Lead Generation: find and research contacts

Lead Generation is where you build your outreach list. You search our lead database for companies or people, open a company to see who works there, add the contacts you want to your Selected Leads basket, then research them so Whali has a verified email address and real profile detail to write from.

How do I search for companies?

Type an industry or a company name into the Search box at the top of the page. Whali works out which one you mean and returns matching companies. Press Browse industries if you would rather pick from the full category list, and use the controls beside the search box to narrow results before you search.

1. Type a term, for example "investment banking" or a specific company name.
2. Add filters: Company Size, Location, or an industry chip from the autocomplete.
3. Press Search, then page through with Previous and Next.
4. Click a company card to open it, or press Add to quick add the recommended contact.

Company locations match headquarters only, and size filters only match companies with a known employee count, so broaden to a whole country when a search comes back thin.

How do I find one specific person?

Type a name into the same Search box and choose the "search as a person" option from the autocomplete. This switches to person search, marked with a Person chip. You can then narrow by Company, seniority, Locations, and Verified, which only shows people with a verified email address on file.

Person search also works with no name at all. Leave the name blank, set an industry and a location, and you get everyone who matches those filters.

How do I choose the right people at a company?

Clicking a company opens a People at panel. Browsing here is free, so take your time. Filter by Seniority, Location or Title keywords, click any row to select it, and shift-click to select a whole range. Anyone you select drops into the Selected Leads basket beside the results.

Under Advanced you can set who Whali targets by default (Target Seniorities, Target Job Titles, Target Locations) and choose which company facts appear on result cards.

What does Lead Generation cost in credits?

Only the research step charges per contact, so you can search and shortlist as much as you like before committing.

What happens when I press Research people?

The basket sends everyone you have selected off to be researched in the background: a verified email address, profile detail and company research are gathered for each person. You are taken to My Leads, where each new row shows Researching until it finishes.

1. Check the basket. It shows how many people from how many companies, plus the total credit cost.
2. Press Research people (or Research person for a single contact).
3. Watch My Leads. Rows flip to Researched, or Research failed if nothing usable could be found.

You can research up to 200 people at a time. Once rows come back, see My Leads for working through them and Sending and scheduling for drafting the email. If you do not have an account yet, you can start one at whali.co.uk/signup.