In the world of business-to-business (B2B), getting sales can take a lot of work. Even if you put a lot of effort into finding your potential customers and reaching out to them, you often don’t get the results you wish for.
Apollo.io makes it easier and more cost-effective to acquire customers and track your sales progress. It acts like a smart helper, guiding you through the process and saving you money as you grow your business.
I’ve been in the same boat, dealing with the struggles and confusion of B2B sales. Through my experience running a digital marketing agency, I’ve tried out different tools to help streamline the process.
Let’s explain Apollo.io’s offerings and whether it could be a good fit for your business. Then, we will explore its features and see if they match your needs.
Then, I’ll discuss the cost and whether it’s worth the investment. My aim is to give you the information you need to decide if Apollo.io is right for you and your team. Let’s get started!
Apollo.io Review 2024: What is Apollo.io?
Apollo.io is a big name in B2B sales. It’s a tool that helps marketing and sales teams reach out to other businesses more effectively. It started in 2015 and has grown a lot since then.
So, What Does Apollo.io Actually Do?
Apollo.io is like a huge business phonebook with information on over 220 million people worldwide. It includes details such as email addresses, phone numbers, and social media profiles. It’s usually about 85% accurate.
How Does It Get All This Info?
It collects data from lots of places, like scraping websites (especially LinkedIn) and buying data from other companies. Plus, its huge community of users helps keep things up-to-date by adding info from their own emails and contact lists.
One of the best things about Apollo.io is that you can use it to find exactly the kind of businesses or people you’re looking for. You can filter your search by things like industry, company size, or job title.
Apollo.io has been growing really fast, with its revenue increasing by a whopping 900% since 2021.
Now, more than three million sales and marketing folks use it to find leads, do research, automate tasks, and keep track of how well their outreach is working. It’s a handy tool for anyone trying to sell to other businesses.
For Whom is Apollo.io Most Suited?
Apollo.io is great for startups, small businesses, and small sales teams. It’s made to help with B2B sales and marketing, so if that’s what you do, it’s perfect for you. With Apollo.io, you can easily find the right people to reach out to in other businesses.
It’s especially useful if you need to target specific industries, company sizes, or types of people. This means you can find lots of good leads quickly and without spending too much money.
While Apollo.io could work for B2C businesses (those selling directly to consumers), there might be better tools out there for them.
Apollo.io Pricing
Apollo.io offers a range of pricing plans tailored to different business needs.
Apollo.io offers a range of pricing plans tailored to different business needs.
| Plan | Cost | Suitability |
|---|---|---|
| Free Plan | $0 (Free) | Individuals or small businesses starting with sales and marketing automation |
| Basic Plan | $49 per user/month (billed annually) | Small to medium-sized businesses seeking more advanced features |
| Professional Plan | $79 per user/month | Teams looking to scale their efforts |
| Organization Plan | $99 per user/month (min 5 users) | Larger enterprises with complex needs |
The Free Plan doesn’t cost anything, as the name suggests, and is most suitable for individuals or small businesses that are starting with sales and marketing automation. It includes essential features like basic sequence automation, LinkedIn and Gmail extensions, and limited API access.
The Basic Plan, at $49 per user per month billed annually, caters to small to medium-sized businesses seeking more advanced features such as advanced filtering, email tracking, and integration with other tools like Outreach and SalesLoft.
The Professional Plan, priced at $79 per user per month, is suitable for teams looking to scale their efforts. It offers features like uncapped sending limits, advanced reports and dashboards, A/B testing, and AI-assisted email writing with higher word limits.
Finally, the Organization Plan costs $99 per user per month with a minimum of 5 users. This plan is suitable for larger enterprises with complex needs. It provides advanced features like advanced intent tracking, customizable reports, and increased security configurations.
Features of Apollo.io
I have spent a good amount of my time in CRM consulting, and during that time, I’ve encountered various tools, and Apollo. io surely stands out as having many benefits for businesses.
Below, I will explain some of its key features and how they can be of real help to you in expanding your business.
1. Apollo Advanced Search
One of the toughest parts of finding leads is sifting through tons of profiles to find the right ones. Apollo.io makes this easier with its advanced search features:
- Over 65 Filters: You can use more than 65 filters to find leads that match your company’s values and goals. These filters cover things like industry, location, and even the technology a company uses.
- Personas: Apollo.io helps you create Ideal Customer Profiles (ICPs) based on different personas. This helps you target leads more effectively.
