Size a market before you build a list

Why does the market map play work?

Most lists are built before anyone knows how big the market is. Counting first tells you whether the plan works before you spend anything.

What counts as a well-defined market?

This play has no timing signal: it decides where to look. A good definition has all of these:

• One sentence describing what the companies do and who they sell to.
• A size range you can serve.
• The countries or regions you can sell into.
• A count big enough for a campaign, and small enough to write to properly.

What looks like the signal but is not

Industry codes as the definition

Codes are broad and often wrong. Describe what companies actually do.

Definitions that are too wide

"Software companies" gives you a count, not a market. Add who they sell to.

One big total

A single number hides where the market is. Always split before you decide.

Pulling everything

Exporting the whole market before choosing cells spends budget on accounts you will never write to.

How to run it, step by step

Six steps in the same five-part frame as every play. Each step says what you are after, why it matters and how to do it with any tools; the Breaknorm boxes show the shortcut.

1. 01Signal

   Describe the market in a sentence

   Goal. A count of every company that matches a plain-language description.

   Why. If you can't describe the market in one sentence, you can't write to it either. The sentence becomes the filter.

   How.

   • Write what the companies do and who they sell to.
   • Add the size range and the region.
   • Count it, then try two or three variations and compare.

   Count it with Breaknorm (free)count_companies

   { "describe": "logistics software", "region": "EU", "employees": { "min": 10, "max": 200 } }Copy

   You end withA total count for each version of the definition.

2. 02Signal

   Split it and pick the cells

   Goal. The two or three parts of the market that fit your offer best.

   Why. Where the market is decides where you start. A split by country, size and technology shows the cells worth working.

   How.

   • Split the count by country, by size band and by technology.
   • Pick cells where you have customers, language or a reason to win.
   • Write down why each cell was chosen; you will test that later.

   Split the count (free)segment_companies

   { "facets": ["country", "employees", "tech"] }Copy

   You end withTwo or three chosen cells, each with a count and a reason.

3. 03Who

   Decide who you sell to in each cell

   Goal. The role you will write to, per cell.

   Why. Company size changes the buyer. In a 15-person company the founder decides; at 200 people a head of function does.

   How.

   • Small cells: the founder or managing director.
   • Larger cells: the head of the function your product serves.
   • Count the people too, so you know how many contacts each cell gives you.

   Count the buyerscount_people

   { "function": "operations", "level": ["owner", "c_level", "head"] }Copy

   You end withA buyer definition and a contact count per cell.

4. 04Find

   Pull only the records you will work

   Goal. Companies and verified contacts for the chosen cells, nothing else.

   Why. This is the first step that costs anything. Pulling only the chosen cells keeps the spend on accounts you will actually write to.

   How.

   • Export the first cell only.
   • Include the buyer with a verified email.
   • Pull the next cell when the first one has been worked.

   Export a cellstart_export

   start_export({ "segment": "logistics-software-nl-10-50", "people": true, "email": "verified" })Copy

   You end withA list for one cell, ready to write to.

5. 05Say

   Write one message per cell

   Goal. A message that fits the cell, with something useful from the map.

   Why. You now know something most of these companies don't: how their own market splits. That is a useful thing to give.

   How.

   • Open with a fact about their market, from your count.
   • Name what companies of their size in that market usually deal with.
   • Offer the map, or the part of it that is about them, and ask if you can send it.

   You end withOne message per cell.

6. 06Measure

   Compare cells, then expand

   Goal. A clear view of which cells reply, and where to go next.

   Why. The reasons you picked the cells were guesses. Replies tell you which guesses were right.

   How.

   • Track reply and meeting rates per cell.
   • Expand to the next cell when the first one works.
   • Recount every quarter; markets move.

   You end withA ranking of cells by reply rate, and the next cell to work.

A worked example, start to finish

One market, through every step. The numbers are illustrative; the steps are the real ones.

1. Signal

   "Logistics software, EU, 10 to 200 people" counts 6,412 companies. No records used.

2. Signal

   Split by country: Germany 1,920, France 1,140, the Netherlands 860. You speak Dutch and have two Dutch customers, so you pick the Netherlands, 10 to 50 people.

3. Who

   At that size the founder or managing director decides.

4. Find

   You export only that cell, with each founder's verified email.

5. Say

   The message offers the map of the Dutch market as a gift.

6. Measure

   Reply rate is tracked for the cell; Germany is next if it works.

What to write to one cell of a market

A short email that gives before it asks: something useful for the situation they are in, not a meeting request. Why each line is there:

When not to run this play

• You already know the market and only need contacts; start from lookalikes or a signal.
• The count is a few dozen companies; write to them one by one instead.
• You send the same message to every cell.
• You export the whole market before choosing cells.

How to measure whether it works

Track a few numbers per batch and compare them over time. What counts as good depends on your market, so the trend matters more than any benchmark.

Reply rate per cell

The main number. It tells you which part of the market answers.

Cost per meeting per cell

Records cost money; meetings are what you are buying.

Share of the cell worked

How much of each cell you have written to before moving on.

Count change per quarter

Markets grow and shrink. Recount before you plan the next quarter.

From our data

Figures from Breaknorm's own company data, refreshed every 1 to 7 days.

Checklist

1. Market described in one sentence: what they do and who they sell to
2. Size range and region set
3. Count compared across two or three definitions
4. Count split by country, size and technology
5. Two or three cells chosen, each with a reason
6. Buyer defined per cell
7. Only the first cell exported, with verified emails
8. One message per cell, replies tracked per cell

Questions about this play