Apollo List Quality Scorer

Score and clean prospect lists before you sequence them.

27-node n8n workflow that scores and cleans prospect lists before sequencing. 4 agents: Fetcher (code-only, Apollo API enrichment), Researcher (Sonnet 4.6 + web_search for thin data), Analyst (Sonnet 4.6, LQS 5-criteria weighted rubric), Formatter (code-only, Google Sheets output). 3-way routing: pursue >= 7, enrich 4-6, remove < 4. $0.024/prospect. BQS v2 certified.

triggerWebhook01FetcherApollo API02ResearcherThin Data03AnalystLQS Score04Formatter3-way RoutePursueSheets 7EnrichSheets4–6RemoveSheets< 4

Four Agents. Five Quality Signals. Scored Lists Before Sequencing.

Fetcher

Step 1Fetcher

Webhook + Code

Webhook accepts JSON array or CSV payload containing prospect lists. Fetcher parses the input, normalizes field names, and calls Apollo.io People Enrichment API per prospect — email verification status, company data, technology stack, headcount, industry, and LinkedIn URL. Thin data detection flags prospects missing key fields for downstream web_search enrichment.

Researcher

Step 2Researcher

Tier 2 Classification

Sonnet 4.6 + web_search activates only for thin Apollo data — prospects where Apollo returned incomplete company or contact information. Enriches missing fields via web search: company website, headcount range, industry classification, recent news. Rich Apollo records skip this step entirely, keeping cost at $0 for well-populated prospects.

Analyst

Step 3Analyst

Tier 2 Classification

Sonnet 4.6 scores each prospect across 5 weighted LQS criteria: icp_fit (30%), data_completeness (20%), deliverability_signals (20%), enrichment_quality (15%), recency (15%). Per-criteria scoring 0–10 with evidence. Weighted composite LQS drives 3-way routing: LQS ≥ 7 pursue, 4–6 enrich, < 4 remove. Each score includes reasoning summary.

Formatter

Step 4Formatter

Code + 3-way Route

Routes based on LQS composite score. Writes annotated Google Sheets output with 16 columns: prospect data, per-criteria scores, LQS composite, action tag (pursue/enrich/remove), and reasoning summary. Summary stats returned via webhook response: total processed, pursue/enrich/remove counts, average LQS, and estimated cost.

What It Does NOT Do

×

Does not build prospect lists from scratch — that is what Outbound Prospecting Agent does

×

Does not send outreach emails — scores and annotates lists for your sequencer

×

Does not create CRM records — outputs to Google Sheets for flexible downstream use

×

Does not monitor deal stages — that is what Deal Intelligence Agent does

×

Does not score existing CRM contacts — that is what Contact Re-Engagement Scorer does

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Does not verify email addresses — relies on Apollo.io verification status as an input signal

The Complete Customer Success Bundle

9 files — workflow JSON, system prompts, scoring guides, and complete documentation.

apollo_list_quality_scorer_v1_0_0.jsonThe 27-node n8n workflow
README.md10-minute setup guide with Apollo.io, Google Sheets, and Anthropic configuration
system_prompt_researcher.txtResearcher system prompt (thin data enrichment via web_search)
system_prompt_analyst.txtAnalyst system prompt (LQS 5-criteria weighted rubric, 3-way routing)
lqs_scoring_guide.mdLQS criteria definitions, weight rationale, scoring calibration, and examples
apollo_api_setup.mdApollo.io API key configuration and People Enrichment endpoint reference
google_sheets_setup.mdGoogle Sheets OAuth2 configuration and output spreadsheet structure
itp_results.mdITP test results — 20 records, 14/14 milestones, LQS range 0.45–9.37
CHANGELOG.mdVersion history

Tested. Measured. Documented.

Every metric is ITP-measured. The Apollo List Quality Scorer validates prospect lists before sequencing — enriching via Apollo.io API, scoring across 5 weighted quality criteria with evidence, and routing to pursue/enrich/remove at $0.024/prospect.

Workflow Nodes

27

Blueprint Quality Standard

12/12 PASS

Agent Architecture

4 — Fetcher (code-only) → Researcher (Sonnet 4.6) → Analyst (Sonnet 4.6) → Formatter (code-only)

Required Credentials

3 — Anthropic API, Apollo.io (httpHeaderAuth), Google Sheets (OAuth2)

Bundle Contents

9 files

Cost per Prospect

$0.024/prospect (ITP-measured)

ITP Milestones

14/14 PASS

n8n Compatibility

2.11.2+

Apollo List Quality Scorer v1.0.0 — Technical Reference━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━Architecture: 27 n8n nodes, 4 agents (Fetcher → Researcher → Analyst → Formatter)Trigger:      Webhook (JSON array or CSV payload)Input:        Prospect list — names, emails, companies, titlesIntelligence: Sonnet 4.6 (Researcher web_search + Analyst LQS scoring)Output:       Google Sheets (16-column annotated output) + Webhook responseCost:         $0.024/prospect (ITP-measured average)ITP:          20 records, 14/14 milestones PASS, LQS range 0.45–9.37BQS:          12/12 PASSTool A:       Apollo.io (input — People Enrichment API)Tool B:       Google Sheets (output — annotated scored list)Intelligence: LQS 5-criteria weighted + 3-way routing (pursue/enrich/remove)Cost Value:   0.024

What You'll Need

⚠ Data Source Dependency

Researcher uses Anthropic web_search for thin Apollo data only. Rich Apollo records skip web_search entirely.

