ZoomInfo vs Cognism Overview
This is a full analysis of ZoomInfo vs. Cognism, comparing two of the best sales tools for outreach. The B2B industry is booming, bringing in an estimated $6.7 trillion in 2021 alone. With so many companies in such a huge industry, it is no wonder that there are a number of platforms dedicated to helping B2B startups become even more profitable.
Market intelligence platforms are an important tool in any B2B company’s arsenal — so much so that they could technically be considered B2B2B — but with so many options on the market, it can be difficult to choose between them. Two of the most popular platforms employed by B2B startups are ZoomInfo and Cognism. While they have similar functions, there are distinct differences between the two that may make one a better fit than the other.
From features, integrations, pricing, and reviews, this is everything you need to know when deciding between ZoomInfo vs. Cognism.
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What is ZoomInfo?
Released and rebranded in 2019, ZoomInfo has quickly become one of the most widely used market intelligence platforms for both B2B sales and marketing teams. It’s one of the best sales tools for prospecting. It offers users a huge database of information that is frequently updated, scanning millions of online resources like press releases, news articles, job postings, and Securities and Exchange Commission filings. ZoomInfo aims to be a complete resource for B2B companies, featuring a number of resources, integrations, and customer relationship management (CRM) tools.
ZoomInfo has found great success due to its simple, easy-to-use interface and wide range of information that is valuable even to those outside of the B2B industry.
ZoomInfo Overview
What is Cognism?
Like ZoomInfo, Cognism is a market intelligence platform designed to boost the profits of its B2B users. Launched in 2015 and based in London, Cognism places a greater focus on revenue, optimizing their resources and integrations towards sales teams and conversion rates. Still, the platform does offer impressive marketing solutions. For this reason, Cognism has become a valuable tool for small businesses and startups that are looking to identify issues in their sales efforts and increased profits. Cognism is one of the top ZoomInfo competitors.
Its revenue solutions are not the only reason that Cognism has become such a popular choice for B2B companies, though. Cognism displays a remarkable level of respect for its users and the contacts listed within the platform, adhering to strict levels of compliance imposed by both the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and internal ethics. Cognism, as well as Lead411, are ZoomInfo Alternatives that provide direct mobile phone numbers and b2b email addresses. To get more info, check out our article on what is Cognism.
Cognism Overview
ZoomInfo vs. Cognism Features
Though both platforms have similar uses at the core of their softwares, they quickly branch out into different features moving outward. This is the most important aspect to think about when deciding between ZoomInfo vs. Cognism — will the platform do what your small business needs it to do?
ZoomInfo Features
Trying to navigate ZoomInfo’s features can be a bit confusing, since the platform is split into four smaller platforms: SalesOS, MarketingOS, TalentOS, and OperationsOS. Each of these branch platforms include features that relate to the demographic it serves — whether it be sales, marketing, recruiting, or customer service — but not all of these features are included within subscriptions at every price point. Plus, ZoomInfo has separate products that can be bundled within a subscription that aren’t always automatically included. For a better comparison of ZoomInfo vs. Cognism, these are some of ZoomInfo’s best features geared towards sales:
- Scoops
Sourced through customer surveys and the platform’s in-house research team, ZoomInfo’s Scoops are actionable intelligence leads that give users information on relevant data, like a client company’s newest projects or changes in leadership. This is solid intel that helps sales teams secure deals in a timely manner.
- Intent
ZoomInfo’s Intent feature analyzes a client’s purchasing intent over the sales cycle, helping users close sales when a client is ready and prevent them from wasting time on potential clients that aren’t interested in buying just yet. Compare other Intent Data providers.
- Analytics
Designed for team leaders, ZoomInfo Analytics uses quantitative data to describe the qualitative results of a sales team. It helps users better understand what works, what doesn’t, and why when it comes to securing sales. Analytics is also a great tool for training, as it can highlight individual users and find ways to help them improve.
div>Cognism Features
Though Cognism does offer valuable marketing solutions, its features geared towards sales are by far the platform’s greatest achievement. Cognism’s features rely heavily on artificial intelligence for data collection and analysis, unlike ZoomInfo, which employs an in-house research team to carry out many of these tasks.These are some of Cognism’s most useful sales features and solutions:
- Prospector
Prospector is the platform’s lead building tool, which allows users to build and segment in-depth lead and account lists using advanced filters. The Prospector feature then uses artificial intelligence to identify and direct users toward potential clients that fit the qualifications set in their lists, making lead building a breeze.
