How each signal works
| Third-party intent data | AI buyer questions | |
|---|---|---|
| Source | Content consumption across publisher networks | The buyer's conversation with an AI assistant |
| What you see | Topic surges by account | The ad group or page that brought a visit |
| Strength | Inferred from reading | Stated in the buyer's words |
| Coverage | Many accounts | Only those who ask and click |
| Privacy | Aggregated by account | Advertisers never see conversations |
Why questions are stronger
"Month-end close software for a 300-person logistics company on NetSuite" states the problem, the size, the industry and the stack. No surge score carries that much information.
Why intent data still matters
It covers accounts that haven't clicked anything of yours yet. It tells you which accounts to watch and which topics to write ad groups for.
Using both
- Use intent data to prioritise accounts and topics.
- Turn the top topics into specific buyer questions for ChatGPT ads.
- Identify the companies that click and compare them with the surging accounts.
- Treat a match on both as your hottest signal.
A scoring rule that uses both
| Signal | Points |
|---|---|
| Account surging on your topic (intent data) | 15 |
| Identified from a ChatGPT ad on a decision question | 25 |
| Identified from a ChatGPT answer citation | 20 |
| Read pricing or comparison pages | 20 |
| Both intent surge and AI visit within 14 days | +15 bonus |
Combine with your fit score so sales sees one number.
Questions
Can intent providers see ChatGPT conversations?
No. OpenAI doesn't share conversations with advertisers, and there's no public feed of what users ask.
Which signal should sales trust more?
An identified visit from a specific buyer question, followed by pricing page views, is about as strong as a pre-contact signal gets.
Is intent data worth its cost?
It depends on how many of your accounts it covers and how often surges turn into meetings. Measure that before renewing.
Why stated intent is rare and valuable
Most B2B signals are inferred: someone read an article, visited a page, attended a webinar. A buyer's question to an AI assistant is different: it's a direct statement of the problem, the context and often the urgency. Advertisers don't see the question itself, but ad group performance reveals which stated problems lead to visits from fitting companies.
Combining signals responsibly
Neither signal identifies a person's intent with certainty. Treat both as reasons to offer help on a topic, not as proof that someone is ready to buy.
Start here: ChatGPT ads for ABM. More articles in ABM and AI ads.