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• CSV from a conference: Outdated the moment the event ends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.

What to expect: A well-defined ICP search typically returns 500-5,000 matching profiles. If you get fewer than 100 results, broaden one filter (add adjacent industries or expand company size range). If you get 10,000+, narrow by adding a geography constraint or revenue range.

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.

Pro tips for better filtering:

• Industry stacking: Combine related industries for broader reach. "SaaS" + "Cloud Computing" + "Enterprise Software" captures the full tech ecosystem without unrelated results.
• Title exclusions: If you're targeting decision-makers, exclude intern and assistant-level titles to keep your list focused.
• Company size sweet spot: For SMB outreach, 50-500 employees hits the zone where companies have budget but decisions move fast. For enterprise, 1,000+ employees with revenue filters ensures you're targeting real enterprise buyers.
• Geography precision: "United States" is fine for national campaigns. For territory-based selling, filter by state or metro area to match your SDR's assigned region exactly.

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 you have at this point: A raw lead list with professional profile data. This is sourcing data, not enriched data. You know who these people are and where they work, but you don't yet have verified emails or phone numbers. Before enriching the full list, you can verify a few addresses free to sanity-check data quality. The next step handles enrichment at scale.

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 Agents

Need to normalize job titles? Convert "Sr. Dir. of Rev Ops" into "Senior Director of Revenue Operations"? Smart Agents 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.

Export Formats and CRM Sync

Once your leads are enriched, scored, and segmented, you need to get them into your outreach tools. Cleanlist supports multiple export paths depending on your workflow.

CSV export

Download your enriched list as a CSV file with all fields included. CSV works for any tool that accepts file imports: Outreach, Salesloft, Lemlist, Instantly, or any CRM. You control which fields to include in the export and can create field mapping templates for repeated use.

Direct CRM sync

For teams using HubSpot, Salesforce, or Pipedrive, skip the CSV step entirely. Push enriched contacts directly from Cleanlist to your CRM with field mapping configured. New contacts are created (or existing records updated) in real time. See our integrations guide for setup details.

API export

For custom workflows, the Cleanlist API returns enriched records in JSON format. Pipe the output into Zapier, Make, n8n, or your own backend. This is the path for teams building automated prospecting pipelines where leads go from sourced to sequenced without manual steps.

The Follow-Up Workflow After Getting Your Leads

Sourcing and enriching 100 leads is step one. What happens in the next 48 hours determines whether those leads convert to conversations.

Hour 0-1: Segment by outreach channel

Split your enriched list into outreach tiers:

• Phone + email: These contacts get multi-channel sequences. Start with a phone call, follow up with email if no answer.
• Email only: These contacts enter an email sequence. Three to five touchpoints over 10-14 days.
• LinkedIn + email: If you have LinkedIn URLs but no phone, combine LinkedIn connection requests with email outreach.

Hour 1-4: Load into sequences

Import your segmented lists into your sequencing tool (Outreach, Salesloft, Lemlist, or similar). Use personalization tokens from your enrichment data: company name, industry, company size, and job title all make templates feel personal without manual research.

Day 1-3: First touchpoints go out

Your multi-channel tier gets called on day one. Email sequences start on day one or two. LinkedIn requests go out on day one. The speed advantage is real: while competitors spend three days building a list of 50 contacts, you have 100 enriched, scored leads in active sequences.

Day 7-14: Analyze and iterate

Review early engagement signals: email opens, replies, phone connects, LinkedIn accepts. Use this data to refine your ICP filters for the next batch. If Directors are engaging but VPs are not, adjust your title targeting. If 200-500 employee companies convert better than 50-200, narrow the company size filter.

Ongoing: Replenish weekly

Set a cadence for sourcing new leads. Most SDR teams source a fresh batch weekly to keep the pipeline full. People Search makes this a 10-minute weekly task rather than a multi-hour research project.

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.

What is the accuracy of People Search results?

People Search sourcing data (name, title, company) is drawn from a database of 500M+ professional profiles and is typically 90-95% accurate. Enrichment accuracy (verified emails, phones) depends on the enrichment step and averages 95%+ for verified email deliverability. Confidence scores are provided for every data point so you can segment by accuracy level.

Can I save and reuse search criteria?

Yes. Save any People Search query as a template. This is useful for SDRs who prospect the same ICP weekly. Open your saved search, click "Run," and People Search returns new contacts that match your criteria and were not already in your workspace. This prevents duplicates and ensures every batch is fresh.

How does People Search handle duplicate contacts already in my CRM?

When you add contacts from People Search to your Cleanlist workspace, the system checks for duplicates against your existing records. If a contact already exists (matched on email or LinkedIn URL), it is flagged rather than duplicated. You can choose to skip duplicates, update existing records with new data, or create them as separate records for comparison.

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.

Get started here.