B2B prospecting for web, SEO and development agencies
How a web, SEO or development agency can generate a steady flow of projects: targets, buying signals, an example email and payback.
Lead Matrix for B2B web, SEO and development agencies: AI identifies the companies that match your ideal customer profile and writes them personalised emails, experts run the campaigns, and interested prospects arrive in a real-time dashboard. Choose the clients you want, instead of waiting for whoever comes along.
The challenges of prospecting
Feast or famine
When the team is fully booked, nobody prospects. When projects end, the pipeline is empty.
Too reliant on referrals
Word of mouth works, but you cannot steer it and it does not choose your clients for you.
No time for your own marketing
You grow your clients' businesses, rarely your own.
Who to target
| Companies | Decision-makers |
|---|---|
| B2B SMEs with 10 to 200 employees | Managing Director / CEO |
| Sectors where you have case studies | Marketing Director or Head of Communications |
| Region: the UK, Ireland or the countries you serve | Sales Director |
| Excluding current clients and competitors | Head of Digital |
Your final targeting is built with you during the workshop: sectors, company sizes, regions, roles and exclusions (customers, competitors, partners).
Buying signals to watch for
- An outdated or slow website
- Hiring for a marketing or sales role
- A new product line or brand launch
- A funding round or rapid growth
These signals make the first email relevant: you write when the need appears, with a specific reason to get in touch.
Example first email
A fictional example, to adapt to your offer:
Subject: The Varley Group website
Dear Mr Carter,
Varley Group has just launched its new product range, but it is hard to find on your website from Google.
We rebuild websites for manufacturers so they generate quote requests, with monthly reporting on results.
I can show you in 20 minutes what we would change first. Would Tuesday or Thursday suit you?
Emily Watts
Your agency
Short, built around a real fact about the company, with a single question: that is the format that gets replies. Our full method: B2B cold email: the complete guide.
What it could bring in
| Average project (margin) | €8,000 |
| Starter plan (12-month commitment) | €710 excl. VAT a month, or €8,520 a year |
| Months of subscription covered by a single client | 11 months |
Assumption: a project with €8,000 in margin. Replace it with your own average deal value. This is an indicative calculation, not a guaranteed result.
The legal framework
The rules depend on the recipient's country. In the United Kingdom, PECR lets you email corporate subscribers (limited companies, LLPs, public bodies) without prior consent, as long as you identify yourself and offer a simple way to opt out; sole traders and most partnerships are treated like individuals and need to have consented (ICO). Because you are writing to named people, the UK GDPR also applies: you need a lawful basis, usually legitimate interests, and you must tell people where you got their details. In France, B2B email without prior consent is allowed if the message relates to the recipient's role, with an unsubscribe link and information on their rights (CNIL). Germany (§ 7 UWG), Spain (article 21 of the LSSI) and Italy (article 130 of the Codice privacy) require prior consent in principle, even in B2B. Target countries are agreed with you and each campaign follows the local rules. Full details: Is B2B cold email legal under GDPR?
How Lead Matrix helps
- A 45-minute targeting workshop to define your target companies, decision-makers and key arguments.
- Launch within 48 hours from dedicated sending domains, with messages written by AI and approved by our experts.
- Qualified replies delivered to your dashboard, with a pipeline to track every opportunity. You can answer straight from the lead card.
- Ongoing optimisation of targeting and messages.
Plans range from €710 to €2,510 excl. VAT a month with a 12-month commitment. Find out more: What is Lead Matrix?
Frequently asked questions
How many meetings can we expect?
It depends on your market, your offer and the number of companies contacted. We do not promise a figure in advance: results are visible in real time in your dashboard, and targeting is adjusted every week.
Do we need to provide a contact list?
No. Companies and decision-makers are identified for you, based on the targeting defined together. You can provide a list of customers and competitors to exclude, which goes on your "do not contact" list.
How long does it take to get started?
Campaigns go live 48 hours after the targeting is approved, following a 45-minute workshop.
Can we offer retainers as well as one-off projects?
Yes. The offer and the call to action are defined with you during the workshop, whether you sell one-off builds, SEO retainers or ongoing development.
Sources
- Direct marketing and privacy and electronic communications, ICO
- La prospection commerciale par courrier électronique, CNIL (in French)
- § 7 Gesetz gegen den unlauteren Wettbewerb (UWG), gesetze-im-internet.de (in German)
- Ley 34/2002 de servicios de la sociedad de la información (LSSI), BOE (in Spanish)
- Codice in materia di protezione dei dati personali, Garante per la protezione dei dati personali (in Italian)
- How much does outsourced B2B lead generation cost in 2026?, Lead Matrix