AI is well and truly here: 9 out of 10 businesses report using some form of AI in their operations, and more companies than ever before are using AI to support their sales teams — 78% of sales professionals say AI can help them be more efficient in their role. 

AI prospecting tools are software designed to help sales teams identify, interact with, and nurture leads at the top of the funnel. AI prospecting tools can create opportunities for a sales rep to close, particularly when paired with an AI email platform like Superhuman, which helps reps take deals from stage one to won faster than ever before.

AI prospecting tools can:

• Enrich data: AI prospecting tools can compile relevant information about your potential customers, including title, contact details, and company information — helping your sales team form a full picture of each lead.
• Identify and score leads: AI prospecting tools analyze data to help identify and rank the leads that are most likely to close. This data is usually a combination of your Ideal Client Profile (ICP), demographic data (firmographic, technographic, persona data), and behavioral signals like purchase intent. 
• Automate contact and engagement: AI prospecting tools can contact potential customers with emails, social media messages, or phone calls, using natural language processing. Potential customers have a good nose for automation and AI, though, and reps must balance manual, human touches while still leveraging the efficiency of AI-powered email, and using time-savers like Snippets.
• Provide analytics: AI prospecting tools can sync with your own data sources, performing analytics on open rates, click-through rates, behavior on your website, and interactions on social media.
• Integrate: AI prospecting tools can plug directly into your CRM (customer relationship management) to streamline the prospecting process. 

What are the best AI sales prospecting tools?

With AI and prospecting tools, you can see more successful lead generation by spending less time on busywork. 

The best tools will gather accurate and actionable information, predictably identify leads that are ready to engage with your business, streamline one-to-many sales outreach, and play nice with the rest of your sales tech stack. Around 84% of sales teams using AI reported gaining more leads — which shows it's worth picking the right tool. 

With all of this in mind, here's a closer look at some of the best AI sales prospecting tools.

1. Apollo.io

Apollo.io uses its ever-growing database of over 275 million contacts and 73 million companies to connect your company with the right people. Apollo.io uses AI to help you find the right leads at the right time, improve sales engagement and workflows, and manage your pipeline. 

Apollo.io's features include:

• Data Enrichment: Keep company and contact information up-to-date with higher accuracy.
• Scoring: Score leads both on a customer fitness level and behavioral fit.
• Meetings: Maintain a highly structured meeting schedule with quick insights to give you context before making contact.
• Analytics: Get detailed breakdowns of your emails, calls, tasks, and sales. Implement A/B testing to find the best strategies.
• CRM Management: Set rules to update prospect information and eliminate duplicates across platforms.

Apollo.io is a great all-in-one solution for startups and growing sales teams. With a free plan, you can get started immediately, and as you grow, the package pricing is competitive.

2. ZoomInfo SalesOS

ZoomInfo boasts over 70 million direct dial contacts and 174 million verified email addresses. 

They pair this extensive list of contacts with their feature set:

• Intent Data: Identifying buyer intent early in their journey to make for an easier sales pitch.
• Tracking: View how your website is explored so your team can focus on what they’re most interested in or have the most questions about.
• Automated Sales: Build a sales flow that looks for market signals to reach out to prospects.
• Workflows: Send personalized outreach based on a prospect's activity, such as funding updates and increased hiring.

ZoomInfo SalesOS uses AI to drive insights, buying signals, and automated engagement, and offers plans based on intent, such as sales, marketing, and talent.

3. LinkedIn Sales Navigator

LinkedIn is very well known as the social media of the professional world. Building on their knowledge and platform, LinkedIn Sales Navigator has many advanced features:

• Search and Filter: Organize customer profiles based on industry, company size, location, and job title. 
• Lead recommendations: Receive prospect recommendations based on search history, a user's preferences, and networking.
• InMail: Message LinkedIn members directly with InMail messaging, eliminating the need to be directly connected before engaging.
• Insights: Keep up to date with real-time account insights such as news updates and job changes for personalized engagement.
• CRM Integration: Efficiently manage your systems with CRM integration for an easy flow of data.
• Account IQ: Account IQ uses generative AI to help you gain a complete understanding of your customers. 
• Relationship Map: Relationship Map builds on the Relationship Explorer feature, using relationship intelligence to keep decision-makers organized and collaboration easy.