- Buying Intent & Signals: The platform can detect when prospects are actively looking for solutions like yours. This helps you tailor your outreach to be more effective.
- Save Search & Alerts: Once you’ve set up your search criteria, you can save it. Apollo.io will then alert you when new leads match your criteria.
2. Lead Scoring
Ever feel overwhelmed by a long list of leads? Apollo.io’s lead scoring feature helps you prioritize the best ones:
- AI-driven Lead Scoring: Instead of just giving generic scores, Apollo.io’s AI looks at your past interactions and successes to score leads.
- Custom Scoring Models: You can create your own scoring models based on both Apollo’s database and your CRM data.
- Real-time Scoring: Your team will always know which leads to focus on next, thanks to real-time scoring.
- Transparent Scoring: You’ll always know why a lead has a certain score, helping you tailor your outreach strategies better.
3. Data Enrichment
Having accurate data is crucial for making good business decisions. Apollo.io helps keep your data fresh and accurate:
- Data Health Center: This tool helps spot areas where your data might be missing or inaccurate so you can keep your CRM up-to-date.
- Job Changes & Missing Emails: Apollo.io tracks changes like job moves and missing emails, updating your data in real-time.
- Automatic Data Enrichment: Fresh data is added to your CRM automatically, ensuring your outreach efforts are always on point.
4. AI Writing Assistant
Crafting personalized emails can be time-consuming, but Apollo.io’s AI Writing Assistant makes it easier:
- Precision-Personalized Emailing: Apollo uses buyer data to craft personalized emails for each prospect.
- Attention-Grabbing Openers: Personalized openers help your emails stand out from the crowd.
- Minimized Research, Maximized Engagement: The AI Assistant saves you time by generating opener options tailored for each contact.
5. Apollo Conversations
Apollo Conversations helps you keep track of important details from your calls and meetings:
- Easy Access to Call Recordings: Store and retrieve call recordings within Apollo.
- High-accuracy Transcripts: Transcribe your calls accurately for easy reference.
- Conversation Insights: Dive deep into specific calls with insights on participants, key topics, and more.
- Playback Features: User-friendly playback options make reviewing calls a breeze.
6. Apollo Plays
Apollo Plays automates your workflow and connects you with ideal customers at scale:
- Perfect Lead Detection: Apollo auto-sequences ideal leads based on signals like buying intent or growth.
- Timely Engagement: Engage leads right when it matters most, based on their actions.
- Lead Signal Alerts: Get customized alerts based on specific lead signals.
Apollo: Different Types of Personalized Openers For Email
Apollo suggests up to 5 different types of personalized openers for each person you’re emailing:
1. Company Mission:
This opener discusses the main goals and values of the person’s company so you can better connect with them.
2. Current Role:
This opener relates to what the person is doing in their job right now. It helps you start the conversation on the right foot.
3. Work Anniversary:
This opener mentions the recent work anniversary of the person you’re emailing. It shows that you’ve done some research and care about their milestones.
4. Upcoming Anniversary:
This opener mentions an upcoming milestone in the person’s job. It’s a way to build a friendly connection by showing you’re aware of important events.
5. Job Focus:
This opener is tailored to what the person cares about most in their job. It helps you start the conversation by addressing their specific interests or responsibilities.
These personalized openers make your emails more relevant and engaging for each individual recipient, increasing the chances of a positive response.
Write Individual Emails with AI
It is also possible to write engaging, personalized emails for individual prospects using Apollo’s AI.
Click Email on a contact’s page to write an email using AI.
Apollo’s AI writing assistant can only understand and write in English right now.
In the future, Apollo aims to make it work with different languages, too. Learning new languages takes time, so for now, you’ll have to use the English version of the assistant.
Write
The Write option helps you create content for your emails using AI. You give Apollo information about your company and product, and it generates content for you.
To add a subject line or the main message of your email, just click the box, and Apollo will fill in some options for you.
If you want Apollo to suggest a different option, click the refresh icon. This way, you can quickly create emails without having to come up with everything yourself.
Click Edit your company/product info to customize the email for the recipient. You should also include information specific to the contact, such as pain points and value propositions.
Personalize
With the Personalize option, you can choose up to 3 things that are special about the person or their company. Apollo’s AI then uses these chosen traits to create email content that’s just for them.
Here’s how to use it: Look through the choices in the Company and Contact sections.
