Ten questions to ask any vendor
- Where does the data come from? "Proprietary sources" is not an answer. For new-business lists, the source should be the state's filings.
- How fresh is it? Ask how many days pass between the filing and your delivery.
- How do you filter to my territory? Principal address, mailing address, and registered agent address give different answers.
- What gets removed? Holding companies, filing services, and out-of-state entities should be handled somehow.
- Which contact fields are included, and how often? Ask what share of delivered records have a phone number, and whether that number is the owner's.
- Where do phone numbers come from? The state filing does not include them, so they come from somewhere else.
- How many records should I expect? A good vendor gives a range for your county and explains why it varies.
- Is it exclusive? If yes, how would you know? If no, how early do you get it? Being the first to call usually matters more than being the only one who could.
- What are the terms? Month-to-month, or a long contract?
- How do corrections and removals work? Wrong numbers and opt-out requests happen. There should be a process.
How FiledToday answers these
The source is Florida's daily filing data. Lists are filtered to your county by principal address, with holding companies and filing-service names removed. Owner phone numbers come from other public sources, and every delivered lead has one. Email and website are included when found. Volume varies by county; each county page shows recent filing counts. Territories aren't exclusive, since filings are public, but each list arrives the morning after the businesses register, so you're usually the first to call. Billing is month-to-month from $99 a month. Details are on the methodology page.
Grading a free sample
Block 30 minutes. Score each item from 0 to 2:
| Check | What 2 points looks like |
|---|---|
| Freshness | Filing dates within the last week or two |
| Territory | Every record is in the county you asked for |
| Relevance | Most records are businesses you would actually write |
| Owner match | Names on the list match the managers or officers on Sunbiz |
| Phone quality | Of 10 calls, most reach the named owner or their business |
| Format | Opens cleanly in your CRM or Google Sheets |
| Honesty | Missing fields are left blank, not filled with guesses |
A score of 10 or more out of 14 means the list is worth a month of real use. Under 7, walk away.
Red flags
- Promises of a set number of quotes, sales, or bound policies.
- "Exclusive" territories with no way to verify.
- No named source for the data.
- Samples that look better than what paying customers get.
- Phone numbers sold as an add-on after you buy the list.
- Annual contracts before you have tested the data.
Run the test on FiledToday
Pick your county, request a free sample, and run the scorecard above. No card, and nothing starts automatically.
Common questions
How do I know if a lead list is any good?
Take a sample and test it. Check that the records are recent, in your territory, and relevant to what you write. Then call ten of them and count how many numbers reach the right person. That tells you more than any claim on a vendor's website.
What should a free lead sample include?
Real, recent records for your territory in the same format you would get as a customer, with the same contact fields. A sample that is older, hand-picked, or formatted differently from the paid product is not a fair test.
What are red flags in a lead vendor?
Guaranteed sales or bound policies, exclusive territories that cannot be checked, no explanation of where the data comes from, long contracts, and phone numbers sold as an extra on top of the list.
Updated October 13, 2026 · By Ben Thalmann, founder of FiledToday