Apollo × SpotDraft
Dialer Mastery Guide
Apollo Dialer · Getting Started

Everything your team needs to start dialing and book more meetings.

Watch the overview, then use the interactive guide below to configure your setup, master each dialing mode, and apply the tactics that move connect rates.

▶ Overview · 1 min 19 sec
US & Canada Rate
10
credits per minute · billed per second
Local Presence Lift
3×
higher answer rate vs. out-of-area numbers
VM Drop Time Saved
~10 min
per rep per day at 20–25 VM drops
Parallel Dialer
5×
lines at once · first answer connects live
Interactive Setup Guide

Advanced Dialer Setup

Complete these before your first dial. Most connect issues trace back to a skipped step here.

Setup progress 0 / 8 complete
Pre-call checklist
Confirm plan includes Dialer US/Canada dialing requires Professional+. International requires Organization. Check Settings → Billing if unsure.
Unified Credits migrated and balance confirmed UC migration must be complete before the Dialer trial can be provisioned. Check credit balance in Settings → Credits before a high-volume session.
Microphone permission granted Click Allow when the browser prompts for microphone access on first launch. If denied, reset via browser address bar → Site Settings → Microphone.
Audio device selected in Apollo Settings → Dialer → Audio Input. Pick your headset or USB mic — not "default." Test with the built-in echo test.
Call recording enabled (Admin) Settings → Call Recordings → Enable. Recording starts automatically on connect. Reps can see transcripts in their call log.
Voicemail drop recorded Settings → Voicemail Drop → Record. Keep it under 20 seconds. Lead with your name and company in the first 3 words.
Local Presence enabled Settings → Dialer → Local Presence → On. Apollo auto-matches your outbound caller ID to the prospect's area code. No additional configuration needed.
Test call completed Use Settings → Dialer → Test Call to verify audio in both directions before your first live dial. Takes 30 seconds.
Credit consumption at a glance
US & CANADA
10 cr/min
billed per second
INTERNATIONAL
~30 cr/min
varies by country
India-based reps calling US numbers pay the US rate (10 cr/min) — not international. Rate follows the destination, not the caller.
Where to find each setting
Audio
Settings → Dialer → Audio Device
Recording
Settings → Call Recordings
VM Drop
Settings → Voicemail Drop
Local Pres.
Settings → Dialer → Local Presence
Credits
Settings → Credits → Usage

Making Dials — Choosing the Right Mode

Three modes built for different situations. Pick based on the volume, temperature, and goal of the session.

☎️
Single Line
One dial at a time, fully manual. You click, it dials.
Default mode
⚡
Power Dialer
Auto-advances through a sequence — no manual click between dials.
Sequence required
🔀
Parallel Dialer
Up to 5 simultaneous lines. First to answer connects live.
Organization plan
☎️ Single Line — When and How
Best for warm prospects, high-priority accounts, or any call where you want to be fully prepared before it connects. No automation — you control every dial.
1
Open the prospect record in Apollo

Click the phone icon next to any contact. The dialer panel opens on the right side of the screen.

2
Verify the number and mode

Confirm SINGLE is selected in the mode tabs. Check Local Presence is showing the right outbound caller ID.

3
Dial and log the outcome

Hit CALL. After the call ends, log your disposition (Connected, Voicemail, No Answer). This feeds sequence logic and reporting.

Apollo Dialer
DIALING
Sarah Chen
Acme Corp
+1 (415) 555-0142
+1 (415) 555-0001
SINGLE
POWER
PARALLEL
DIALING...
DROP VM
⚡ Power Dialer — When and How
Power Dialer is for high-volume sessions where you're working through a sequence list. After each call ends, it auto-advances to the next contact — no gap, no friction. Best for cold-ish outreach blocks where the goal is call volume.
Requires a sequence. Contacts must be enrolled in an Apollo sequence before Power Dialer can auto-advance through them. Build your list in Sequences first.
1
Enroll contacts in a sequence

Add your target list to a sequence with a call step. The Power Dialer will work through everyone who has an active call task due.

2
Switch to POWER in the mode tabs

Open the dialer panel, select POWER. Set your max simultaneous lines (1 for Power, up to 5 for Parallel).

