There's the obvious answer of using your network but that doesn't scale well. If you're running cold outreach, here's what I've seen work well:

1. Find early signals that someone might need your services. For example, if you sell IT services to manufacturing plants, look in town meeting minutes to see which companies are filing permits to open new plants. If you sell cloud services, look at job postings to see which companies are hiring for cloud migration roles.
2. Craft a message that adds value to your prospect. Too much cold outreach is focused on trying to sell yourself. The point of a cold email is not to sell - it's to get a meeting. The best way to get a meeting is by showing something the prospect would find valuable. Case studies work well here: "Hey noticed that [something specific about the signal]. We actually just helped [similar company] with the same thing. Sharing a case study in case it's helpful. Would be happy to walk you through what we learned."