> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.intentleads.si/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Your first intent lane in 10 minutes

> Pick what your buyers research, narrow it to the people you sell to, check the free count and export your first leads.

At the end of this guide you'll have an intent lane that's checked every day for free, a count of who's researching your keywords right now, and your first leads in a CSV.

The example is a call-answering company looking for Houston offices that need an answering service. Swap in your own market as you go.

> [!NOTE]
>
> Building a lane, counts and samples are free on any account. You need a balance to export, and to request keywords we don't track yet. See [Billing](https://docs.intentleads.si/guides/billing.md).

**1. Start a lane and say who you sell to**

On **Lanes**, press **New lane** and pick **Intent**. Or press ⌘K and choose **New intent lane**.

![The New lane page with Intent, Search and Website cards](https://mintcdn.com/intentleads/16GfXNJlPs26aspr/images/app/lane-chooser.png?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=16GfXNJlPs26aspr\&q=85\&s=f0d75a671918fc13e9138e2c04caae23)

Pick Intent. Search and Website start from the same page.

Give the lane a **Name** you'll recognise in a list, like "Answering services, Houston". Then describe **Who you sell to** in a sentence or two:

> Houston offices looking for an answering service or a virtual receptionist.

This isn't a filter. It drives the keyword suggestions in the next step, and guides any new keywords you request.

**2. Pick the keywords your buyers research**

The big search asks **What are your buyers researching?** Under it, **Suggested for you** already lists topics that fit what you wrote. Click one to add it.

![The keyword search, empty, with suggested topics under it](https://mintcdn.com/intentleads/16GfXNJlPs26aspr/images/app/intent-keywords-suggested.png?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=16GfXNJlPs26aspr\&q=85\&s=9603f599af2932dd32a65f8b9a1b1ea5)

Suggestions come from Who you sell to.

Or type a few words, like "answering service". Results appear as you type: topics we already track, each with:

* how many people researched it on the latest day,
* how many of them did so at medium or strong signal (**medium+**),
* a bar to compare its size with the others.

![Search results for "answering service", each with a count, a medium+ count and a size bar](https://mintcdn.com/intentleads/16GfXNJlPs26aspr/images/app/intent-keyword-search.png?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=16GfXNJlPs26aspr\&q=85\&s=5990d32146a93cf7755bb0f5c3737036)

Results as you type. Use ↑ ↓ to move and Enter to add.

Press **Add**, or use ↑ ↓ and Enter. Press `/` anywhere on the page to jump back to the search. Once you've picked a few, **More like your keywords** suggests related topics.

Topics we already track are live straight away, with history, so the lane can count people at once. If nothing fits, the last row offers **Request "…" as a new keyword**. A new keyword takes about a day to approve, then 2 to 4 days before people show up, and requesting one needs a balance.

> [!TIP]
>
> Start with two to five topics that have medium+ people. [Choose keywords that work](https://docs.intentleads.si/playbooks/choosing-keywords.md) goes deeper.

**3. Set the signal**

Your keywords sit in group A, **Researching any of these**. Its **Signal** setting decides how strong someone's research has to be before they count:

| Signal | Who counts |
| - | - |
| **Strong + medium** | The default, and what we recommend: it leaves out light reading. |
| **Strong** | The fewest people, with the strongest research. |
| **All** | The most people. New keywords start out mostly light. |

![Three picked keywords with their sizes, under the Strong + medium signal setting](https://mintcdn.com/intentleads/16GfXNJlPs26aspr/images/app/intent-keywords-picked.png?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=16GfXNJlPs26aspr\&q=85\&s=47105d66d5afb455f3c2120d4fa7615f)

Three topics in group A, at Strong + medium.

To require a second interest, press **Add an "and also" group**: people must then also research one keyword from each group. You can skip this for your first lane. See [Keyword groups](https://docs.intentleads.si/guides/keywords.md#keyword-groups).

**4. Add filters**

Below the keywords, filters narrow who counts. Click a row to open it:

* **Job and career**: job titles (and titles to leave out), seniority, department, years of experience, past titles and employers, schools and headline.
* **Company**: target accounts, industry, words in the company's description, NAICS and SIC codes, size, revenue, company name, HQ location, and **US-headquartered companies only**, which is on to start with.
* **Location**: a radius around a ZIP code or city, or the state, city or ZIP code where the person lives.
* **Each person must have**: a mobile, a mobile not on do-not-call lists, a business email (or one checked as valid), a personal email, a direct phone or a LinkedIn profile.
* **Advanced: AND / OR groups**: any of 40+ more fields, for anything the sections above don't cover.