3
Let it run, log dispositions fast

After each call, log the outcome in under 10 seconds. The dialer auto-moves to the next contact once you submit.

Pro tip: Pre-set your most common disposition as default to save time between dials
Expected output per hour
Dials per hour 40–60
Connects (~25%) 10–15
Credits used (10 cr/min) ~1,500–2,250 cr
What to prep before a Power Dialer block
Have your sequence built, VM drop recorded, call script open in a separate window, and a 2-hour block blocked on your calendar. Interruptions kill the rhythm.
🔀 Parallel Dialer — When and How
Parallel dials up to 5 numbers simultaneously. The moment one connects, the others drop and you're live. This is the highest-volume mode — purpose-built for high-cadence cold outreach where connect rate per dial is low.
Organization plan required. Parallel Dialer is gated to the Organization tier. Confirm your plan before expecting this mode to be available.
1
Select PARALLEL and set line count

Start at 3 lines while you get comfortable. You can go up to 5 once you're confident in your opening — you'll need to be ready the instant the call connects.

2
Have your opener locked in

"Hey [name], this is [you] at Apollo" — out in under 2 seconds. Parallel calls connect with zero lead time. Hesitation kills the call.

3
Monitor credit consumption

At 5 lines × 10 credits/min, you burn through credits faster. Check your balance before a long Parallel session.

At full 5 lines: up to 50 cr/min while all lines are ringing
Parallel vs Power — choose based on your goal
Power Dialer
Warm-ish lists
Higher personalization
Sequence-driven
Lower urgency on opener
Parallel Dialer
Cold lists
High dial volume goal
Fast opener essential
Max credit efficiency

Local Presence

Apollo automatically matches your outbound caller ID to the area code of the number you're calling. Answer rates are roughly 3× higher when the number looks local.

1
Turn it on once — Apollo does the rest

Settings → Dialer → Local Presence → On. After that, every dial automatically shows a caller ID matching the prospect's area code. No rep action required per call.

2
Caller ID is matched per destination, not per rep location

If a rep based in India is calling a New York number (+1 212), Apollo displays a 212 caller ID. The prospect sees a local number — and pays the US domestic rate (10 cr/min), not international.

3
Verify the caller ID before dialing

The matched number shows in the Caller ID field in the dialer panel. Confirm it reflects the destination's area code before you hit Call.

4
Use it on every call — it's always on for US numbers

Once enabled, Local Presence applies automatically to all US/Canada dials. No session-by-session activation. For international dials, confirm with your Apollo team which regions are supported on your plan.

International dialer requires Organization plan
415 312 512 617 212 Matched to prospect New York, NY
Apollo Dialer
READY
Marcus Webb
Meridian Partners · New York
+1 (212) 555-0184
Caller ID +1 (212) 555-0001
SINGLE
POWER
PARALLEL
CALL NOW
The 3× lift is real — but it decays. Local numbers that have been flagged as spam lose their advantage fast. If your connect rate drops suddenly on a number that was working, it may have been reported. Apollo rotates numbers to mitigate this, but large-volume parallel dialing accelerates the cycle.

Tips & Tricks — More Pickups, More Conversations

Tactics that move connect rates and conversation quality, ordered by the lever they pull.

