Sales teams often confuse a prospect’s general curiosity with actual intent to buy. This mix-up wastes hours chasing leads who are just "kicking tires," while the serious buyers go unnoticed.

Buyer intent isn't a guess; it's about recognizing behaviors that show someone moving from learning to deciding. Your prospects tell you exactly when they're ready to buy, if you know what to look for.

Before you even speak to a lead, their online activity leaves crucial clues. Most prospects don't reach out to sales as their first step; they do their research first.

• High-Intent Page Visits: A prospect reading your blog is nice. But one visiting your "Pricing" or "Integration Docs" page three times in a week? That's a clear signal. They’re crunching numbers and checking technical compatibility.
• The "Dark Funnel" Activity: If your CRM shows an old, closed-lost opportunity suddenly opening your emails or downloading a new whitepaper, their timing or needs might have shifted.
• Team Engagement: When a single contact shares your proposal or sales deck with three other people at their company (visible via unique IP addresses or email forwards), the conversation has moved from individual research to a team discussion.

One of the strongest, yet most overlooked, buying signals is when a past advocate moves to a new company.

Roughly 20% of the workforce changes jobs annually. When a decision-maker starts a new role, they're under pressure to make an immediate impact. They often arrive with a fresh budget and a clear mandate to fix existing problems. This situation creates an immediate opportunity.

If a manager who loved your product at Company A moves to Company B, they’re very likely to buy from you again. They already know your value; you just need to congratulate them and offer support in their new position.

Tools like Flux.report automate tracking this. Instead of manually checking LinkedIn, you get an alert when your contacts move, allowing you to be the first vendor in their inbox before they even consider competitors.

Once you're in a conversation, intent shows up in their communication style, not just data points.

From "What" to "How"
Early-stage buyers ask, "What does this tool do?" Buyers with serious intent ask, "How long does implementation take?" or "Does this integrate with Salesforce?" When questions turn logistical, the prospect is already picturing themselves using your product.

Objections Show Interest
A prospect with no interest usually has no objections—they just nod politely and disappear. A serious buyer pushes back. They'll ask about specific limitations, security protocols, or contract terms. These points of friction show they're trying to build a case for the purchase internally.

Seeing a signal isn't enough; you need to confirm it. Misreading curiosity as intent risks annoying the prospect with a hard close too soon.

Use clarifying questions to test the waters:

• "You mentioned the Q3 deadline earlier. What happens if you don't have a solution in place by then?"
• "Who else needs to see this pricing before we can move forward?"

If they give vague answers ("We'll see," or "I'm not sure"), their intent is low. If they give specific names, dates, and potential outcomes, you likely have a deal in motion.

The window to act on these signals is short. A job change alert from Flux.report or a spike in pricing page visits is only useful if you respond right away.

Adjust your sales process to prioritize these hot leads over cold outreach. Calling a prospect five minutes after they visit your pricing page is helpful service. Calling them two weeks later is a cold call. Focus on the prospects who are clearly raising their hands.