An in-depth analysis of the Forrester Wave™: Marketing and Sales Data Providers for B2B, Q1 2024, evaluating 14 top vendors on 28 criteria.

In The Forrester Wave™: Marketing and Sales Data Providers for B2B, Q1 2024, Forrester evaluated 14 significant providers across 28 criteria, naming ZoomInfo a leader with top scores in the Current Offering and Strategy categories. [5] The report highlights a market shift towards consolidated platforms serving both marketing and sales, favoring vendors with deep data, broad integrations, and strong AI readiness. [1, 3] This evaluation, however, focuses on enterprise-level providers, leaving a significant data gap for companies targeting local and small businesses. [11, 15]

TL;DR

The Q1 2024 Forrester Wave evaluated 14 B2B marketing and sales data providers, an expansion from the 2021 marketing-only focus. [3]
ZoomInfo was named a Leader, receiving the highest scores in the Current Offering and Strategy categories and top marks in 21 of 28 criteria. [5]
Anteriad was named a Strong Performer, earning the highest possible score for its global delivery strategy and service approach. [2]
The evaluation criteria included a vendor's vision, innovation, roadmap, and depth of account, email, and mobile data coverage. [7]
The report's focus on enterprise vendors highlights a data coverage gap for North American SMBs, which major providers struggle to resolve. [7, 11]

What Changed in Forrester's 2024 B2B Data Provider Evaluation?

The Forrester Wave™ for Q1 2024 introduces its most significant evolution by merging the evaluation of B2B marketing data providers with sales data providers into a single, consolidated analysis. [3, 5] This change directly reflects a major market trend: the convergence of go-to-market functions and the breakdown of traditional silos between sales and marketing departments. [15] Previously, the 2021 Forrester Wave™ focused exclusively on B2B marketing data, evaluating vendors on a narrower set of 24 criteria. [16] The new, unified report, titled The Forrester Wave™: Marketing and Sales Data Providers for B2B, Q1 2024, acknowledges that modern revenue teams require a shared operational database to power everything from account-based marketing (ABM) to sales prospecting. [5] This shift was driven by the increasing availability and quality of intent data, which demands coordinated efforts around an integrated view of customers. [5] As noted in the analysis of the 2024 Forrester Wave, the report now favors providers who serve as a primary data source for the entire revenue function, not just one department.

Forrester's 2024 methodology became more stringent, expanding to assess the 14 most significant providers against 28 distinct criteria. [5, 6] This updated framework was designed to evaluate a broader set of use cases that span the needs of both marketing and sales professionals. [3] To be included in this rigorous evaluation, vendors had to meet a new baseline, including a minimum of $10 million in annual data revenue and the demonstrated potential to serve as a primary data source for enterprise-level clients. [3] This focus on enterprise-grade providers underscores the complexity and scale required to manage modern B2B data ecosystems effectively. The criteria themselves covered a wide range of capabilities, with vendors like Dun & Bradstreet scoring highest in areas such as data management, partner ecosystem, and firmographic data. [6] This rigorous approach ensures that only providers capable of handling complex, global enterprise needs are highlighted, which is a key differentiator from past evaluations that had a slightly broader market view.

A heavy emphasis on integration capabilities and readiness for artificial intelligence further distinguishes the 2024 evaluation. The scoring model now strongly rewards providers with extensive, native integrations across the modern revenue technology stack, including CRM systems like Salesforce, marketing automation platforms, ABM solutions, and sales engagement tools. [3] The ability to unify disparate data sources is critical, as research shows that integrating marketing automation with a CRM can increase sales win rates by as much as 30%. [2] Forrester's updated methodology reflects this reality, recognizing that seamless data flow between platforms is no longer a luxury but a foundational requirement for efficient go-to-market execution. [7, 15] Furthermore, the report introduces a forward-looking perspective by assessing 'AI data readiness'. [20] As detailed in a summary of the Wave's findings, providers are now evaluated on their ability to supply the structured, identity-resolved data necessary to power AI models, predictive analytics, and next-generation business intelligence, signaling a major shift toward future-proofing data strategies.

Who Were the Leaders and Strong Performers in Q1 2024?