Platform

n8n 2.11.2+

Est. Monthly API Cost

$24/month (1,000 prospects/month)

Credentials Required

  • Anthropic API
  • Apollo.io (httpHeaderAuth)
  • Google Sheets (OAuth2)

Services

  • Apollo.io account (People Enrichment API)
  • Google Workspace (Sheets access)

Setup Track

Quick Start

~15 min

All credentials live, n8n running

Full Setup

1–2 hrs

Needs API config + tables

From Scratch

2–4 hrs

No n8n, no credentials

Apollo List Quality Scorer v1.0.0

$199

one-time purchase

What you get:

  • Production-ready 27-node n8n workflow — import and deploy
  • Webhook input accepts JSON array or CSV payload for batch processing
  • Apollo.io People Enrichment API per prospect — email verification, company data, tech stack
  • LQS 5-criteria weighted scoring: icp_fit (30%), data_completeness (20%), deliverability_signals (20%), enrichment_quality (15%), recency (15%)
  • Per-criteria scoring (0–10) with evidence-based assessment and reasoning summary
  • 3-way routing: LQS ≥ 7 pursue, 4–6 enrich, < 4 remove
  • Thin data detection: missing fields trigger Researcher web_search enrichment automatically
  • Annotated Google Sheets output with 16 columns (prospect data, scores, action tags)
  • Dual-Sonnet 4.6: $0.024/prospect all-in — no Opus required
  • ITP test results with 20 records, 14/14 milestones, LQS range 0.45–9.37
  • All sales final after download

Frequently Asked Questions

How does it differ from Outbound Prospecting Agent?+

Complementary products for different stages. Outbound Prospecting Agent (OPA) builds prospect lists from scratch via Apollo search and sends personalized outreach via Gmail. Apollo List Quality Scorer (ALQS) validates and scores existing lists you already have — from Apollo exports, purchased lists, or event attendee data — before you load them into a sequencer.

What are the five LQS criteria?+

ICP Fit (30%) — industry match, headcount range, geography alignment. Data Completeness (20%) — email presence and verification, phone, title, company coverage. Deliverability Signals (20%) — email verification status, catch-all detection, role-based flagging, domain reputation. Enrichment Quality (15%) — LinkedIn match confidence, website reachability, revenue data. Recency (15%) — profile last updated, company data freshness, activity signals.

What does the 3-way routing do?+

LQS ≥ 7 tags the prospect as "pursue" — ready for sequencing. LQS 4–6 tags as "enrich" — worth keeping but needs additional data before outreach. LQS < 4 tags as "remove" — low quality, do not waste sequence slots. Action tags appear in the Google Sheets output column for easy filtering.

When does the Researcher activate?+

Only for thin Apollo data — prospects where Apollo returned incomplete company or contact information. Rich Apollo records skip the Researcher entirely, keeping cost at $0 for those prospects. This selective enrichment pattern keeps the average cost at $0.024/prospect instead of paying for web_search on every record.

What input formats does it accept?+

Webhook accepts two formats: JSON array (matching Apollo API export structure) and CSV payload (comma-separated with header row). The Fetcher normalizes both formats into a standard internal schema before enrichment. Maximum batch size depends on n8n memory — tested with up to 500 prospects per batch.

Why Sonnet instead of Opus for scoring?+

LQS scoring is structured classification against a defined rubric — not open-ended reasoning. Sonnet 4.6 handles this with high accuracy at $3/$15 per million tokens vs Opus at $15/$75. Dual-Sonnet architecture keeps cost at $0.024/prospect. 1,000 prospects = $24 all-in.

What does the Google Sheets output look like?+

16 columns: prospect name, email, title, company, industry, headcount, email verification status, 5 per-criteria scores (0–10), LQS composite, action tag (pursue/enrich/remove), reasoning summary, and data source (Apollo/web_search/both). One row per prospect, sorted by LQS descending.

Does it use web scraping?+

Partially. The Researcher uses Anthropic web_search for thin Apollo data only — prospects where Apollo returned incomplete information. Rich Apollo records skip web_search entirely. This means scraping reliability only affects prospects with poor Apollo coverage, not the full list.

Is there a refund policy?+

All sales are final after download. Review the Blueprint Dependency Matrix and prerequisites before purchase. Questions? Contact support@forgeworkflows.com before buying. Full terms at forgeworkflows.com/legal.

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