MorningSheetCompare: how reps find new-business leads
Four ways to buy new-business leads — CSV lists, x-date lists, big databases, and an openings feed. They serve different jobs. Here's what each is genuinely good at, and which one gets you to a business that hasn't opened yet before anyone else calls.
Every approach below sells "new business" data, and every one is the right buy for some rep. The differences come down to four things: how many signals sit behind a lead, whether the lead is exclusive to you, how fresh it is, and whether it points at a business that already exists or one about to open. Weigh those against your motion.
New-business lists (CSV vendors)
What it is. Exports of newly registered businesses, sold as a subscription or per record. As published on their sites, July 2026: NewFilings sells a weekly CSV at $99/mo or a one-time per-state export at $299, drawn from Secretary of State incorporation filings across 29 states. Brand New Businesses prices per record from $0.25 down to $0.075 with a $20 minimum and daily delivery. LeadsPlease packages commodity mailing lists from sources like SoS filings, utility connections, and the SBA.
What it's good at.
- National or multi-state reach in one file.
- A low price per row for bulk mail and cold-dial campaigns.
- Volume, when your motion needs thousands of names.
Where it falls short for the first-call job. A formation filing is one signal, and most LLCs never open a door — holding companies, placeholders, ventures that stall. The row is a registration, not a confirmed opening. And because the same list sells to every buyer, exclusivity isn't part of the deal, so you may be the tenth call, not the first. Contact fields arrive unverified.
Deep dive: new-business lists vs. an openings feed →
X-date lists
What it is. Renewal-timing data for insurance producers. As published on their sites, July 2026: Insurance Xdate works from workers-comp policy and LCM filings, Form 5500 benefits, Form 990 nonprofits, and OSHA and DOT records — businesses that already employ people and carry bound coverage. Ally Data Group refreshes its x-date lists every 90 days, from title data, public records, online responders, and modeled information, per its published sourcing (July 2026).
What it's good at.
- National renewal prospecting timed to a policy's expiration date.
- Working a large existing commercial P&C book.
- Reaching businesses with employees and bound coverage already in place.
Where it falls short for the first-call job. An x-date is a renewal fight with an incumbent already on the account. It points backward, at businesses that are already up and running, and the list products refresh on a 90-day cycle.
Deep dive: x-date lists vs. opening-soon signals →
Big business databases
What it is. Subscription databases built to look a business up. Per their own packages pages, July 2026, Salesgenie (Data Axle) starts at $99/mo on a 12-month initial term.
What it's good at.
- Firmographic lookup across the whole country.
- Building lists on filters and enriching records you already hold.
- Research when you know a business exists and want its details.
Where it falls short for the first-call job. Coverage is the design goal, and lookup is the use case. A database confirms a business exists. It doesn't read six record types every day to flag which ones are opening, and when. A shared database is sold to every subscriber — exclusivity is not part of the model.
An openings feed
What it is. A daily read of six Washington public-record types — LLC formations at the Secretary of State, state and city business licenses, building and trade permits, WSLCB liquor applications, and county health filings — fused into named, opening-soon leads. That's MorningSheet. Each lead carries the business name, an opening timeline, a hand-verified direct phone line, and the filing behind it.
What it's good at.
- Catching an opening before the doors open, from more than one signal.
- One rep per territory per vertical — never resold, with a replace-if-wrong guarantee.
- A verified direct line, not an address or an unconfirmed number.
Where it falls short. Washington only today — Seattle, Tacoma, and Everett across King, Pierce, and Snohomish counties. If you need national reach or cheap bulk rows, a list vendor is the honest right buy. MorningSheet wins one job: being the first vendor call to a business that doesn't exist yet, in a WA territory you own.