Bombora intent data tracks which companies are actively researching topics related to your products or services. This B2B data provider monitors content consumption across thousands of business websites and flags when organizations show increased interest in specific subjects. You get a ranked list of accounts showing research spikes, helping you identify potential buyers before your competitors reach them.
This guide breaks down how Bombora actually works, from data collection to scoring methodology. You’ll learn practical use cases for sales and marketing teams, understand typical pricing structures, and get an honest look at where Bombora excels and where it falls short. By the end, you’ll know whether this intent data solution fits your business needs and budget. We’ll also explore how Bombora compares to alternatives like first party intent data that some marketing teams prefer.
Why Bombora intent data matters
Your sales team wastes time chasing cold leads while competitors connect with buyers showing real purchase intent. Bombora intent data solves this problem by identifying which companies are actively researching your product category right now. You stop guessing which accounts to prioritize and start focusing your efforts where genuine buying signals exist. This shift from spray-and-pray outreach to targeted engagement directly impacts your pipeline velocity and close rates.
Timing your outreach matters
Buyers complete 57% of their purchase decision before talking to any vendor, according to research. You need to reach them during their research phase, not after they’ve already shortlisted competitors. Bombora flags accounts when their research activity spikes above normal levels, giving you a time-sensitive window to engage. Your team can contact prospects who are actively evaluating solutions instead of interrupting people who aren’t ready to buy.
The difference between reaching a buyer during research versus after they’ve decided can mean the difference between winning and losing the deal.
Reducing wasted ad spend
Most B2B advertising targets broad audiences where only 2-5% are actually in-market for your product at any given time. You burn budget showing ads to companies that won’t buy for months or years. Intent data lets you concentrate spending on accounts demonstrating active purchase behavior, improving your cost per lead and overall ROI. Marketing teams using this approach typically see 30-40% better conversion rates because they’re reaching buyers when interest peaks rather than hoping to create demand from scratch.
How to use Bombora intent data
You plug Bombora intent data into your existing sales and marketing workflow to identify which accounts deserve immediate attention. Most teams start by connecting Bombora to their CRM, where surge scores automatically populate on account records. Your sales reps see which companies are researching relevant topics without leaving Salesforce or HubSpot. This integration eliminates manual data checking and ensures everyone works from the same intelligence layer when prioritizing outreach.
Building target account lists
You filter accounts by surge score and topic relevance to create focused prospect lists. Start by selecting 5-10 topics that align with your product category. Bombora tracks over 12,000 topics, so you need to choose carefully based on what actual buyers search during their evaluation process. Accounts scoring above 60 on your selected topics should move to your high-priority queue for immediate action. Your BDR team can then focus on companies showing multiple topic surges rather than cold calling random prospects from purchased lists.
Companies with surge scores above 60 are actively researching your category, making them 3-5x more likely to engage than cold prospects.
Coordinating sales and marketing
Marketing teams use intent data to trigger targeted ad campaigns and nurture sequences for surging accounts. You can automatically add high-scoring companies to LinkedIn campaigns or display advertising cohorts. Sales receives notifications when accounts hit specific surge thresholds, creating natural handoff points between marketing touches and direct outreach. This coordination prevents the common problem where marketing generates qualified leads that sales ignores because they seem cold. Both teams now work from shared signals showing real buyer interest.
Timing your follow-up
You track how long accounts have been surging to determine urgency levels. An account surging for 2-3 consecutive weeks likely sits deeper in their buying process than one showing a first-week spike. Your team can adjust messaging based on this timing, with longer surges warranting more direct sales conversations while newer surges might benefit from educational content first. This approach prevents you from pushing too hard too early or waiting too long to engage serious buyers.
How Bombora collects and scores data
Bombora gathers behavioral signals from its Data Co-op network, which includes over 5,000 B2B publisher websites. You get intent data derived from actual content consumption patterns rather than guesses about buyer interest. The system tracks what articles, whitepapers, and resources professionals read at work, then connects that activity back to specific companies. This approach gives you real-time visibility into which organizations are actively educating themselves on topics related to your solutions.
The Data Co-op network
Publishers in the Co-op anonymously share information about what content visitors consume on their sites. Bombora processes this data through machine learning algorithms that categorize content into over 12,000 topic clusters. Each topic cluster groups related subjects together, like "cloud security" or "marketing automation platforms." Your account research shows up when multiple employees from the same company read content within these specific topic areas over a short period. The system filters out personal browsing by focusing only on business IP addresses and work-related content consumption patterns.
