Building a Clay Workflow: Step-by-Step Guide for B2B Outbound

What Is a Clay Workflow?

A Clay workflow is a table that automatically collects, enriches and transforms data. Think of Excel, but every column can automatically pull data from the internet, query APIs, or run AI research.

Typical workflow:

Import (LinkedIn, CSV, CRM)
  → Enrichment (email, company data, tech stack)
  → AI Research (news, pain points, personalization)
  → Personalization (email draft per lead)
  → Export (Instantly, HeyReach, HubSpot)

Step by Step: B2B Outbound Workflow

Step 1: Import Leads

Sources:

• LinkedIn Sales Navigator (via Chrome extension)
• CSV upload (existing lists)
• CRM import (HubSpot, Salesforce)
• Clay’s own database

Tip: Start with LinkedIn Sales Navigator. Filter by:

• Industry, company size, region
• Role (VP Sales, Head of Marketing, CEO)
• Job postings as a buying signal

Step 2: Waterfall Enrichment

Clay’s core feature. Instead of using one data source, you configure a cascade:

Email waterfall:

1. Apollo.io (cheapest credits)
2. Hunter.io (good catch-all detection)
3. Cognism (strong DACH data)
4. Dropcontact (EU-focused)
5. FullEnrich (backup)

Company waterfall:

1. Clearbit (company data, tech stack)
2. Apollo (company size, funding)
3. LinkedIn Company (most current data)

Result: 85-95% email hit rate instead of 60-70% with a single source.

Step 3: AI Research with Claygent

Claygent automatically researches each account. Example prompts:

Recent news:

“Find the most recent press release or news about {Company} from the last 3 months. Give a summary in 1-2 sentences.”

Pain point identification:

“Based on {Company}‘s job postings and website: what problem are they currently trying to solve? Answer in one sentence.”

Competitor check:

“Does {Company} already use a tool for {Category}? Check the website and technology data.”

Personalization hook:

“Find a concrete, current reference point for a sales email to {First Name} at {Company}. No generic filler.”

Step 4: Email Personalization

Using the research data, Clay generates personalized emails:

AI column prompt:

Write a cold email to {First Name} ({Role}) at {Company}. Use this research: {Claygent output} Reference result: {Case Study} Tone: professional, direct, no filler. Max 4 sentences. Close with a simple yes/no question.

Example output:

{First Name}, {Company} recently {concrete reference from research}. Right in this phase, {Reference Company} automated their outbound — result: {result with numbers}. Worth 15 minutes to check if this fits {Company}?

Step 5: Export to Outreach Tools

Clay exports finished leads directly to:

• Instantly — email sequences start automatically
• HeyReach — LinkedIn campaigns start
• HubSpot — contacts get created in the CRM
• Webhooks — any integration via n8n/Make

Best Practices

Save credits

• Optimize waterfall order: cheapest sources first
• Only enrich relevant leads (filter before enrichment)
• Write Claygent prompts precisely (fewer tokens = fewer credits)

Data quality

• Email verification as the last waterfall step
• Duplicate check before export
• Import bounce data back into Clay

Scaling

• Start with 50-100 leads per workflow
• Scale to 500-1,000 only after validation
• Review AI output regularly

Typical Credit Consumption

Action	Credits per lead
Email waterfall (3 sources)	3-5
Company data enrichment	1-2
Claygent research	2-5
AI email generation	1-2
Total per lead	7-14

With Clay Starter ($149/mo, 2,500 credits): approx. 180-350 leads/month With Clay Explorer ($349/mo, 10,000 credits): approx. 700-1,400 leads/month

Conclusion

A Clay workflow turns a LinkedIn list into personalized, send-ready outreach campaigns — automatically. The effort is in the initial setup (2-4 hours). After that, new leads flow through the pipeline in minutes. For B2B teams serious about scaling, Clay is the central platform everything else is built on.