Apollo.io's native connector puts its 240M+ contact database, enrichment engine, and sequences directly inside Claude. This guide is the full loop — from ICP to enrolled sequence to weekly reporting — without leaving the chat.
Apollo ships an official connector in Claude's directory, built on its own MCP server. Every action you take in chat is recorded back in Apollo — searches, enrichments, sequence enrollments all sync to your account.
In Claude, open Settings → Connectors, search for Apollo.io, and click add. Authorize via OAuth with your Apollo login — no API key needed. Each teammate connects their own account; access mirrors their Apollo permissions.
Click Configure next to Apollo.io and review each action. Recommended: leave searches and reads on auto-allow, but set sequence enrollment and bulk enrichment to ask first — enrichment consumes Apollo credits, and enrollment can start sending real emails.
Create a Claude Project called Outbound and put your ideal customer profile, value props per vertical, sender mailboxes, and tone guidelines in the project instructions. Every prospecting chat inherits that context — no re-explaining who you sell to.
Apollo also publishes a plugin for Claude Code and Cowork that bundles its APIs into slash-command workflows — useful for heavy batch runs and analytics pulls. Start with the connector; graduate when volume demands it.
This is a real working cadence for a B2B services team (examples use managed IT services — swap in your own vertical). Each stop is one prompt you can paste and adapt.
Skip the filter UI. Describe the segment the way you'd describe it to a colleague — industry codes, headcount, geography, tech signals — and let Claude run the Apollo search.
Enrichment is where credits are spent, so batch deliberately — ten at a time keeps costs visible and lets you sanity-check quality before committing to the whole list.
This is where Claude out-earns any merge tag. Pair Apollo's firmographic data with web research for openers referencing something real — a hiring push, a compliance deadline, a new location.
Claude can create the sequence itself — emails, call tasks, LinkedIn touches — and enroll contacts under a specific sender mailbox. Always review the full copy before anything goes live.
Apollo's analytics are queryable in plain language: opens, replies, meetings by sequence, by step, by vertical. Ask for the comparison, then feed the winner back into stop A.
Nothing goes out unreviewed. Sequence enrollment can trigger real emails immediately depending on your sequence settings. Make "show me every draft first" part of every enrollment prompt, and keep enrollment permissions on ask-first.
Enrichment spends credits from your Apollo plan — typically one per person. Batch in tens, check quality, then continue. Ask Claude for your credit usage stats monthly.
Protect your domains. Rotate sender mailboxes, keep per-mailbox daily volume conservative, and warm up new inboxes before loading them into a sequence. Great copy from a burned domain still lands in spam.
The connector works only while you're chatting — there are no background triggers. It won't ping you when a prospect replies at 9pm. Build the check into your routine (see the weekly rhythm below) instead of assuming it's watching.
Stay compliant. CAN-SPAM, GDPR, and local rules still apply to AI-assisted outreach: real sender identity, working unsubscribe, and honor opt-outs everywhere. Automation scales your reach — and your liability.
Fifteen to thirty minutes each morning keeps the machine fed. Same Project, so context carries over.