LinkedIn Sales Navigator is a great option for B2B opportunities, leveraging the LinkedIn system. They provide a month's free trial period to get started.

4. UpLead

UpLead provides a B2B business contact database of over 155 million across 200+ countries. 

Here's what they provide:

• Automated Database: UpLead offers anaccurate and real-time verified B2B database that can help you drive growth.
• Accuracy: Their leads are 95% accurate, and email addresses are verified in real time. For the times you receive bounced emails or poor data, you're eligible for credits.
• 24/7 Support: UpLead provides direct communication and round-the-clock support.
• Intent: Identify and engage prospects at the right time, based on your selected parameters.
• Sales Friendly: Data is provided in an easy-to-access way with contact information, business info, and details readily available.

UpLead offers a 7-day free trial with basic plans starting at $99 a month.

5. RocketReach

RocketReach has access to 700 million profiles and 60 million companies.

• Automated Prospect Lists: Contact and company lists are automatically updated and customized by location, title, industry, skills, company details, and more. RocketReach also offers AI-powered recommendations to help uncover contacts you’ve never thought of.
• Integration and API: While they offer standard CRM integrations to the popular CRMs, they also offer API support. On top of that, they also offer browser extensions for collecting info from any website.
• Recommendations: Receive recommendations on profiles similar to your searches. The ability to see similar profiles can show you possibilities you may not have previously thought of.
• Data: Find qualified contacts with less effort and use granular-level sorting by things like keyword searching and content engagement.
• Deliverability: Emails have a 98% successful delivery rate with profiles they deem with an A grade rating and 90% deliverability for verified emails.

RocketReach is available in three plans, with its browser extension available in the introductory plan.

How can AI prospecting tools help you grow?

Generating and converting leads can be time-consuming. When choosing AI sales prospecting tools, these are the areas you want to focus on.

Boosted efficiency

By automating simple, repetitive tasks, AI prospecting tools can help sales teams spend more time building relationships with their customers.

Data processing

AI prospecting tools are capable of quickly processing large amounts of data, with higher accuracy than humans — and it can make connections that are impossible for humans to make. Having the right information helps your team make timely, better decisions. 

Insight

Knowing your prospects is key to closing deals. AI prospecting tools can offer valuable insights into lead behavior and preferences, allowing your team to engage with relevant outreach.

Conversion

Ultimately, sales tools need to help drive revenue. AI prospecting tools that consistently identify high-quality leads will support higher close rates and shorter deal cycle times. 

AI for high-performing sales teams

You’ve built a bunch of great top-of-funnel leads — now what? Superhuman for Sales helps you close deals faster than ever before. 

Superhuman is the fastest email experience ever made, helping you scale your productivity, respond faster to what matters most, and eliminate email anxiety. 

With Superhuman, you can enjoy the following features:

• Compatibility: Superhuman is built for teams using Outlook and Gmail, making it compatible with crucial platforms. 
• Instant Reply: Respond to emails instantly with drafted replies thanks to Superhuman AI.
• Turn Ideas Into Emails: Have an idea for a sales email, but don't have the time? Give us a few phrases, and we'll turn your ideas into a full email for you. Superhuman AI even matches the voice and tone of previous emails you've sent for the best experience. 
• Shorten Deal Cycles: With Superhuman for Sales, you can shorten deal cycles, close more deals, and respond faster than your competitors. Our Split Inbox feature helps you focus on the deals that matter most and prioritize or group emails from prospects, team members, or tools.

Superhuman helps you spend less time being busy and more time being productive and responsive — which means more time driving revenue.