Guide
Buying signals library: 40 signals, where to find them and how to open
A buying signal is a public or first party event that suggests a person or company may be ready to talk. This library lists 40 of them in six categories, with the public source, how quickly each goes stale and a sample first line. Freshness notes are reasoned guidance and every opener is a made up example. You can download the table as a CSV.
Published by Sellinger AI. Numbers and settings checked on 25 October 2026 against the fact register. Report an error.
- signals in the library, in 6 categories
- 40
- ready made intent signal templates in Sellinger, in 8 categories (the last column shows which signal each one covers)
- 26 in 8
How to read the tables
- Where it shows up is the public place the signal appears. Check each source's terms before collecting data from it.
- Freshness is guidance, not measured data. It says how long the reason for reaching out stays natural: hours to days, days to weeks, or weeks to months. Older than that, the opener reads as odd.
- Suggested opener is a made up example to show the shape of a first line. Rewrite it in your voice and refer to the signal only when it is public and relevant.
- Sellinger template says which of the ready made intent signals in Sellinger covers it. "No" means no template covers that signal, so you would find it by other means. The templates watch LinkedIn activity and job listings, see how to use intent signals.
LinkedIn profile and post engagement
| Signal | Where it shows up | Freshness (guidance) | Suggested opener (made up example) | Sellinger template |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Likes or reacts to a post on your topic | LinkedIn post reactions list | Days | Saw you reacted to the post on onboarding. Is that on your list this quarter? | Engagers (My Brand, Competitors, Basic Engagement) |
| Comments on a post on your topic | LinkedIn post comments | Days | Your comment on the pricing thread made a fair point about seat costs. How are you handling it today? | Commenters |
| Comments on a competitor's post | Competitor company or founder posts | Days to weeks | You replied under their launch post. Curious what you hoped it would do that it did not. | Competitor Commenters |
| Reacts to a competitor's post | Competitor company or founder posts | Days to weeks | Noticed you follow what they publish. What are you comparing us against? | Competitor Engagers |
| Views your profile | LinkedIn profile viewers list | Days | Thanks for stopping by my profile. Anything specific you were looking for? | Profile Viewers |
| Posts about a problem you solve | LinkedIn post search by keyword | Days | Your post on slow reporting stuck with me. Want a short example of how others approach it? | Posts, AI Signal |
| Asks for tool recommendations in a post | LinkedIn post search | Hours to days | You asked for a tool for scheduling. Here is one worth a look, no strings. | Asking for Recommendations, Tool/Service Recommendations |
| Expresses frustration with a current tool | LinkedIn post search | Days | Sounds like the export limits are getting in the way. What would fix it for you? | Frustration Expression |
Job changes
| Signal | Where it shows up | Freshness (guidance) | Suggested opener (made up example) | Sellinger template |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Starts a new role | LinkedIn profile and activity | Weeks (the first months are the open window) | Congratulations on the new role. New leaders often review tools early. Is that on your plan? | New Joiner |
| Is promoted internally | LinkedIn profile and posts | Weeks | Congratulations on the promotion. Does the wider scope change what you need from your stack? | No |
| Is open to work or posts about a job search | LinkedIn profile and posts | Days to weeks | Not a sales angle. If a peer introduction helps while you search, happy to make one. | No |
| A champion leaves a customer account | LinkedIn profile, CRM | Weeks | Saw you moved to a new company. We worked together before. Is there a similar need there? | No |
| A role is vacated at a target account | Company page and job board | Weeks | The head of sales seat looks open. Who is covering the pipeline in the meantime? | No |
| A new decision maker joins a target account | LinkedIn company page | Weeks | Welcome to the team. People in your seat often look at outreach early. Want a short note on what works? | New Joiner |
Company events
| Signal | Where it shows up | Freshness (guidance) | Suggested opener (made up example) | Sellinger template |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Announces a funding round | Press release, company page, news | Weeks | Congratulations on the raise. Teams at this stage often need pipeline fast. Is outbound in the plan? | Funding Announcement |
| Posts a job opening in a relevant function | Job boards, company careers page | Weeks, until the role is filled | I saw you are hiring an SDR. Would a second pair of hands while you recruit help? | Hiring for Position, Job Search (live job listings) |
| Hires several people in one function | Job boards, LinkedIn headcount | Weeks to months | A third sales opening this month suggests a push. What is the target for it? | Hiring for Position |
| Opens a new office or expands to a new market | Company page, press, news | Weeks to months | Congratulations on the new office. Are you building local pipeline from scratch there? | New Office |
| Launches a product or feature | Company blog, press, social posts | Days to weeks | The new release looks like it widens your audience. How are you reaching the new segment? | No |
| Announces a partnership or acquisition | Press release, news | Weeks | Saw the acquisition. Integrations after a deal tend to create new tool needs. Is that so here? | No |
