Put this into practice with Resquared
Resquared is the AI sales platform built for selling to local businesses: the most complete local business database, verified contacts, and outreach written and followed up in your name.
- Verified emails and phone numbers, with owner and staff names on premium plans
- Filter by radius, category, business size, hours and recent reviews
- AI writes each email in your name from the business's own details
- Automated follow-ups that stop when someone replies; replies land in your inbox
Every digital footprint of every brick-and-mortar business, resolved into one record and checked source by source.
See how it worksBefore choosing filters, write down the market question and desired outcome. Identify the business types that are plausible buyers, tenants, or partners. Put materially different categories into separate lists so each can receive a relevant message.
In Resquared, describe your ideal businesses, geography, examples, exclusions, and campaign goal in AI search. Review the filters it creates, inspect the map to confirm the right location, and adjust the radius or selected ZIP codes based on the actual local market. The database lists 14,786,458 active local businesses in the US and Canada.
Avoid filtering for a perfect prospect before you have response data. Start with a broad but coherent group, remove competitors, closed businesses, duplicates, obvious category errors, and clear size mismatches. Treat reviews and other online signals as useful clues rather than requirements.
Favor independent and regional operators when the decision is likely to be local, but do not exclude every multi-location business automatically. For an owner-run business, a public general inbox often reaches the decision-maker. For a larger organization, look for the person or team that controls the decision.
What to do
- Write down the outcome, target business type, and reason that category fits your offer.
- Describe the target, geography, examples, and exclusions in AI search, or apply the same criteria to public listings.
- Inspect the map and location filters, then adjust the area to match the practical local market.
- Remove obvious mismatches without narrowing the list so far that you cannot learn from responses.
- Run separate campaigns for meaningfully different categories and use qualified responses to refine the next list.
Related questions
Should I include every business in the area?
No. Keep the list tied to one clear premise, but do not over-filter before you have campaign results. Remove obvious mismatches and test the remaining audience.
Should I target independent businesses or chains?
Independent and regional operators are often easier to reach because the responder may be close to the decision. A chain location can still be useful, but confirm whether the respondent has authority over the purchase or location decision.
What if my list is too small?
Expand one variable at a time, such as the geography or a closely related category. Check that the broader group can still receive the same relevant offer and message.