ZoomInfo secured its position as a definitive Leader in The Forrester Wave™: Marketing and Sales Data Providers for B2B, Q1 2024, by achieving the highest possible scores in an impressive 21 out of 28 evaluated criteria. This commanding performance placed it at the top of both the Current Offering and Strategy categories, underscoring the platform's robust capabilities and forward-looking vision. The evaluation highlighted ZoomInfo's exceptional depth in both firmographic (account) and demographic (contact) data, along with superior behavioral and intent data offerings. Forrester specifically recognized the company's strengths in data security, compliance, data matching, and innovation, which are critical differentiators in a crowded market. According to a press release from ZoomInfo, these results stem from substantial investments in building the most accurate and comprehensive B2B data platform, which now includes profiles on 321 million professional contacts. The report confirms that for organizations seeking a deeply integrated data provider that can serve as a single source of truth for both sales and marketing, ZoomInfo presents a compelling and market-leading solution.

Anteriad distinguished itself as a Strong Performer in the Q1 2024 evaluation, earning specific praise for its high-touch service model and strategic execution. Reference customers cited in the report lauded the company for its ability to function as a seamless extension of their internal marketing teams, a testament to its customer-centric approach. While many providers focus on a pure software platform, Anteriad's strategy combines data offerings with a full-service marketing partnership, a model that resonates with companies looking for more hands-on support. The company received the highest possible scores for its global delivery strategy and compliant data collection processes, highlighting its strengths in providing quality, privacy-compliant data on an international scale. According to an announcement from Anteriad, its placement in the top five for the Strategy category underscores a strong vision for delivering future value. This performance is notable as Anteriad was also recognized as a Strong Performer in The Forrester Wave™: B2B Intent Data Providers, Q2 2023, making it one of the few vendors to achieve high marks in both critical evaluations.

The Forrester Wave™ methodology provides a rigorous and transparent framework for categorizing the 14 most significant vendors into four distinct tiers: Leaders, Strong Performers, Contenders, and Challengers. This classification is the result of a detailed analysis across 28 criteria, which are grouped into three high-level categories: Current Offering, Strategy, and Market Presence. The Current Offering axis evaluates the strength of each vendor's product and service today, while the Strategy axis assesses the coherence and strength of its vision for the future. Market Presence, represented by the size of the marker on the Wave graphic, historically reflected market share and installed base. Leaders, as defined by Forrester, are those providers that offer a comprehensive, connected view of the market that effectively serves the aligned needs of both marketing and sales functions. This 2024 evaluation notably expanded its scope from the 2021 report, which focused only on marketing data, to reflect the critical industry trend toward a unified data foundation for all revenue-generating teams.

Vendor	Wave Category (Q1 2024)	Key Strength from Report	Evaluation Criteria with Highest Score
ZoomInfo	Leader	Exceptional depth of firmographic and demographic data coverage.	Current Offering, Strategy, Market Presence, Data Security, Innovation
Dun & Bradstreet	Leader	Effective for complex global enterprises with advanced use cases.	Data Management, Partner Ecosystem, Global Delivery Strategy
Anteriad	Strong Performer	Acts as an extension of in-house marketing resources with high service levels.	Global Delivery Strategy, Compliant Data Collection
Data Axle	Strong Performer	Shines where complexity and customization are required.	Vision, Innovation, Roadmap, AI Data Readiness
6sense	Strong Performer	Strong analytics support and a centralized platform for insight and activation.	Not specified in search results

How Were Vendors Scored on Data Depth and Platform Strategy?

Vendor evaluations in The Forrester Wave™ for B2B Marketing and Sales Data Providers hinged significantly on the 'Current Offering' category, which scrutinized the tangible assets and capabilities platforms provide today. This category assessed the depth and breadth of core data types, including firmographics, contact data (demographics), the availability of complementary data like technographics, and global coverage. [4] Forrester's analysis recognized that a consolidated view serving both marketing and sales is now essential, placing a premium on providers that deliver a comprehensive, connected market perspective. [2, 4] For example, ZoomInfo was named a leader in the Q1 2024 report, receiving the top score in this category partly due to its recognized depth of data coverage and inclusion of behavioral and intent data. [1] The scoring model heavily favored vendors whose platforms could function as the primary, shared operational database for an entire revenue organization, reflecting a major shift from the 2021 evaluation which focused solely on marketing data providers. [2] This emphasis underscores the market's demand for unified data that supports coordinated efforts across all revenue functions, from traditional demand generation to account-based marketing.