Company Surge scoring methodology
Bombora assigns each account a Surge score between 0 and 100 for every topic cluster. This score compares the company’s recent 3-week research activity against their historical 12-week baseline behavior. You see meaningful spikes when an organization’s interest level jumps significantly above their normal patterns. Scores above 60 indicate active buying interest, while scores above 80 suggest urgent evaluation happening right now within that company.
Surge scores above 60 mean a company is researching 2-3x more intensely than their normal baseline, signaling real purchase intent rather than casual browsing.
The scoring system updates weekly, giving you fresh bombora intent data every Monday morning. You can track how long companies have been surging on specific topics, which helps you gauge their progress through the buying cycle. Accounts surging for multiple consecutive weeks typically sit deeper in evaluation stages than those showing first-week spikes. This timing intelligence lets you adjust your engagement strategy based on where prospects actually are in their research process rather than guessing at their readiness to buy.
Bombora pricing and typical costs
Bombora charges on a CPM basis (cost per thousand impressions or data points), which means you pay based on how much data you access rather than a flat subscription fee. Your actual costs depend on the depth and volume of intent data you need, plus which specific features you activate. Most B2B companies should budget between $15,000 and $50,000 annually, though exact pricing varies based on your account list size and data refresh frequency.
Cost structure breakdown
The typical CPM rate falls between $1.50 and $3.00, according to agency partners who implement these programs regularly. You multiply this rate by the number of accounts you track and how frequently you pull surge data updates. A company monitoring 10,000 accounts with weekly data refreshes might pay $2,000 to $4,000 monthly. Access to additional features like topic customization, API integrations, or advanced filtering can push costs higher. Bombora requires you to sign an annual contract in most cases, though some implementations offer quarterly commitments for testing purposes.
Your total cost scales with your target account universe, so companies with smaller ICP lists often find better ROI than those trying to monitor tens of thousands of accounts.
What affects your price
Your bombora intent data costs increase when you expand the number of topics you track or add more sophisticated integration requirements. Companies needing real-time API access pay more than those satisfied with weekly batch updates. The complexity of your CRM integration also impacts implementation fees, which typically run $5,000 to $15,000 as a one-time charge. Volume discounts apply for enterprise buyers tracking large account lists, while smaller teams might negotiate month-to-month arrangements after an initial 90-day test period.
Bombora pros, cons and best fit
You need to weigh Bombora intent data against your specific business requirements before committing to annual contracts. This tool excels in certain scenarios while creating challenges in others. Understanding these tradeoffs helps you avoid buyer’s remorse and sets realistic expectations for what intent data can actually deliver for your team.
What Bombora does well
Bombora provides account-level visibility that helps you prioritize which companies to target before competitors reach them. The platform’s Data Co-op network covers thousands of B2B publishers, giving you broad signal coverage across multiple industries and topics. You get reliable integrations with major CRMs like Salesforce and HubSpot, making data accessible where your team already works. The weekly refresh cycle keeps information current enough for most B2B sales cycles, and the Surge scoring system translates complex behavioral data into actionable account lists your reps can understand immediately.
Where Bombora falls short
You face a significant limitation because Bombora only shows company-level signals, not which specific individuals are researching your topics. Your sales team still needs to manually identify the right contacts within surging accounts, adding friction to your outreach process. Some users report that Surge scores can feel ambiguous, requiring interpretation to understand whether research indicates genuine buying intent or general education. Coverage gaps exist in niche industries or smaller geographic markets where publisher participation remains thin.
Without contact-level data, you know a company is interested but still have to guess which decision-makers are driving the research.
Who should use Bombora
Bombora fits companies with defined ICPs and sales teams capable of following up on account-level leads quickly. You’ll see the best results if your product requires multi-stakeholder buying committees where multiple people research before purchasing. Organizations with smaller budgets or those needing immediate contact-level precision might explore first-party intent alternatives instead.
Key takeaways
Bombora intent data gives you account-level visibility into which companies are actively researching your product category, helping you prioritize outreach before competitors engage those buyers. You get weekly updates showing surge scores that compare recent research activity against historical baselines, with scores above 60 indicating genuine purchase intent. The platform integrates directly with your CRM, making this intelligence accessible where your team already works without disrupting existing workflows.
Your investment typically ranges from $15,000 to $50,000 annually, charged on a CPM basis that scales with how many accounts you track and how frequently you access data. The main limitation remains that you see company signals but not individual contact behavior, requiring extra work to identify the right decision-makers within surging accounts. While Bombora excels at broad account identification, you might explore alternatives like first-party intent data targeting that delivers individual-level precision for specific industries.
