123: 9 Alternative Prospecting Channels

Welcome back to The Practical Prospecting Newsletter!

If you’re only prospecting via cold email, you might be missing out on easy opps.

Here are 12 other channels I’d use — with tools, tactics, and real examples.

Before we jump in—check this out.

ZoomInfo dropped a new report on how top sales teams are doing signal-based automation.

It covers how AI is actually changing sales, and what the best teams are doing differently (hint: it’s not just stacking more tools).

Check it out here!

9 Alternative Prospecting Channels (and How to Use Them)

1. Reddit

Clay.com now lets you monitor for relevant keywords/phrases in Reddit threads. This means you can monitor for when people mention your company name, your competitors’ names, or general problems that you solve.

For some of my clients, I set it up so that anytime there’s a new relevant keyword mention, it sends a message in Slack to the rep with the link to the Reddit post.

Here’s a 4-minute walk-through video if you’re curious.

2. X/Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, etc.

Everyone focuses on LinkedIn, but depending on your audience, other channels like X and Instagram are wide open and full of information.

I use InfluencerMarketing.ai for this. They have super detailed filtering so you can find people based on what they’re posting about, what they’re engaging with, etc.

I made a post + quick video about it here.

Pro Tip: Use Instant Data Scraper IYKYK (if you don’t, reply and I’ll explain).

3. Webinars

My reps used to do this all the time at Mailshake. They’d join sales-related webinars and take note of who was in the chat, engaging, and asking questions.

Then they’d make a point to follow up with them after the webinar with more resources and pointed questions to lead towards a meeting.

You can find relevant webinars being ran all day every day by searching on “LinkedIn Events”

I made a post about it here.

4. Communities

Join communities on Slack, Discord, Skool, Circle, and others — anywhere people are asking each other for help.

If you aren’t sure where to find them, do a Google search of “Free [Your Niche] communities”

Of course, don’t join these communities just to pitch. But look for opportunities to answer questions

My team used to join Slack communities and set up notification remeinders anytime someone would mention a relevant keyword or competitor (see image below)":

5. Facebook Groups

This is pretty much the same idea as the last one but I’ve had a lot more success with it when targeting SMB-heavy industries like real estate, construction, and education.

Those personas are way more active on FB Groups than on other platforms.

Same idea: find relevant groups, scan for posts/comments that are relevant to what you sell, then lead with value (not a pitch).

6. Warm Intros

This is talked about all the time, but hardly anyone does it.

Here’s an easy way to execute:

Start with your exec team, founder(s), or any leaders you have access to. Bonus points if you can loop in customers too.

The first goal is getting them to send outreach to their own network. I use the “Connections of” filter in Sales Navigator to find all ICP contacts connected to that person.

Then I scrape the list and upload it to Smartlead (for email) and HeyReach (for LinkedIn).

When I’m doing this for a client, I’ll send the emails and messages from the person whose network it is.

If you don’t have that luxury, send from your own account—and reference that you saw they’re connected with {exec team member}.

7. Gifting

Tools like Reachdesk, Postal, and Sendoso make gifting scalable—but even a small manual gift (like a handwritten card with a QR code) can cut through the noise.

Just make sure the gift ties back to the problem you solve. Don’t blindly send swag.

Hot take: I still use $50 Amazon gift cards all the time. And they still work. The key is I’m not asking for a demo—I’m asking if they’d be open to sharing feedback in exchange for the card.

I only use this when breaking into a new ICP or when we’re stuck and trying to dial in the right messaging.

8. WhatsApp

This works especially well for international audiences. But make sure you’re sending one-to-one personalized messages — don’t try to automate it.

If you capture mobile numbers through forms or in-person interactions, follow up with short messages, video drops, or light bumps to let them know you sent an email.

9. Video

Super short and relevant videos are still a pattern interrupt.

I’ve been using video CTAs forever. For example, “If it sounds interesting, can I send a 1-minute video to explain how it could work for you?”

But I recently tested Sendspark’s AI personalization to scale personalized video and it’s honestly super impressive — this is not sponsored btw 🙂 

Here’s a quick video of how it works.

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By the way, I walked through each channel, how we use them, and how to layer them with your existing outreach in this Sell Better show:

🎥 Watch here

Thanks for reading,
Jed

P.S. If you want my team to set any of these up for you, book time here!