AI Lead Research & SDR Assistant

# AI Lead Research & SDR Assistant ### Hourly, Part-Time | Paid Trial | Long-Term Potential We are looking for a smart, dependable, and highly resourceful freelancer to support two growing businesses: BuiltForYou.ai, an AI services company, and Vallexa Advisors, an M&A advisory firm. This is an hourly, part-time role beginning with a small paid trial. We are hoping to find someone who can learn our businesses, improve with feedback, and potentially continue working with us regularly over the long term. The ideal person is comfortable using AI tools, researching companies and decision-makers, verifying contact information, organizing lead data, and determining whether a prospect is genuinely qualified. You do not need to be an AI developer. You do need to be highly comfortable using tools such as ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, or similar platforms to work faster and more intelligently, while still verifying the accuracy of your results. ## Initial Paid Trial The first assignment will involve helping us market a portfolio of valuable domain names. We will provide a small group of domains. Your job will be to: * Identify companies or websites that may be a strong strategic match for each domain * Explain why each company may benefit from owning the domain * Find the most relevant decision-maker at each company * Research and verify business email addresses * Research and verify company or direct phone numbers * Locate LinkedIn profiles and company websites * Qualify each lead as High, Medium, or Low priority * Provide clear source links showing where the information was verified * Document your research in an organized spreadsheet or CRM-ready format * Explain how AI was used and how the results were checked for accuracy The trial is designed to evaluate research quality, judgment, communication, organization, accuracy, and ability to follow instructions. We care more about finding the right prospects than producing a large list of weak or irrelevant leads. No companies should be contacted during the initial trial unless we provide written approval. ## Long-Term Responsibilities For the right person, the role may expand to include: * B2B prospect research and lead generation * Contact and company data enrichment * Lead verification and qualification * GoHighLevel contact and pipeline management * Updating lead statuses, notes, tags, and custom fields * Building and improving research workflows * Creating standard operating procedures * Preparing approved outreach lists * Drafting personalized outreach messages * Following up with prospects * Qualifying business owners and acquisition leads * Supporting seller and buyer lead workflows * Using AI tools to improve research, communication, and efficiency There may also be an opportunity to make professional calls to US businesses using a web-based phone system. Calling is not required for the initial research trial, but strong spoken English and prior calling experience would be a significant advantage. ## Required Skills * Strong written English * Careful online research skills * Experience with B2B lead generation or prospect research * Ability to identify relevant decision-makers * Experience finding and verifying business emails and phone numbers * Strong attention to detail * Good judgment when qualifying leads * Comfortable using AI tools in daily work * Ability to verify AI-generated information rather than accepting it automatically * Organized and able to document sources clearly * Reliable communication and willingness to learn * Ability to follow detailed instructions * Respect for confidential business information ## Preferred Experience Experience with any of the following is helpful but not required: * GoHighLevel * Apollo * Clay * LinkedIn Sales Navigator * Instantly * Hunter * RocketReach * ZoomInfo * Google Sheets * CRM data management * Cold calling * Appointment setting * Domain sales * M&A, business brokerage, private equity, or business-owner outreach * Creating or improving AI-assisted workflows ## Confidentiality Some assignments will involve confidential business information. Candidates who continue beyond the initial stage may be required to sign a nondisclosure agreement before receiving access to sensitive information, internal systems, lead data, or company processes. Access to systems and information will be provided gradually based on the assignment and demonstrated reliability. ## Hours and Working Relationship This is an hourly, part-time opportunity. We will begin with a limited paid trial and may increase the hours for someone who consistently produces accurate, thoughtful work. We are interested in building a long-term working relationship with one reliable individual who wants to understand our businesses, improve our systems, and take on greater responsibility over time. We are not looking for an agency that rotates work between different team members. We prefer to work directly with the individual completing the assignments. ## Performance Bonuses This is an hourly role. After a successful paid trial, additional performance-based bonuses may be available for verified, qualified leads that convert. The potential bonus opportunity can be meaningful, particularly for successful leads connected to the M&A side of the business. Detailed qualification standards, conversion milestones, eligibility requirements, and payout terms will be shared with candidates who move forward after the trial. Bonus terms will be agreed upon before any bonus-eligible work begins. ## What Success Looks Like A successful candidate will: * Find companies that are genuinely relevant, not just loosely connected * Identify the correct decision-makers * Provide accurate and verified contact information * Explain the reasoning behind each lead * Use AI intelligently without relying on inaccurate or invented information * Follow instructions carefully * Communicate clearly when something is uncertain * Produce organized work that requires minimal correction * Improve after receiving feedback * Show interest in learning the businesses and contributing over time ## How to Apply Please answer the following questions in your proposal: 1. What experience do you have with B2B lead research and qualification? 2. Which AI tools do you use regularly, and how do you verify their output? 3. Which tools have you used to find and verify business emails and phone numbers? 4. Have you used GoHighLevel or another CRM? Please describe your experience. 5. Are you comfortable making professional phone calls to US businesses if we provide a web-based phone system? 6. How many hours are you currently available each week? 7. Are you interested in a long-term, part-time working relationship? 8. Please describe one example of a difficult company or decision-maker you successfully researched. 9. Please include the phrase “verified lead” near the beginning of your proposal so we know you read the complete description. A brief voice introduction is strongly encouraged if Upwork allows you to include one. Please do not send a generic proposal. We are looking for someone thoughtful, accurate, curious, and comfortable learning new systems.