- Enhance
Customer data is ever-changing, as Cognism asserts that up to 70% of customer relationship management data is out of date after only one year. To combat this, Cognism’s Enhance feature allows users to automatically update data for their existing clients and those on their lead building lists, ensuring that their users always have the freshest data available to avoid botching a sale.
- Intent Data
Like ZoomInfo’s Intent feature, Cognism’s Intent Data gives users in depth information on buyer intent using AI powered analytics of buyer trends and sales cycles. This data also highlights the pain points of interested clients. Better yet, users are alerted when accounts are deemed to be ready to make a purchase so they can swoop in and secure a sale.
ZoomInfo vs. Cognism Integrations
In today’s business landscape, it is impossible to run a company without the use of multiple different types of software. For B2B startups, running a large amount of software is essential, as you need to have unique solutions for the challenges that come along with working with other businesses — not to mention the apps needed for sales, marketing, and customer service. Market intelligence platforms have done well to offer their users nearly every integration they could need, but some still miss the mark. When examining ZoomInfo vs. Cognism, you need to make sure that your chosen platform has integration capabilities with the apps you need to use. Here’s what they have to offer:
ZoomInfo Integrations
- It would be impossible for ZoomInfo to be as popular as it is without its integration library, as it offers almost everything users need, including browser extensions. Though ZoomInfo offers far less integrations than some of its competitors and sticks with the most common apps, this results in seamless integrations as there are fewer for the platform to implement and troubleshoot. These are some of ZoomInfo’s most useful integrations:
- HubSpot
- Salesforce
- Pipedrive
- ReachOut for Sales
- ReachOut for Recruiters
- Google Cloud Platform
- Greenhouse
- Slack
- Microsoft Dynamics 365
- JobDiva
- SugarCRM
- Outreach
- Marketo
- Shift
- Bullhorn
- Causal
- Sales Robots
- ChatFunnels
- Paligo
- Snowflake
- NeverBounce API
- NeverBounce Clean
- ZoomInfo Enrich
- Zoho CRM
- Upscale
- CaliberMind
Cognism Integrations
Similar to ZoomInfo, Cognism does not offer an extensive integration library, but features even fewer compatible apps. This makes sense, though, as Cognism is a smaller company with an estimated 1,000 users (compared to ZoomInfo’s 120,000) and more focused use cases. Despite their small customer pool, Cognism still offers a solid list of integrations. Here are some of our favorites:
- HubSpot
- Salesforce
- Pipedrive
- MicroSoft Dynamics
- Outreach
- Zapier
- Wufoo
- Salesloft
- Vidyard
- G Suite
- Yahoo
- Office365
- Gmail
- Insightly
- Slack
- Zoho CRM
- Copper
- Close
ZoomInfo vs. Cognism Pricing
Features and compatible integrations are both important aspects to think about when comparing ZoomInfo vs. Cognism, but for small B2B companies and startups, there is another key player: price. Even for those rare corporations for which money is no object, data intelligence platforms can be expensive, especially when there are multiple teams and a large number of users that need to be added to a subscription plan.