| Attends or speaks at a conference | Event pages, attendee lists | Days before and after the event | See you at the conference. Free for a coffee on day one? | Conference Attendees |
| Is mentioned in the news | News search, alerts | Days | Read the piece about your expansion. What is the hardest part of it so far? | No |
Website and content
| Signal | Where it shows up | Freshness (guidance) | Suggested opener (made up example) | Sellinger template |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Visits your pricing page | Website analytics with identification | Hours to days | If you were looking at pricing, I can answer anything the page does not. | No |
| Reads several of your articles | Website analytics | Days | You seem to be researching this topic. Want the short version of how teams approach it? | No |
| Downloads a lead magnet | Form or landing page | Hours to days | Thanks for the download. Which chapter matters most to you right now? | No |
| Registers for a webinar | Event platform | Days around the event | Glad you signed up. Is there a question you want covered live? | No |
| Publishes a blog post or case study on a relevant topic | Company blog | Weeks | Your case study on faster onboarding was clear. How did you decide what to measure? | AI Signal (when shared as a LinkedIn post) |
| Changes its website messaging or positioning | Website, archived copies | Weeks to months | Noticed the new positioning on your homepage. Is the audience shifting? | No |
Tech and tools
| Signal | Where it shows up | Freshness (guidance) | Suggested opener (made up example) | Sellinger template |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adopts a tool that complements yours | Technology detection, job posts, case studies | Months | You run X for your CRM. Does it feed your outreach well, or is that manual? | No |
| Posts a job that names a tool in the requirements | Job boards | Weeks | Your opening mentions a tool in our space. How are you using it today? | No |
| Drops or reviews a competitor's tool | Review sites, social posts | Weeks | I read you were comparing options. What matters most in the decision? | Frustration Expression (when posted on LinkedIn) |
| Asks for an agency or service provider | LinkedIn post search | Days | You asked for an agency recommendation. Here is what to ask before you hire one. | Agency Search |
| Mentions a contract renewal or end of term | Posts, news | Weeks | If a renewal is coming up, happy to share what to compare before you sign. | No |
| Switches platform or migrates systems | Job posts, company announcements | Weeks to months | A migration is a good time to rethink the stack around it. Is outreach in scope? | No |
Inbound
| Signal | Where it shows up | Freshness (guidance) | Suggested opener (made up example) | Sellinger template |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fills in a contact or demo form | Your website form | Hours | Thanks for reaching out. I can do a call today or send the details first, which do you prefer? | No |
| Replies to an earlier message after a gap | Your inbox or CRM | Days | Good to hear from you again. Where did things land since we last spoke? | No |
| Opens an email several times | Email tracking | Days | I saw the note got attention. Is it useful to talk, or better to send more detail first? | No |
| Is referred by a customer or contact | Introduction in your inbox or CRM | Days | Our mutual contact suggested we speak. What did they tell you about us? | No |
| Mentions your brand on social media | LinkedIn and social search | Days | Thanks for the mention. Anything we could do better for you? | Engagers, Commenters (My Brand) |
| Connects with you or accepts your invitation | LinkedIn connections | Days | Thanks for connecting. What brought you to this topic? | Connections |
Using the library
- 1
Step 1
Pick two or three signals
Choose the ones closest to your offer. A pricing question is a better reason than a general interest in the industry.
- 2
Step 2
Set a freshness window
Contact within the window in the freshness column. Past it, drop the signal from the opener.
- 3
Step 3
Write the first line from the signal
Name the specific thing you saw, then ask one question. See from signal to first line opener.
- 4
Step 4
Measure each signal on its own
Track replies per signal so you keep the ones that work for your audience. See the LinkedIn buying signals guide.
Related definitions: buying signals, hiring signals and funding signals.
Common questions
What is a buying signal?
An event that suggests a person or company may be ready to talk about what you sell, such as a new role, a funding round or a post asking for a tool.
Which signals does Sellinger detect?
Sellinger has 26 ready made intent signal templates in 8 categories, built around LinkedIn activity and job listings. The last column of each table shows which signal a template covers. Signals marked No are not detected by a template.
Are the freshness notes data?
No. They are reasoned guidance about how long a reason for reaching out stays natural. Test them on your own audience.
Can I use the openers as they are?
They are made up examples of a shape. Rewrite them with the real detail you saw and in your own voice.
Is there a spreadsheet version?
Yes. [Download the CSV](/downloads/buying-signals-library.csv) and open it in any spreadsheet tool.
Sources and method
Signals, sources, freshness and openers are the author's reasoned guidance and made up examples. The Sellinger column comes from the 26 intent signal templates in the app, read 25 October 2026. Checked 25 October 2026.
Related: Intent signals, LinkedIn buying signals guide, Buying signals, Hiring signals, Funding signals, From signal to first line opener.
