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Documentation Index

Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.spherescout.io/llms.txt

Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

Filters are how you turn SphereScout’s entire database into a precise, targeted list. You can apply filters to narrow by business type, geography, and the specific contact details each business has on file. All filters work together with AND logic — every filter you add further restricts the results to contacts that satisfy all your criteria simultaneously. The more filters you apply, the smaller and more targeted your result set becomes.

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Filter categories

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Category (business type)

The category filter lets you select one or more business types. Categories represent the primary industry or profession of the business — for example, Restaurant, Dentist, Real Estate Agent, or Electrician.
  • You can select multiple categories in a single search. The results will include businesses that match any of the selected categories.
  • Each business is tagged with a single primary category, so a business will only appear in results when its primary category matches your selection.
Start your search by picking a category first. It is the fastest way to cut the database down to the industry segment you want to reach.

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Country

The country filter sets the geographic scope of your search. Most searches require a country selection before other location filters become available.
  • SphereScout covers 20+ countries across multiple continents.
  • Selecting a country unlocks the region/state and city filters for that country.

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Region / State

The region filter narrows your results to a specific state, province, or administrative region within the selected country — for example, California in the United States or Île-de-France in France.
  • You can select multiple regions within the same country.
  • Leaving this filter blank returns results from the entire country.

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City

The city filter narrows results to a specific city or town within a region. Use it when you want to target a local market precisely — for example, only businesses in Austin, Texas rather than all of Texas.
  • You can select multiple cities.
  • City filtering is available after you have selected a country. Selecting a region first will narrow the list of available cities.
You do not have to select filters in strict order, but choosing Country → Region → City in sequence gives you the most relevant options at each step.

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Presence filters

Presence filters let you restrict results to contacts that have a specific piece of contact information on file. Use them to guarantee that every exported contact has the data you need to run your outreach.

Has Email

Only return businesses that have a validated email address on file.

Has Phone

Only return businesses that have a phone number on file.

Has Website

Only return businesses that have a website URL on file.

Has Facebook

Only return businesses with a Facebook page on file.

Has Twitter / X

Only return businesses with a Twitter/X profile on file.

Has LinkedIn

Only return businesses with a LinkedIn page on file.

Has Instagram

Only return businesses with an Instagram profile on file.
Enabling multiple presence filters at once can significantly reduce your result count. For example, requiring both email and phone will exclude any business that has only one of the two. Start with the single most important field for your campaign.

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Additional filters

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Main activity only

When enabled, this filter excludes secondary or satellite locations from the results. Some businesses operate across multiple locations and appear in the database more than once. Enabling “main activity only” keeps one primary record per business and removes branch or franchise duplicates. Use this filter when you want to contact a business once rather than reaching the same organisation through multiple locations.

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Exclude closed businesses

SphereScout’s database includes records that have been flagged as closed based on data updates. By default, these records may appear in search results. Enable this filter to remove closed businesses and export only currently operating locations.
Enabling “exclude closed businesses” is recommended for most outreach campaigns. It avoids wasted credits on contacts that are no longer active.

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How filters combine

All filters in SphereScout use AND logic. This means a contact must satisfy every filter you have set in order to appear in your results. For example:
  • Category: Dentist AND Country: United States AND Region: Texas AND Has Email: true
This search returns only dentists in Texas (USA) that have a validated email address — not dentists elsewhere, not Texas businesses in other categories, and not dentists without an email.

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Tips for effective filtering

1

Start broad, then narrow

Begin with just a category and country. Check the result count, then add a region or city to narrow further. This approach helps you understand how large each market segment is before you commit to a narrow filter set.
2

Always apply at least one presence filter

If your campaign depends on email outreach, enable “has email” before exporting. If you plan to call, enable “has phone.” This prevents you from spending credits on contacts that cannot be reached through your chosen channel.
3

Use main activity only for cleaner lists

Enable “main activity only” to avoid receiving the same franchise or chain location multiple times under different regional records. This is especially useful for categories like fast food, retail, or hotel chains.
4

Exclude closed businesses for live campaigns

Always enable the closed business exclusion filter when building a list for active outreach. Contacting closed businesses wastes credits and can hurt your sender reputation.
5

Save your search before exporting

Once you are satisfied with your filter combination and the result count, save your search before exporting. This lets you re-run the same search next month to capture newly added contacts without rebuilding your filters from scratch.