Unfortunately, both ZoomInfo and Cognism have followed the industry standard of not being transparent about their prices, but this isn’t because the platforms are being deliberately shady. Instead, it’s because their prices are scalable and based on a number of customizable factors depending on what’s included with a subscription. Here’s what we know about the pricing differences between ZoomInfo vs. Cognism:
ZoomInfo Pricing
ZoomInfo SalesOS has three different subscription tiers, Professional, Advanced, and Elite. As expected, each package comes with specific features that increase as the price does. This pricing is not fixed, as users can add products — like Chorus, Chat, and Engage — for an additional fee. With a minimum contract of one year, ZoomInfo is far more expensive than some of its competitors. According to ZoomInfo Pricing, (not including additional products, users, or features):
| Package | Features | Price (per year) |
| Professional | Company data Direct dial Prospect lists Territory management filters | $14,998 |
| Advanced | All features included in the Professional package Location and hierarchy data Social media links for clients Intent feature Lead building recommendations | $24,995 |
| Elite | All features included in the Professional and Advanced packages Real-time buyer intent Sales automation Contact Tracking Advanced company data AI-generated demographic profiles | $39,995 |
Since Cognism has fewer users than ZoomInfo, there is not much information available on the platform’s pricing, but you can receive a quote from their website. The platform offers two pricing packages — here is what each subscription tier includes:
| Package | Features | Price (per year) |
| Platinum | Platform access & integrations Company profile data Phone-verified data Technographics Sales trigger events Customer support | Price upon request |
| Diamond | All featured included in the Platinum package Buyer intent data Advanced customer support Ability to request data verification on demand | Price upon request |
ZoomInfo vs. Cognism Reviews
Even with the knowledge about what these platforms offer and how much they cost, you’re still missing one more piece of information in the ZoomInfo vs. Cognism debate: what do their customers think? Company websites only tell you so much — customer reviews tell you everything these marketing intelligence platforms will not divulge.
ZoomInfo Reviews
With more than 120,000 users, ZoomInfo has racked up quite a collection of reviews, both good and bad. The majority of customers who have taken the time to review the platform seem to enjoy it, but note that there are some glaring issues. Here are the five things reviewers mention most often:
- PRO: Seamless Integrations
While ZoomInfo has a small amount of compatible integrations, the ones the platform does offer integrate seamlessly with few issues, making the switch to ZoomInfo a breeze.
- CON: Confusing Interface
Reviewers complain that ZoomInfo is difficult to use and even harder to learn, noting that the search function is especially clunky and often useless.
- PRO: Comprehensive Database
Many customers love ZoomInfo’s huge information database, writing that it includes client titles, email addresses, phone numbers, revenue, what CRM they use, and more.
- CON: Incorrect or Out of Date Information
While it makes sense that a huge information database would result in some incorrect data being overlooked, reviewers say that it is a common issue and that data is not refreshed often enough.
- CON: Bad Customer Service
Customer service appears to be a pain point for ZoomInfo users, as many reviews note that representatives are slow to respond to queries and are not that helpful. Other reviews mention that ZoomInfo’s representatives do not fully disclose pricing, resulting in expensive fees and overages.
Cognism Reviews
Despite having a much smaller customer base than many of its competitors, Cognism’s users appear to love the platform. In fact, Cognism has a better positive to negative review ratio than ZoomInfo. Here’s what the reviews like and don’t like about Cognism:
- PRO: Extensive Collection of European Data
The thing reviewers mention most about Cognism is that the platform boasts a large database of information that is especially thorough in Europe. This information includes nearly everything users might need.
- CON: Incorrect Data
Though Cognism does update data often, users claim that there are many instances when the data is out-of-date and the AI cannot update information fast enough for their needs.
- PRO: Customer Service
Reviews state that Cognism’s representatives are thorough with solutions when needed and are extremely knowledgeable about the platform.
- CON: Price
Though Cognism does not post pricing on their website, users seem to think that the platform is expensive and should be cheaper.
- PRO: Google Chrome Extension
Reviewers can’t get enough of the Cognism Chrome Extension. So many reviewers mention that it is one of the most useful features the platform has to offer, despite being a simple addition.
The Verdict: ZoomInfo vs. Cognism
Though both platforms work in the same way, one has to be better than the other, but comparing ZoomInfo vs. Cognism reveals that the “best” platform depends on your use case.
For B2B companies that need a wide range of capabilities for their sales, marketing, and outreach teams and don’t mind paying top dollar for their services, ZoomInfo is the clear winner.
However, if your B2B startup wants to place an emphasis on sales or needs more data on clients and companies in Europe, Cognism is worth considering.
Alternatives to Cognism and ZoomInfo
Still not sure who wins the ZoomInfo vs. Cognism debate? The market intelligence platform industry is rife with competitors (you can read about some of them here), so if you aren’t sold on these two, you still have more options, such as:
- Lead411
- Uplead
- Clearbit
- LeadIQ
- Lusha
- InsideView
- D&B Hoovers
- Seamless.ai
- LinkedIn Sales Navigator
- Apollo.io
- Interseller
Check out out software evaluation guide when buying new software and an update for ZoomInfo alternatives.
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