Almost every piece of advice on account intel begins with "study yearly/quarterly reports." (a.k.a. 10-K/10-Q)
And rightfully so - you can quickly grasp the financials, key initiatives, and other data points that will come in handy for building the business case and adjusting it to the C-level's current agenda.
However, there's a much deeper source of intel that's lying in the same investor relations section of the website but is unfairly ignored.
Recordings of the investor calls.
Yes, they take more time to absorb, but there's so much more juice in them compared to a slidedeck.
- Earnings calls are the perfect way to hear C-Level execs discuss strategic initiatives and challenges in their words. Feel the tone, and note the specific KPIs they mention. And, of course, fish for "internal language".
- Studying the calls gives you perfect opening lines for the outreach cadences. (Jack, at the recent ACME Company's Q1 webcast, your CFO Jim Johnson said that ...) -> segue to the problem you help to solve.
- Q&A sessions. It's one of those serendipity moments when a random question from the investor can give you insight that will build the perfect pitch. I've had these revelations dozens of times, so it's no coincidence.
Bottom line: don't be lazy and invest time in listening to the investor webcasts. More often than not, there's pure gold in them.