The 'Strategy' category provided a forward-looking assessment of each vendor's ability to innovate and adapt to market evolution, with Forrester evaluating vision, innovation, product roadmap, and the strength of the partner ecosystem. [7, 12] High scores in this category were awarded to providers demonstrating a clear plan for future growth and a strong capacity to invest in emerging technologies. [17] For instance, Data Axle received the highest possible scores in the Q1 2024 Wave for its vision, innovation, and roadmap, with Forrester noting the company is ahead of the market in developing the semantic data layer required for advanced agentic business intelligence. [9] This focus on future-readiness is critical, as criteria such as AI data readiness, data unification services, and robust data integrations were heavily weighted. [9] As detailed in the Forrester Wave B2B Data Providers Q1 2024 Analysis, vendors like ZoomInfo also scored highly in strategy, reflecting first-to-market generative AI capabilities and a substantial R&D budget aimed at maintaining a technological edge. [16] This strategic evaluation signals that a vendor's long-term viability depends not just on its current database but on its commitment to platform evolution and ecosystem integration.

A fundamental shift in scoring methodology for the Q1 2024 Wave was the increased emphasis on a provider's ability to move beyond large, static databases toward the efficient identification of prospects exhibiting active buying behaviors. [5] The evaluation reflects a market where, according to a 2026 Forrester survey of over 17,500 global buyers, purchasing decisions are increasingly shaped by AI-driven research and real-time signals long before direct vendor engagement. [22] Consequently, the report rewards platforms that excel at capturing, connecting, and contextualizing buying signals to illuminate customer needs and purchase intent. [5] This transition favors providers who can help revenue teams anticipate and respond to where a buying group is in its journey, a core tenet of modern lifecycle revenue marketing. [5, 21] The ability to process real-time data from multiple sources and integrate it into a cohesive view is no longer a luxury but a foundational requirement, as noted in the ZoomInfo analysis of the report. [1] This pivot in evaluation criteria acknowledges that the true value of a data platform now lies in its capacity to drive timely, relevant engagement based on dynamic behavioral insights rather than just static profiles.

Scoring Criterion	Evaluation Category	Description	Strategic Importance
AI Data Readiness	Strategy	Assesses if a vendor's data is structured and unified for AI modeling, analytics, and automation. [9]	Critical for enabling predictive analytics, agentic AI use cases, and AI-driven revenue strategies. [9]
Data Unification Services	Current Offering	Evaluates the ability to merge fragmented customer and business data into a single, governed foundation. [9]	Supports a shared operational database for both marketing and sales, enabling coordinated GTM efforts. [2]
Partner Ecosystem	Strategy	Measures the strength and breadth of a vendor's integration partners and channel relationships. [7, 12]	Enables data to be operationalized across a wide range of sales, marketing, and analytics platforms. [9]
Intent Data	Current Offering	Assesses the inclusion of behavioral signals indicating active buyer interest and purchase intent. [1, 5]	Allows teams to shift from static lists to prioritizing accounts actively in a buying cycle. [5]
Global Delivery Strategy	Strategy	Evaluates a vendor's capability to provide and verify data across multiple international regions. [3]	Essential for enterprise organizations needing to target and engage with a global customer base.
Vision	Strategy	Analyzes the vendor's forward-looking market perspective and plan to address future customer needs. [9, 12]	Indicates the vendor's potential for long-term market leadership and sustained innovation. [17]

Why is AI Readiness a Critical New Evaluation Axis?

The inclusion of AI readiness as a key evaluation criterion in the Forrester Wave for B2B data providers signals a fundamental market shift where high-quality, structured data is no longer a passive asset but the essential fuel for artificial intelligence initiatives. Generative AI and predictive models cannot function effectively on fragmented or unreliable information; they require a unified, identity-resolved data foundation to generate meaningful insights and automate complex decisions. [19] According to a 2024 Forrester survey on B2B frontline marketing, teams with high AI readiness demonstrate significantly better alignment with sales, with 91% of high-readiness teams reporting alignment compared to 72% of those with lower readiness. [30] This highlights that AI success is deeply intertwined with data strategy. Vendors are now being judged on their ability to provide this AI-ready data infrastructure, as evidenced by providers like Data Axle being recognized for enabling organizations to operationalize AI with data explicitly structured for modeling and automation. [19] This necessity is further underscored by the fact that 46% of sales professionals using AI agents report that poor data quality directly harms their sales performance, making the underlying data integrity a critical determinant of AI's ultimate business value. [3]