Choose up to 3 traits that you think are important for personalizing the email. This will make each email unique to the person you’re sending it to.
Check the boxes for each trait Apollo’s AI should use. Click Next.
Personalized Openers or Whole Emails can be generated in two ways.
An opener is a paragraph that introduces your email. Additionally, you must include information about your company and product that is targeted to the recipient of your email.
Click Generate after that.
With Apollo’s AI, you will have multiple options available based on your selections in the previous step. Your draft email should now contain the text you copied from the generated opener.
If you generate an entire email, click the bubble for the subject line and body that you want to use. Apollo automatically adds your email draft to it.
Rephrase
Apollo’s artificial intelligence rewrites sections of your email based on your guidance, such as making text shorter, breaking it up into bullet points, and making it sound more professional.
Rephrase by following these steps:
1. In your email draft, highlight the text you want Apollo’s AI to edit. 
2. You can rephrase the text by selecting the instructions Apollo’s AI should use. 
3. Take a look at the newly generated text. You can replace your selected text directly in the email draft by clicking Insert text if you like the changes. If you want to consider another option, you can regenerate the text. 
Watch Your AI Word Count
Your Apollo plan decides how many words you can create using the AI writing assistant. You can find the exact word limits for each plan on Apollo’s pricing page.
Every word created by Apollo AI for each user counts towards your monthly limit. This includes all the words in the email text and personalized opener suggestions.
Unused AI words don’t carry over to the next month’s billing cycle. So, it’s important to use Apollo AI from the beginning of each billing cycle to make the most of your allowance.
Track AI Usage
To see how many AI words you and your team have used, open Apollo, go to Settings, and click on AI Word Usage. Here, you can check the number of AI words your team generated during the current billing cycle.
You’ll also find the date when the word count will reset for the next billing cycle. This helps you keep track of your usage and plan accordingly.
Team members’ AI word usage history contains both the number of AI words they generated and the date they generated them. By using the filters, you can review AI usage by a specific date range and user.
Pros and Cons Of Apollo.io
Pros
- Apollo’s extensive database provides accurate and enriched data, including email addresses, phone numbers, company details, and social media profiles, enabling personalized outreach efforts.
- Users save significant time by directly adding leads to outreach sequences from the search interface.
- Users consistently praise Apollo’s comprehensiveness compared to competitors.
- Powerful search and filtering options allow users to find leads based on criteria like job title, company size, and funding stage.
- Apollo offers a user-friendly interface and seamless navigation.
- The Apollo Chrome extension facilitates finding contact information on LinkedIn.
- Integration with various sales and marketing tools streamlines workflows, including CRMs, email platforms, and calendars.
Cons
- Additional costs for personal phone numbers can accumulate, especially for businesses focused on cold calling.
- Occasional outdated information is reported by some users, particularly for smaller companies.
- Apollo AI writing assistant only speaks English.
- Limits on the number of leads you can search for, export, or contact per month can be restrictive for high-volume prospecting.
FAQs
🤔 How can Apollo.io enhance my sales strategy?
Apollo.io provides tools for identifying and reaching out to potential leads, automating repetitive sales tasks, and analyzing sales performance to optimize strategies.
📊 Does Apollo.io offer analytics and reporting?
Yes, Apollo.io includes analytics and reporting features that help track sales activities and outcomes, offering insights to refine your sales approach.
💼 Is Apollo.io suitable for small businesses?
Apollo.io is designed to scale with businesses of all sizes, offering solutions that can benefit small businesses in managing their sales processes efficiently.
🌐 Can I integrate Apollo.io with other tools?
Apollo.io supports integration with various CRM and email platforms, allowing for a seamless workflow across your sales tools.
📝 What kind of customer support does Apollo.io offer?
Apollo.io provides customer support through various channels, including email, chat, and a knowledge base, ensuring users can get assistance when needed.
Quick links:
- Apollo.io Coupons
- Best CRM for Sales
- Grepsr Review
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Conclusion: Apollo.io Review 2024
After years of utilizing Apollo.io, I can confidently affirm its status as one of the top sales engagement tools available.
It has greatly strengthened my sales strategies and kept my team focused on our goals. Thanks to Apollo.io, we’ve generated top-notch leads and learned valuable insights on turning them into customers.
What makes Apollo.io stand out is its constant improvement. Regular updates bring in new features and enhance existing ones, all shaped by user feedback and market needs.
