If you’re tired of cold outreach that goes nowhere, or you’re swimming in a pile of “leads” that barely fit your ideal customer, you’re in the right place. This guide is for marketers and sales folks who want targeted, account-based marketing (ABM) lists — not just a random dump of contacts. We’ll walk through how to use Builtwith to export leads and actually make them worth your time, without getting lost in a sea of features or hype.
Let’s cut to it.
Why Builtwith? What It Does (and Doesn’t Do)
Builtwith analyzes websites and tells you what tech they’re using — think Shopify, HubSpot, Salesforce, or niche tools. This is gold if you sell software or services targeting users of a specific platform. You can search for companies using certain stacks, export lists, and (sometimes) get basic company info.
But here’s the reality check:
- Builtwith is not a magic bullet. You’ll get company domains, some tech data, and maybe rough employee counts — but not direct emails or phone numbers.
- You’ll need to enrich these leads elsewhere to get real contacts.
- It’s great for tech signals, weak for people data.
If you want clean, targeted company lists for ABM, it’s hard to beat. If you want ready-to-go, verified emails for decision makers — look elsewhere or plan to stack tools.
Step 1: Define Your Ideal Target List
Don’t just fire up Builtwith and grab every “Shopify” site. That’s how you end up with tens of thousands of irrelevant results.
Get specific:
- What tech signals matter? (e.g., “uses HubSpot Enterprise,” “recently added Salesforce”)
- What company size? (Builtwith’s “Employee Range” is rough but better than nothing)
- Industry or region?
- Any red flags to avoid? (Competitors, agencies, or spammy sites)
Pro tip: Write this down before you start. “We want US-based e-commerce brands using Shopify Plus with 50+ employees” is a lot more actionable than “anyone using Shopify.”
Step 2: Use Builtwith to Find and Export Companies
2.1. Search for Relevant Technologies
- Log in to Builtwith (paid plan recommended; free plan is limited).
- Type your target tech stack in the search bar (e.g., “Klaviyo,” “Magento Commerce,” etc.).
- Use filters: location, employee range, vertical (sometimes), and tech “added” or “removed” dates.
- Review categories — Builtwith can be weirdly granular (“Magento 1.9.2.4” vs. just “Magento”). Start broad, then narrow.
2.2. Clean Up Your List Before Export
- Scroll through sample domains. Cut the obvious junk (directories, spam, “coming soon” pages, etc.).
- Use Builtwith’s filters to remove “unknown” or “tiny” companies, unless you’re targeting them.
- Don’t bother with more than 5,000-10,000 results unless you’ve got a system for enrichment — it’ll just overwhelm you.
2.3. Export Your List
- Hit “Download” or “Export” (usually CSV or Excel).
- You’ll get a file with domains, company names, some tech tags, and sometimes rough company data.
- That’s it. No emails, no phone numbers — just companies.
What’s good: You get targeted company lists with actual tech usage — not just NAICS codes or outdated data.
What’s not: Builtwith’s “company size” and “industry” are guesstimates. Take them with a grain of salt.
Step 3: Enrich Your Leads with Useful Data
Now you’ve got a list of companies — but you need contacts and more detail.
Here’s how to make that list much more useful:
3.1. Append Company Data
- Run your domains through a tool like Clearbit, Apollo, or LinkedIn Sales Navigator.
- Pull in company descriptions, employee counts, revenue, HQ location, and industry classification.
- Drop obvious mismatches (agencies, job boards, etc.).
3.2. Find the Right People
- Use enrichment tools (Apollo, ZoomInfo, Cognism, etc.) to find decision makers at each company.
- For ABM, titles like “Head of Marketing,” “CTO,” or specific function leaders are gold.
- LinkedIn is your friend — especially for smaller companies not in big databases.
- If you’re on a budget, Hunter.io or Snov.io can help find email patterns and validate addresses for a fraction of the cost.
3.3. Validate and Clean
- Verify emails before you send. No one likes a high bounce rate or spam complaints.
- Spot-check 10-20 companies: Are you getting the right kinds of targets? If not, tweak and repeat.
What’s good: With a little work, you get a list that’s both targeted and actionable.
What’s not: Enrichment costs money, especially for direct dials and verified emails. Free tools are hit-or-miss.
Step 4: Prioritize and Segment for ABM
Don’t treat every company the same. Some are way more likely to buy than others.
- Sort your list by fit: company size, tech stack matches, recent tech changes (“just added X”), or industry relevance.
- Flag “dream accounts” for extra research and personalization.
- For the rest, group by segment (e.g., “US Shopify Plus 100-500 employees,” “Europe Magento Enterprise”).
- Ditch anything that’s a bad fit. More isn’t better — it’s just more noise.
Pro tip: If you’re new to this, start with 50-100 accounts. Get your workflow tight before scaling up.
Step 5: Outreach and Tracking (Don’t Overthink It)
You built a list. Now what? The real work starts: reaching out with messages that actually make sense.
- Personalize your approach — reference the tech stack or why you think they’re a fit.
- Avoid “spray and pray.” A hundred thoughtful emails beat a thousand spam blasts.
- Use a CRM or simple spreadsheet to track who you’ve contacted, replies, and outcomes.
- Update your list as you learn: drop bounced emails, mark companies that are obviously not a fit, keep notes.
What matters: Consistency, follow-up, and learning from what works.
What doesn’t: Fancy automation tools if your message is generic or your list is junk.
What to Ignore (Mostly)
- Builtwith’s contact data: It’s limited and rarely useful. Get your own.
- Huge, untargeted exports: They look impressive but are a pain to work with.
- Vague “intent” signals: Unless you know exactly how they’re defined, don’t bank on them.
- Spending hours tweaking filters for “perfect” lists: Good enough is good enough — refine as you go.
Wrapping Up: Keep It Simple, Iterate Fast
Builtwith is great for finding companies that use specific tech, but it’s just a starting point. The real value comes when you enrich those lists, focus on fit, and do outreach that doesn’t sound like it was written by a robot. Start small, clean up your process, and only scale once you’re actually getting replies.
Don’t fall for the “just buy this tool and leads fall from the sky” pitch. The basics — targeted lists, real contacts, and thoughtful outreach — still work best. Keep it simple, and keep improving as you go.