A crucial development in preparing data for artificial intelligence is the creation of a 'semantic data layer,' a concept Forrester identifies as a key differentiator among leading data providers. [19] This layer acts as a translator, enriching raw data with business context and logic so that both humans and AI agents can interpret it accurately. [11] An agentic semantic layer transforms abstract database columns like 'rev_cy' into a clearly understood and governed business concept, such as 'Current Year Recognized Revenue,' preventing the ambiguity that causes AI models to produce conflicting or incorrect answers. [22, 23] Without this governed layer, AI agents rely on probability to resolve ambiguity, which can lead to inconsistent results. [22] The evolution of this technology is moving beyond static dashboards toward powering continuous, interactive analysis by AI agents that can reason across business domains while adhering to governance rules. [22] As detailed in a ZoomInfo analysis of the Forrester report, the market is rapidly advancing toward this model, where data platforms serve as a reliable source of truth for agentic BI systems. [11]

Revenue orchestration platforms are increasingly leveraging AI to move beyond manual, instinct-based sales forecasting and toward data-driven analysis of deal health and pipeline risk. These advanced systems use predictive analytics to score win probability based on measurable signals from CRM records, emails, and meeting data, rather than relying solely on a sales representative's sentiment. [5] For example, Aviso's WinScore AI is a product specifically designed to predict deal win probability, showcasing this trend in action. [10] This AI-driven approach provides managers with an objective basis for deal reviews and can recommend specific next actions based on patterns from previously successful deals. [5] The effectiveness of these tools is significant; AI-powered sales forecasting can achieve up to 79% accuracy, a substantial improvement over the 51% accuracy of traditional methods. [2] This reliance on high-quality foundational data is why, according to a 2024 Forrester report on revenue orchestration, platforms must serve as the central hub for all buyer interactions to power generative AI insights effectively. [12]

Leading B2B data vendors are now differentiated by their capacity to serve as a unified, central hub for all buyer interactions and intent signals, which is essential for powering sophisticated generative AI applications. The ability to aggregate and analyze disparate data points, from content consumption to direct conversations, allows AI models to generate transformative insights for revenue teams. [12] For instance, Bombora's Company Surge® product uses AI and machine learning to analyze content consumption and identify B2B purchasing intent from its data cooperative. [1] Similarly, Salesforce's Agentforce AI agents are designed to automate revenue workflows by leveraging a unified data platform. [10, 25] The goal is to create a comprehensive view of the customer that can be used to drive coordinated marketing and sales efforts. [27] This consolidation is critical, as research from the Salesforce State of Sales 5th Edition, which surveyed over 7,700 sales professionals, shows that 83% of sales teams using AI reported revenue growth, compared to only 66% of teams not using it. [15, 14] This performance lift is directly tied to the quality and integration of the data feeding the AI models.

What Data Gaps Exist for SMB and Local Business Targeting?

The Forrester Wave™: Marketing and Sales Data Providers for B2B, Q1 2024 inherently excludes many specialized and emerging data providers due to its stringent inclusion criteria. To be considered for the evaluation, vendors must generate a minimum of $10 million in annual data revenue and demonstrate significant mindshare with Forrester's B2B clients, who are typically large enterprises. [5] This methodology, while effective for identifying leaders in the enterprise space, creates a significant blind spot for solutions tailored to small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs). Providers that focus exclusively on the nuanced data of local businesses, sole proprietorships, or smaller B2B entities often do not meet this revenue threshold, yet they may offer superior data accuracy and relevance for that specific market segment. The report itself notes its expanded scope in 2024 to cover both marketing and sales data reflects a market consolidation trend, favoring providers with broad functionality for complex organizations. [14, 15] As a result, the analysis, which includes enterprise-focused vendors like Dun & Bradstreet and Anteriad, does not capture the full landscape of data providers available to companies that do not operate at a global enterprise scale, leaving a critical information gap for a huge portion of the market. [10, 15]

Major data providers evaluated in the Forrester Wave, despite their strengths in enterprise coverage, exhibit documented gaps when resolving data for local and small businesses. While a provider like Data Axle is noted for its exceptional North American SMB depth, this is highlighted as a key differentiator, implying it is not the market standard for other leaders. [17] Enterprise-grade platforms are optimized for identifying signals within large, complex global organizations, but this focus can come at the expense of accuracy for smaller entities. [15] For SMBs, data challenges are often more fundamental, stemming from poor data quality, manual entry errors, and a lack of standardization across the few tools they use. [1, 12] A 2025 study by IBM found that 65% of small businesses struggle to translate their raw data into actionable insights, a problem compounded when the data they purchase from large vendors is incomplete or inaccurate for their specific segment. [4] This discrepancy means that even when SMBs invest in top-tier data, as analyzed in the Forrester Wave B2B Data Providers Q1 2024 Analysis, they may find the information is not granular or verified enough for their local or niche targeting needs, leading to wasted resources and poor campaign outcomes. [18]

