How Agencies Are Building Smarter Cold Email Lists with AI (And Winning Clients Faster)

How Agencies Are Building Smarter Cold Email Lists with AI (And Winning Clients Faster)

Most agencies get stuck before the first email is even sent:

Written by

Hashir Khurram

Published on

September 30, 2025

13

min

  • Struggling to build a clean, qualified list

  • Burning hours filtering in Apollo or scraping LinkedIn

  • Paying hundreds for outdated, overused databases

If you are still trying to guess your way into the inbox, you are already behind

Because the best agencies today? They are building lists with AI + data scraping

And its changing the game

Why the Old Way Fails for Agencies

Lets say you’re an agency selling:

  • SEO to dental clinics

  • Website redesigns to SaaS tools

  • Paid ads to local gyms

You try to:

  • Filter in Apollo or SalesNav

  • Guess industry tags and headcount

  • Export a CSV

What you get?

  • Wrong industries

  • Wrong personas

  • Bounce heavy emails

  • Wasted time

Even worse 50 other agencies probably downloaded the same exact list

The Smarter Way: Context First AI List Building

Heres how smart agencies now build lead lists:

Step 1: Start with context, not contacts

  • “I want gyms in Chicago with 100+ reviews on Google”

  • “Find DTC brands using Shopify + Klaviyo”

  • “Get law firms in Florida with <10 employees and updated websites”

Step 2: Scrapeamax scrapes the exact company data

  • We pull from sources like GMB, BuiltWith, Store Leads, Latka, Clutch, etc

  • You get a CSV with company name, site, industry, phone, etc

Step 3: Use Clay or your enrichment tool to find the right decision makers

  • Add verified work emails

  • Filter for titles (e.g., Owner, CMO, Founder)

Step 4: Validate with MillionVerifier

  • Keep bounce rates <4%

Step 5: Launch in Smartlead or Instantly

  • Start sending with confidence

Example Agency Use Cases:

  • SEO Agencies:

“Scrape dentists in New York with a site last updated before 2021”

  • Web Design Agencies:

“Find home service companies with low domain ratings and no SSL”

  • Email Marketing Agencies:

“Get DTC stores using Shopify + Klaviyo + no clear retention strategy”

  • Ad Agencies:

“Find restaurants in LA with 10 to 25 employees, strong review presence but outdated websites”

Why It Works

  • No more fighting for Apollo exports

  • Lists nobody else has

  • Faster workflows

  • More accurate campaigns

One Scrapeamax user pulled 312 eComm stores using Recharge + Loop Returns in 3 hours Another booked 9 meetings with clinics using just one GMB + Clutch scrape

Want to Try It for Free?

If you run an agency doing $250k+/year and are not in adult/crypto/gambling, we will build your first list on the house

Book a call below and get access to our private Slack:

https://calendly.com/moiz-leadamax/scrapeamax-unlimited-lead-lists

Scrapeamax is not just a scraping service, Its a data engine for smarter prospecting

If you are serious about outbound then Do not just write better emails, Start with better lists

Hashir Khurram

🏆 Winner SaaS Bootstrapper of the year 2024 Award by Tekpon | Growing Expandi towards $10M ARR | Prioritizing health -9% body fat year-round 🏋️‍♂️ | Sharing Real Stories in Public


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