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4 MIN. READ
If you’re not using the build-in list creation feature in your customer relationship management (CRM) platform, you’re missing out. Creating lists allows you to manage your contacts and ensure that no prospects fall through the cracks. The result is often a more personalized experience. Read on for some helpful tips on working lists in a CRM platform to build a better sales process.
List creation features can vary from one CRM to another, and so do the types of lists available. For example, some tools let you create static lists where you can add profiles manually. At the same time, other platforms have a dynamic list feature that uses tags automatically when adding new profiles.
Tags are also convenient because you can easily add multiple tags to a profile to create an advanced segmentation strategy. As a result, you can group users into various segments based on geographic, demographic, or behavioral factors. You can also choose other manufacturer data relevant to your industry.
It’s best to keep lists manageable, typically with 20 to 30 profiles per list. The way you organize your lists should reflect how you work.
A common approach is to create lists based on where users are in their buying journey. For example, you can have a list of prospects you haven’t met with yet, a second list of prospective buyers actively considering a purchase, and a third list of existing customers.
This segmentation strategy reflects the different goals you’ll want to achieve when you contact manufacturers in the U.S. While you’ll want to focus on meeting with people from your prospect list, you’ll mainly engage in retaining existing customers.
This approach makes your CRM contacts easier to manage, but there are many other types of lists you can create:
Other potential approaches include creating lists based on buyer personas or organizing your contacts based on how you got their information to track attribution.
The current trend for B2B sales is to invest in technology, especially CRM data. Leveraging lists is crucial to remain competitive as more organizations focus on data-driven methods. You’ll get the most out of segmentation with the following tips.
Prospecting can be one of the most challenging aspects of B2B sales. So, give this activity your full attention by blocking time to work on your prospect list in the morning.
Sales coach Ryan Dohrn has a smart tip for boosting retention. Since people tend to be more relaxed and chattier toward the end of the workweek, block out time on Fridays to work on your client retention list. See the video below for more.
The hybrid model is becoming prevalent in B2B selling. Using lists to segment your audience makes sense for this model since you can associate profiles with specific digital campaigns and generate lists for in-person interactions. You can also use lists to flag users ready for a first in-person interaction after they have consumed digital content.
One of the benefits of segmentation is that you can deliver content that feels tailored to the unique pain points a prospect is experiencing. Personalization is easy with lists, and it can increase email open rates by 41%. For instance, you can tailor communications and recommendations based on a user’s preferred channel, industry, business size, and the content they have interacted with in the past.
If users remain in your prospect group for a while without moving on, you can target them for a re-engagement campaign. In addition, segmentation makes it easier to spot profiles that have gone inactive and either re-engage them or remove them from your CRM database.
You can use segmentation to isolate customers who have made large purchases in the past or flag users whose profile matches what you look for in a high-quality lead. Creating a premium list lets you prioritize these prospects and potentially increase the ROI of your different sales activities.
Watch Ryan Dorhn's tips on working lists in your CRM below!
If you’re still building prospect lists manually or working off outdated spreadsheets, you’re losing time (and opportunities). With IndustrySelect, you can create precisely targeted prospect lists based on your ideal customer profile and easily export them into your CRM to fuel more strategic outreach.
Want manufacturers in Texas doing $10–50 million in annual sales, with ISO certification and a purchasing director on-site? You can build that list in minutes using IndustrySelect’s advanced filters.
The IndustrySelect platform gives you access to:
It’s list-building built for modern industrial sales. (New to IndustrySelect? Try a free demo account, loaded with 500 real company profiles so you can take it for a test drive.)
In HubSpot, lists are where your IndustrySelect exports come to life. Once your data is imported, you can create active lists (which update automatically based on filters like location, job title, or last engagement date) and static lists (frozen snapshots of specific groups). For example, you might build an active list of Midwest manufacturers with open deals or a static list of trade show attendees for post-event follow-up.
Every interaction tied to a contact—emails, calls, notes, or deals—is automatically logged in the CRM, giving you a complete view of your communication history. That means no more guessing who followed up last or where a lead came from. You can filter lists by deal stage, engagement score, or account size, ensuring that each message or call is relevant and timely.
The key is to keep your lists clean and connected. Use your CRM’s tracking tools to automatically capture new emails, sync calendars, and update company records. With integrations like HubSpot’s Outlook and Gmail connections, every logged email enriches your database—so your lists stay accurate without extra effort.
When used effectively, CRM lists don’t just store names; they create a dynamic network of relationships that fuel smarter marketing, better sales alignment, and faster follow-ups.
See the video below from MNI University on how to put your IndustrySelect data into action:
Once you’ve got the right list, you need a system to engage those contacts consistently and effectively. That’s where a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tool comes in.
IndustrySelect users who want to activate their data quickly and intelligently often turn to our CRM partner solutions, such as HubSpot: a full-featured platform that helps industrial teams move faster, track smarter, and close more deals.
With a CRM like HubSpot, you can:
And the best part? You don’t have to figure it out alone. Our partners are ready to help you integrate your CRM with IndustrySelect data and get your team running with the right tools for Q4 and beyond.
Want to learn more? Ask us about getting started with a CRM partner today.