A significant portion of the SMB market remains underserved by the data industry, a fact reflected in their technology investment patterns and operational challenges. Research from 2025 shows that 45% of medium-sized SMBs (100, 249 employees) identify "effectively managing/using data" as a top area for technology improvement, indicating a gap between available tools and practical needs. [7] This struggle is not due to a lack of data, but a lack of usable and relevant information presented through accessible tools. [1, 2] The fragmented nature of SMB operations, where critical information is often trapped in disconnected systems like accounting software, CRMs, and spreadsheets, is a primary obstacle. [2, 6] Enterprise-focused platforms, such as those featured in the Forrester Wave, are not designed to solve this core issue of data fragmentation for smaller organizations. [3] In fact, for SMBs with fewer than 100 employees, cost-effectiveness and ease of use are the top priorities when selecting technology, factors often at odds with the complex, feature-rich platforms built for enterprises. [13] This misalignment between the enterprise-centric data market and the practical realities of small businesses perpetuates a cycle of data poverty, where SMBs cannot access the insights needed to drive growth efficiently.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the Forrester Wave for B2B Data Providers?

The Forrester Wave for B2B Data Providers is a comprehensive evaluation designed to help businesses select the right technology partners. [3] In the Q1 2024 report, Forrester analyzed 14 significant providers based on 28 criteria, reflecting a market shift toward consolidated platforms serving both marketing and sales. [13] The process involves vendor questionnaires, product demonstrations, and customer interviews to score each provider's current offering and strategy. [1] This rigorous methodology provides a transparent, side-by-side comparison of the vendors that matter most in the market. [4]

Who was named a leader in the Q1 2024 Forrester Wave for B2B Data?

Data Axle was named a Leader in The Forrester Wave™: Marketing and Sales Data Providers for B2B, Q1 2024. [10] The report highlighted Data Axle's strengths in providing deep B2B data, especially for organizations that target small and medium-sized businesses in North America. [11] Forrester also recognized the company for its capabilities in AI data readiness and services that unify enterprise data. [12] Along with ZoomInfo, Data Axle was one of the vendors positioned in the Leaders category. [7, 10]

How did Forrester's evaluation criteria change for the 2024 report?

Forrester's Q1 2024 evaluation criteria expanded significantly from the 2021 report, which focused only on B2B marketing data. [6] The new report now covers both marketing and sales data providers, reflecting the industry's need for shared operational databases across all revenue functions. [6] This change favors providers that offer deep data, broad services, and functionality to support integrated marketing and sales use cases. [6] Furthermore, the 2024 evaluation introduced a greater emphasis on AI readiness, assessing how well providers' data can support modeling, analytics, and automation. [12]

What is the difference between a Leader and a Strong Performer in the Forrester Wave?

The primary difference between a Leader and a Strong Performer is their evaluated strength across current offerings and strategic vision. [5] Leaders are vendors that demonstrate market-leading products and a robust, differentiated strategy, placing them in the top right of the Wave graphic. [1] Strong Performers have a solid competitive standing and perform well in most areas but may not have the same comprehensiveness or forward-looking vision as Leaders. [3] While all evaluated vendors are considered significant, Leaders are generally recommended for most companies, whereas Strong Performers may be better suited for specific use cases. [1, 3]

Do Forrester Wave leaders provide good data for small businesses?

Some Forrester Wave leaders provide strong data for small businesses, while others focus more on the enterprise market. For instance, the Q1 2024 report cited Data Axle for its "exceptional account coverage within North America," specifically for organizations targeting small and medium-size businesses (SMBs). [11] However, the evaluation's overall scoring tends to favor providers with the scale and functionality required by large enterprises. [6] This enterprise focus can create data gaps, meaning companies that exclusively target local or small businesses may need to assess if a leader's SMB coverage is sufficient for their specific needs.

Last updated: August 2026

Forrester Wave B2B Data Providers Q1 2024 Analysis