For the example: job titles containing "office manager", "practice manager" or "owner", a 50-mile radius around Houston, TX, and a mobile.

![The Job and career section with three job titles entered](https://mintcdn.com/intentleads/16GfXNJlPs26aspr/images/app/intent-filters-job.png?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=16GfXNJlPs26aspr\&q=85\&s=00f7c96cbc35568dcea05b6960d1f6ea)

Open a row to set it. A green dot means the filter is in use.

Every filter cuts the count, so start with the few that matter most. [Target the right people](https://docs.intentleads.si/playbooks/right-people.md) walks through each one.

**5. Check the summary**

The panel on the right shows the lane as you build it, in plain words. The number on top is a free count: how many people researched your group A topics on the latest day, at your signal, before your filters.

![The summary panel: 174 people researching on the latest day, then the keywords, signal and filters](https://mintcdn.com/intentleads/16GfXNJlPs26aspr/images/app/intent-summary-rail.png?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=16GfXNJlPs26aspr\&q=85\&s=1605829919475d27c40d049eeb3b0085)

A free one-day count, then every setting in plain words.

Use it to compare choices as you go. The lane's real numbers come from its first check, which covers the last 14 days and applies every filter.

**6. Create the lane**

Press **Create lane**. It's free: you pay only for people you export.

The first check starts by itself within a few minutes and usually takes a few minutes more. After that, the lane is checked every day. If you requested new keywords, the lane starts counting once they're live.

**7. Read the lane page**

![An intent lane's Overview tab with 186 people new for you](https://mintcdn.com/intentleads/16GfXNJlPs26aspr/images/app/lane-overview.png?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=16GfXNJlPs26aspr\&q=85\&s=9e9076ee450e0498a67bd6502d146993)

The lane page: keywords under the title, what's new for you on the right, and how the count narrows.

* **Under the title**: the lane's keywords with their size today, and the date of the latest data.
* **New for you, available now**: people you could export right now at your signal, from the last 14 days, less anyone you've exported this month.
* **Overview**: **How we got here** shows three numbers: researching your keywords, after your filters, and new to you. **Example matches** shows a few people who match, without names. **Check now** runs a fresh check, for free.
* **Keywords**: each keyword's signal today, flagged when it's **Very broad** or has **No signal yet**. Add, replace or remove keywords here.
* **Filters**: everything that decides who counts, the signal setting, how your target accounts apply, and your radius on a map.
* **History**: one bar for each daily check, and the full funnel, filter by filter.

![An intent lane's Filters tab: job titles, US HQ, a 50-mile radius around Houston and a mobile](https://mintcdn.com/intentleads/16GfXNJlPs26aspr/images/app/lane-filters-tab.png?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=16GfXNJlPs26aspr\&q=85\&s=4ae0fe12a12dbe3b854c20102f56bbff)

The Filters tab, with the radius on a map.

If "after your filters" is much smaller than "researching your keywords", one filter is probably doing most of the cutting. The full funnel on **History** shows which.

**8. Export**

In the **New for you** card, type how many people you want. The button shows the price as you type, like **Export 100 for \$10.00**. That's a free quote: press the button to buy.

* You get the strongest research first, and only people you haven't exported this month.
* If your balance is short, **Add \$X and export N** tops it up and brings you back.
* An export takes a few minutes. **Follow it in Leads**, then press **CSV** next to it under **Recent exports**.

![The Leads page with a recent export and a table of leads](https://mintcdn.com/intentleads/16GfXNJlPs26aspr/images/app/leads.png?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=16GfXNJlPs26aspr\&q=85\&s=4dc2d965d715fe91a7c4d715201a4a7a)

Leads: your exports and everyone in them. Downloading again is free.

[Lead fields](https://docs.intentleads.si/lead-fields.md) lists every column.

## Next

> [card] [Choose keywords that work](https://docs.intentleads.si/playbooks/choosing-keywords.md)
>
> Read the numbers, use "and also" groups and act on warnings.

> [card] [Target the right people](https://docs.intentleads.si/playbooks/right-people.md)
>
> Titles or seniority, size, radius, target accounts and must-haves.

> [card] [A daily routine](https://docs.intentleads.si/playbooks/daily-routine.md)
>
> Export what's new and reach out while the research is fresh.

> [card] [Build a list with Search](https://docs.intentleads.si/get-started/first-search.md)
>
> Everyone who fits, whether they're researching or not.


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