If you’re tired of sifting through endless influencer lists and generic B2B databases that serve up the same old “marketing managers” and “founders,” you’re in the right place. This guide is for B2B marketers, SDRs, and founders who want to get surgical—finding niche decision makers that actually care about what you’re selling.
Let’s break down how to use Influencers Club advanced filters to build real lists of the people you actually want, not just anyone with “CEO” in their bio. I’ll show you what works, what doesn’t, and how to avoid wasting time (and money) chasing irrelevant leads.
Why Advanced Filters Matter (and Why Most “Decision Maker” Lists Suck)
You can buy a list of “marketing executives” anywhere. Problem is, those people get buried in generic outreach every day. If you want replies—and deals—you need niche decision makers: the folks with buying power in your specific vertical.
Advanced filters let you:
- Skip generic job titles and zero in on actual buyers (think “Head of Procurement—Industrial Automation” instead of “VP, Sales”).
- Combine criteria like location, company size, industry, and social activity to get real context.
- Cut your list size but double your relevance.
Most databases don’t go deep enough. Influencers Club’s advanced filters actually let you get granular—but you have to know how to use them.
Step 1: Define Your Niche Decision Maker (Be Ruthless)
Before you open any tool, get painfully specific about who you want. “Decision maker” is just marketing fluff. Ask:
- What’s their exact job? (Not just “director”—which department? What’s the real title?)
- Which industry or niche? (“SaaS” is still too broad. Go for “B2B SaaS for logistics.”)
- Company size? (Are you targeting startups, mid-market, or enterprise?)
- Location? (Are you geo-specific, or can you go global?)
- What do they actually do online? (Are they active on LinkedIn, Twitter, or niche forums?)
Pro tip: If you can’t picture a single real person who fits, you’re still not specific enough. The tighter your profile, the less time you’ll waste.
Step 2: Set Up Your Search in Influencers Club
Now, open up Influencers Club and head to the advanced search. Here’s how to avoid the common pitfalls:
2.1 Job Titles: Go Beyond “CEO”
- Use exact titles—try “VP Supply Chain,” “Head of DevOps,” “Procurement Director.”
- Don’t just use broad terms like “manager”—it’s noisy and pulls in the wrong crowd.
- Use Boolean logic (AND, OR, NOT) to include/exclude roles. Example: “(‘Head of Compliance’ OR ‘Chief Compliance Officer’) AND NOT ‘consultant’”.
2.2 Industry and Company Filters
- Select industry verticals as narrowly as possible. “Healthcare” is huge—try “Digital Health Platforms” or “Medical Device Software.”
- Filter by company size (employee count or revenue bracket). Selling to SMBs? Exclude enterprise, and vice versa.
- Combine multiple attributes: “EdTech” AND “Head of Curriculum” AND “100-500 employees”.
2.3 Location and Language
- Pinpoint by city, region, or even country clusters.
- Filter by language if you’re selling to a non-English market.
2.4 Social and Activity Filters
- Want people who actually post? Use activity filters—“active in last 30 days.”
- Filter by audience size if you want micro-influencers or “hidden” decision makers.
What to ignore: Vanity metrics like follower count, unless your campaign is about reach. For B2B, relevance trumps popularity.
Step 3: Layer and Test Your Filters (Don’t Go Too Narrow Too Fast)
It’s tempting to stack every filter at once, but if you go too narrow you’ll get zero results—or worse, a weirdly random list.
- Start broad. Layer filters one at a time and watch how your result count drops.
- Test combinations. If “Head of Procurement” + “Fintech” + “250-500 employees” pulls up 12 people, try loosening one filter.
- Preview sample profiles. Influencers Club lets you peek at sample records—use this to sanity-check your list before exporting.
Pro tip: If your list is full of consultants, coaches, or job seekers, your filters are too loose. Tighten job title, exclude “consultant,” or add company size.
Step 4: Quality-Check Before You Download
Even with advanced filters, there’s always some noise. Don’t pay for data you can’t use.
- Spot-check profiles. Do a manual scan of the first 10-20 results. Are these really your targets, or just people with similar-sounding titles?
- Check for recency. Are they currently in the role you want, or is this outdated info?
- Remove obvious mismatches. If you see “Marketing Consultant” in a list of “Heads of Engineering,” something’s off—tweak your search.
What doesn’t work: Blindly downloading huge lists “just in case.” All you get is more manual cleanup and lower response rates later.
Step 5: Export and Segment for Outreach
Once you’re happy with your filtered list, export—then segment even further. Don’t treat all “decision makers” the same.
- Group by job function. Tailor your messaging to “Head of Product” vs. “IT Director.”
- Segment by activity: Prioritize those who are actually active online—more likely to respond.
- Check for duplicates across campaigns (especially if you’re running multiple searches).
Pro tip: Keep a “do not contact” or suppression list if you’re running repeated campaigns. Burning bridges with irrelevant outreach is easy, fixing your rep is hard.
Step 6: Avoid the Most Common Mistakes
A few things I see all the time that kill results:
- Over-relying on keywords. Don’t just search “CTO”—include variations (“Chief Technology Officer,” “VP Engineering,” etc.).
- Ignoring company context. Someone might be “Head of Sales”—but at a company with 5 employees, they probably aren’t your buyer if you sell to enterprise teams.
- Chasing big lists over quality. Hundred-person lists of the right people beat 10,000 randoms every day.
- Assuming influencer = buyer. Some “influencers” have big followings but no purchasing power. Always check role and company.
What Actually Works (And What Doesn’t)
After seeing dozens of campaigns, here’s what consistently moves the needle:
What works: - Getting painfully specific with your filters, even if it means a smaller list. - Layering filters and previewing before export. - Prioritizing recent activity and current roles. - Exporting smaller, more focused lists and writing highly personalized outreach.
What doesn’t: - Downloading massive “decision maker” lists and blasting generic emails. - Relying on follower counts or “influencer” tags to indicate buying power. - Assuming advanced filters do everything for you—manual review still matters.
Keep It Simple, Iterate, and Don’t Overthink
Finding niche B2B decision makers isn’t about using every feature or filter at once. Start simple, test, and adjust. The best lists come from getting brutally clear on who you want—and being willing to tweak your approach as you go.
Don’t let perfect be the enemy of good. Build a small, high-quality list, reach out, see what works—and keep refining from there. The filters are powerful, but your judgment is what gets results.