If you’re in B2B sales or marketing, you know most “go-to-market” advice is long on buzzwords and short on how to actually focus your team’s efforts. The reality? Success comes from knowing which companies are a real fit for your product—before you burn time on pointless calls and mass emails. This is where a tool like Whatcms can actually make a difference. If you're tired of spray-and-pray prospecting and want a sharper, more practical playbook, keep reading.
Why B2B Teams Waste So Much Time
Let’s be honest: Most B2B teams have a data problem. You’re told to “personalize outreach” and “target the right accounts”—but your lists are a mess. You have company names, maybe a few titles, and not much else. How do you know if a prospect’s even using tech that fits with your offering? Most don’t, so they guess.
Here’s what typically happens: - You chase the wrong leads. Reaching out to companies who’d never use your product, because their tech stack is incompatible. - You send generic pitches. Without knowing what tools a prospect uses, you can’t speak to their real needs. - Your team gets discouraged. Wasting days on dead-end accounts kills morale.
The solution? Get specific, actionable data about what your prospects are actually running under the hood.
What Whatcms Actually Does (And What It Doesn’t)
Before you get carried away by the name, Whatcms isn’t a one-size-fits-all sales engine. It’s a tool that scans websites to identify which Content Management System (CMS) and other tech are in use. That’s it. But in the right hands, it’s a surprisingly sharp knife for slicing through noisy prospect lists.
What it does well:
- Detects common CMS platforms (WordPress, Drupal, Shopify, etc.) and sometimes other web tech.
- Lets you search in bulk—so you can upload a list of domains and get a tech snapshot for each.
- Cuts out a lot of guesswork in the early stages of market research and list building.
What it doesn’t do:
- It won’t tell you everything. Some sites mask their stack, use custom code, or run multiple platforms.
- It’s not a CRM or automation tool. Think of it as a research step, not a full outreach solution.
- It won’t magically fix your sales process. You still have to do the work.
If you expect a silver bullet, you’ll be disappointed. But if you want to get real about targeting, it’s a solid asset.
How to Use Whatcms to Streamline Your B2B Go-to-Market Strategy
Here’s a practical guide to using Whatcms to make your go-to-market process less scattershot and more methodical. No fluff, just steps that work.
1. Start With a Real Prospect List
Export a list of company websites you’re interested in. This could come from LinkedIn, Crunchbase, or just a spreadsheet you’ve built over time. The point: You need domains, not just company names.
Pro tip: The more accurate your domain list, the better your results. “www” or not doesn’t matter much, but make sure you’re not mixing up parent/child brands.
2. Run a Bulk Scan
Upload your list into Whatcms. Depending on your plan, you can check dozens or hundreds of sites at once. The tool will spit out what CMS or e-commerce platform each site is using, plus sometimes extras like frameworks or plugins.
What to look for: - Is your product CMS-specific? If you sell a WordPress plugin, you only care about WordPress sites—filter accordingly. - Are there patterns? Maybe most of your best-fit prospects use Shopify, not Magento. Adjust your focus.
3. Segment and Prioritize
Now that you know the lay of the land, you can get ruthless about who to target.
- Eliminate bad fits. No point contacting a Drupal shop if you only integrate with Squarespace.
- Group by stack. Tailor your pitch to different segments—SaaS companies on Webflow need a different approach than nonprofits on Joomla.
- Spot upgrade opportunities. If you sell migration tools, flag companies on outdated or sunsetted platforms.
4. Personalize Outreach (But Keep It Simple)
Armed with real data, your emails can stop sounding like spam. Reference the CMS or tech they use. Offer something relevant. Don’t overthink it—just prove you’ve done your homework.
Example:
"Hi [Name], I noticed [Company] runs on Shopify. We help teams like yours streamline order management without extra plugins. Is that a current pain point?"
No need for creepy “I see you’re using version 5.1.2 of X” stuff. Keep it human.
5. Track Results and Refine
Don’t assume your first batch of data is gospel. Keep tabs on which segments respond best, which tech stacks are easiest to break into, and where you get ignored.
- Double-check odd results. Sometimes Whatcms gets it wrong or sites change platforms.
- Update your lists. The web moves fast—quarterly refreshes keep your data sharp.
- Iterate. If you find a niche (e.g., Squarespace agencies love your offer), double down.
What to Ignore (and What to Watch Out For)
- Don’t obsess over 100% accuracy. No tool catches everything. Use Whatcms for direction, not perfection.
- Ignore “shiny object” integrations. Resist the urge to combine Whatcms with five other tools just because you can. Keep your stack simple.
- Beware of false positives. Some companies use multiple CMSs for different subdomains; take the extra step to verify if it matters.
Where Whatcms Falls Short
You don’t need a sales pitch—here’s where Whatcms might let you down: - Custom solutions fly under the radar. If you’re selling to companies with highly bespoke sites, don’t expect much insight. - Limited on deep tech stack info. It’s great for CMS, but not a full inventory of backend tools. - Not a replacement for human research. Sometimes picking up the phone or poking around a site yourself is still the fastest way.
If your market’s super niche or your product is hyper-specific, you might need something more robust—or just more patience.
The Bottom Line: Use Whatcms for Focus, Not Magic
If you’re looking to tighten up your B2B targeting without drowning in extra work, Whatcms is worth a look. It’s not going to transform your sales overnight or write the perfect pitch for you. But it will help you spend less time on the wrong accounts and more time talking to companies that actually have a shot at buying.
Keep your process simple: Build a list, get the tech data, focus your efforts, and adjust as you go. Don’t overcomplicate it. The best go-to-market strategies aren’t about the latest hacks—they’re about doing the basics, a little bit better, every week.