Flank is a service that delivers a weekly spreadsheet of client leads. These leads are derived from job boards, and they include 1) the company, 2) the job listing, and 3) the hiring manager. You can see an example here.
Apollo: Lead lists (and email automation) based on everything else
Apollo is designed for salespeople of all types. It provides sales intelligence data, like ZoomInfo. It also is an email automation tool. It is not focused on deriving leads from job boards. It is less of a hands-on service.
Key Differences
Feature
Apollo.io
Flank
What is it
Powerful (and complex) SaaS tool
Spreadsheet that shows up in your inbox
Used by...
All sales people
Staffing agencies
Recruiting agencies
Some sales people
Used for...
Building lead lists
Email automation
Building lead lists
Sweet spot
Wide variety of features for all salespeople
Focused on high-quality leads derived from job openings
User Experience
Feature
Apollo.io
Flank
No learning curve
❌
✅
Shows up in your inbox
❌
✅
Real customer service
❌
✅
Easy to export data
❌
✅
Integrates with other tools
❌
✅
Customizable blacklists
❌
✅
3rd party email debounce
❌
✅
Browser extension
✅
❌
Send emails from the app
✅
❌
Database unrelated to job openings
✅
❌
Job Filters
Feature
Apollo.io
Flank
Remote / Hybrid
❌
✅
Full-time / Part-time
❌
✅
Job Skills
❌
✅
Specific Location
❌
✅
Multiple Locations
❌
✅
Date Posted
✅
✅
General Location
✅
✅
Job Title
✅
✅
Company Filters
Feature
Apollo.io
Flank
User-defined industries
❌
✅
Are they an agency? (99%)
❌
✅
Company Size
✅
✅
Generic Industry
✅
✅
Investment Date
✅
✅
Headcount Growth
✅
✅
Are they an agency? (75%)
✅
✅
Hiring Manager Search
Feature
Apollo.io
Flank
Precedence for multiple roles
❌
✅
Hiring manager on LinkedIn listing
❌
✅
Different roles @ different co. sizes
❌
✅
Email
✅
✅
Phone number
✅
✅
Prior experience
✅
❌
Some of our customers use both!
We have some customers who use Flank to create leads lists, and then they use Apollo for email automation. We have other customers who rely on Flank for generating leads from job postings, and then use Apollo for other lead generation.