Getting them to pick up
⏰
Call in the right windows
Best connect windows: Tuesday–Thursday, 8–9 AM and 4–5 PM in the prospect's time zone. Avoid Monday mornings and Friday afternoons entirely. For India market calls, shift accordingly — 9:30–11 AM IST is strong.
+20–35% connect rate vs. random calling
📍
Local Presence — always on
Confirm Local Presence is enabled before every session. A +1 (212) showing up for a New York prospect outperforms a toll-free or out-of-state number every time. Check the Caller ID field in the dialer panel before you start.
~3× answer rate vs. out-of-area numbers
🔁
Same-day follow-up call
If a prospect opened your email today, call within 4 hours. Apollo's engagement signals surface this in your task list. A prospect who just read your email is 6× more likely to pick up than one who hasn't interacted at all.
6× pickup rate on email-engaged prospects
🎯
Parallel Dialer for cold list burns
On a cold list with no prior engagement, connect rates are low enough that Power Dialer at 1 line wastes your session. Switch to Parallel at 3–5 lines for the same outcome at 3–5× the speed. More conversations per hour is the math that matters.
3–5× conversations per session hour
When they pick up — handling the first 15 seconds
⚡
Lead with name + company in 2 seconds flat
"Hey [Name], this is [You] at Apollo." That's it for the opener. Don't ask how they are. Don't apologize for calling. Pause after your name — it creates a natural opening for them to say "yeah?" instead of hanging up.
🎤
Reason for call in one sentence
Follow your opener with a single specific reason: "I'm calling because we work with legal teams at SaaS companies on outbound prospecting — wanted to see if it's on your radar." Specific beats vague every time. Don't lead with a question about their priorities.
📊
Use talk-ratio data to self-correct
Apollo's conversation intelligence shows your talk ratio per call. Top performers listen 60–70% of the time. If your ratio is above 60% talking, you're pitching instead of qualifying. Pull your call recording and review.
Listening more = 2× more qualified meetings booked
🔊
Voicemail drop — short and direct
Record your VM drop under 20 seconds. Script: "[Name], [You] at Apollo. [One specific reason]. If it's worth a conversation, [your number] — happy to keep it short." Hit DROP VM the moment you hear the beep — don't wait for the message to finish.
~10 min saved per rep per day
Session structure — how to run a dialing block
Before the block
Pull your list into a sequence. Have your VM drop recorded. Check credit balance. Block 2 uninterrupted hours. Open your call script in a separate tab. Enable Local Presence. Run the test call.
During the block
No context-switching. Log dispositions in under 10 seconds. DROP VM the instant you hear the beep — don't stay on the line. If a call runs long, have a hard close ready: "I want to respect your time — can we put 15 min on the calendar this week?"
After the block
Review your talk-ratio report in call recordings. Log the session CE in Salesforce. Enroll warm contacts in a follow-up email step in your sequence. Move no-shows to a second-touch list for next week.

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions from teams ramping on the Apollo Dialer.

No. Credit consumption is determined by the destination number's country, not where the rep is located. An India-based rep dialing a US phone number consumes credits at the US domestic rate — 10 credits per minute — not an international rate. The rate follows the number being dialed, not where the rep is sitting.
Calling non-US/Canada numbers — including Indian phone numbers — requires the Organization plan with the international dialer enabled. Your Apollo team can confirm your current plan tier and what's needed to unlock it. International rates are higher (~20–35 cr/min for India, approx) — your Apollo team can pull the exact figure from the rate card before you scale up.
Credits are consumed for connected talk time only. Calls that ring out, go to voicemail without being answered, or are not picked up do not consume calling credits. Per-second billing begins the moment the call is picked up. This means VM drops that don't connect don't cost you anything — only the calls that go through to a live message.
Apollo includes a usage protection gate that temporarily pauses dialer access when all three conditions are true simultaneously: your team has spent more than 70% of the monthly subscription on call charges, made at least 5 minutes of billable calls in the past 7 days, and averaged more than 15 credits per minute (indicating heavy international dialing). If your team is primarily calling US numbers (10 cr/min), this gate will not trigger — the average rate condition is automatically below the threshold. Your Apollo team will flag this proactively if your usage pattern approaches it.
Yes. Apollo's admin dashboard shows credit consumption broken out by type — email, phone, export. Admins can see usage across the team in real time, set alerts at threshold percentages, and review per-rep call volume. Access it under Settings → Credits → Usage. Your Apollo team can also set up a usage alert that notifies you when you reach a defined consumption threshold.
Local Presence works across all three dialing modes — Single, Power, and Parallel. Once enabled in Settings, it applies automatically to every dial regardless of which mode you're using. In Parallel mode, each of the simultaneous lines will display a locally matched caller ID to its respective destination. The Caller ID field in the dialer panel shows the matched number before each dial begins.
Three sessions get you there: a 30-minute setup session (microphone check, VM drop recording, test calls, Local Presence on), a 45-minute live session where reps dial with your Apollo team watching and coaching in real time, and a 30-minute review 1–2 weeks later using conversation intelligence data to identify what's working and what to adjust. Your Apollo team can schedule all three.