Clay
Clay is a data enrichment platform that enables waterfall enrichment strategies across multiple data sources to maximize coverage while minimizing cost.Quick Links
- App: Clay Dashboard
- Documentation: Clay Docs
What Clay Does
Clay serves as a waterfall enrichment engine that tries multiple data sources in sequence until data is found:Key Features
1. Waterfall Enrichment
- Sequential Source Testing: Tries cheapest sources first, then moves to premium sources only if needed
- Cost Optimization: Only uses expensive sources when cheaper ones fail
- Multi-Source Coverage: Combines data from People Data Labs, Apollo, Hunter, Clearbit, and more
2. Email Finding
- Finds email addresses from LinkedIn URLs or company domains
- Integrates multiple email enrichment APIs
- Email verification included
3. Contact Data Enrichment
- Phone numbers
- Job titles
- Company information
- Additional firmographic data
How We Use It
Waterfall Strategy
Clay executes enrichment in a cost-optimized sequence:Process Flow
Cost Model
Per-Source Costs
Cost Optimization
Clay’s waterfall approach minimizes cost by:- Tiered Enrichment: Only using premium sources for Tier 1 accounts
- Sequential Testing: Stopping once data is found
- Batch Processing: Optimizing API usage across large lists
Integration with HubSpot
Clay can integrate with HubSpot to enrich contacts:Setup
- Connect Clay to HubSpot via API
- Configure waterfall sequence (source order)
- Set up automation to trigger enrichment
- Monitor enrichment success rates
Waterfall Results
Example from a sample enrichment run:Best Practices
1. Source Ordering
- Always start with cheapest, highest-coverage sources
- Use premium sources only when necessary
- Monitor hit rates to optimize ordering
2. Tier-Based Enrichment
- Tier 1: Full waterfall (all sources)
- Tier 2: Mid waterfall (2-3 sources)
- Tier 3: Basic enrichment (1 source)
3. Email Verification
- Always verify emails after enrichment
- Flag risky emails for manual review
- Skip invalid emails to avoid bounces