How to use a lead generation tool inside ChatGPT or Claude
Lead gen tools plug into ChatGPT and Claude through MCP connectors. This guide covers the exact menu paths, which plans can use them, the dates things changed in 2025, and where the setup breaks.
On this page
- A lead generation tool works inside ChatGPT or Claude through an MCP server that the vendor hosts, and you sign in to your own vendor account to use it.
- In Claude the current menu path is Customize > Connectors, and many older guides still wrongly point to Settings > Connectors.
- ChatGPT Developer Mode reached Plus and Pro users on September 10, 2025, and full MCP support reached Business, Enterprise and Edu in beta on October 17, 2025.
- Adding a connector does not switch it on everywhere, so you have to enable it in each conversation, and some apps such as ZoomInfo must be selected again in every new chat.
- Custom connectors can reach services the assistant vendor has not verified, so only paste MCP URLs from vendors you already trust.
You use a lead generation tool inside ChatGPT or Claude by connecting the vendor's MCP server (Model Context Protocol) and signing in to your vendor account, usually with OAuth. In Claude, open Customize > Connectors and add the vendor from the directory, or paste its remote MCP URL. In ChatGPT, install the vendor's app from the app directory. On eligible plans you can instead turn on Developer Mode and add a custom connector. Then enable the tool in each conversation and ask for what you need in plain English.
What is actually happening when ChatGPT "uses" a lead tool?
The assistant does not hold any contact data of its own. The vendor runs an MCP server. That server exposes tools such as "search companies", "find contact" or "enrich this list". When you ask a question, the assistant decides to call one of those tools, the vendor's server answers, and the assistant reads the result back to you.
MCP is the open standard Anthropic introduced in late 2024. OpenAI's Apps SDK is built on it, so one vendor server can power both Claude and ChatGPT. That is why the same vendors keep showing up in both.
Three things follow from this:
- You need a paid or trial account with the vendor. The connector is a doorway, not a database.
- Every lookup spends that vendor's credits, the same way it would in their own app.
- Your vendor permissions still apply. If your seat can't export emails, the assistant can't either.
The three ways to install one
| Path | Who it's for | What you need | Rough setup time (our estimate) | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Directory or native connector | Most sales users | Vendor name, vendor login | About 2 minutes | Low, listed by the assistant vendor |
| Custom connector (remote MCP URL) | Users whose vendor isn't in the directory | The vendor's MCP URL, plan support | About 5 minutes | Higher, the service may not be verified |
Local config or CLI (Claude Desktop JSON, claude mcp add) |
Developers | Technical setup | 15 minutes or more | Depends on what you install |
The setup times are our own estimates for a user who already has the vendor account open. Nobody publishes official figures. Sales users almost never need the third path.
How do I connect a lead generation tool to Claude?
These steps follow Anthropic's help center as of October 2026.
Pro and Max plans
- Go to Customize > Connectors.
- If the vendor is in the directory, search for it and click Connect. If it isn't, click + Add, then Add custom connector.
- For a custom connector, enter a name and the vendor's remote MCP URL. Under Advanced settings you can add an OAuth Client ID and Secret if the vendor gave you one. Click Add.
- Click Connect and sign in to the vendor.
Team and Enterprise plans
An owner sets it up once for everyone:
- Go to Organization settings > Connectors, click Add, hover over Custom and select Web.
- Choose the authentication mode: "Sign in now", "Sign in when needed" or "No sign in".
- Choose the OAuth client: "Use Claude's published identity" (Anthropic's recommended option), "Register automatically" or "Use your own OAuth client".
- If the vendor uses an API key or bearer token instead of OAuth, add it as a request header. It will be sent on every request.
Members then open Customize > Connectors, find the entry (usually labeled "Custom") and click Connect.
Turning it on in a chat
Adding a connector does not switch it on everywhere. In each conversation, use the + button to enable it. The Search and tools button in the lower left turns individual tools on or off.
Two notes. Older guides say Settings > Connectors. Current Claude uses Customize. On the Free plan, three separate secondary sources, including Hunter's own setup guide, say you get one custom connector. We couldn't find that limit in Anthropic's own docs, so treat it as likely but unconfirmed.
Claude connects to the MCP server from Anthropic's cloud, not from your laptop. The server has to be reachable on the public internet, and localhost URLs won't work. This only matters if your team built its own server.
How do I connect a lead generation tool to ChatGPT?
ChatGPT has two separate routes, and they behave differently.
Route A: an app from the app directory
Vendors that publish through OpenAI's Apps SDK show up in ChatGPT's app catalog. You don't need Developer Mode for these. For ZoomInfo, open the Apps panel, search ZoomInfo, click connect and sign in. One ZoomInfo guide describes a different path: click + below the prompt box, choose More, find ZoomInfo and enable it. The same guide notes you have to select ZoomInfo again at the start of each new conversation, because it doesn't persist.
Clay works by invocation instead. Type @Clay at the start of a prompt in the browser, or /Clay in the desktop app.
Route B: a custom connector through Developer Mode
- Open Settings > Connectors > Advanced.
- Toggle on Developer Mode.
- Back in the Connectors tab, add the vendor's remote MCP server. ChatGPT supports SSE and streaming HTTP, with OAuth or no authentication.
| Date | What changed in ChatGPT |
|---|---|
| September 10, 2025 | Developer Mode available to Plus and Pro users |
| October 17, 2025 | Full MCP support in beta for Business, Enterprise and Edu |
Which plans can use custom connectors today is not clear from our research. One third-party guide says Developer Mode covers Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise and Edu, and that Free does not support custom connectors. OpenAI's help article frames availability around Business and up. We don't know which is current for your account. Check Settings > Connectors > Advanced. If the toggle isn't there, your plan doesn't have it.
What should I ask once it's connected?
Write prompts that name the filter, the count and the output:
- "Find 20 VP Sales at US SaaS companies with 50 to 200 employees. Return name, company, title and LinkedIn URL in a table."
- "Enrich these 15 domains with headcount and a verified work email for the head of RevOps."
- "Which of these accounts posted a sales job in the last 30 days?"
Ask for a table every time. It's easier to check and paste into a CRM. If you stack more than one data vendor, read lead enrichment waterfalls before you burn credits asking two connectors for the same email. Run any emails you get through a check before sending. Bouncing cold email usually starts with an unverified list.
Where it breaks
- It doesn't stick. Connectors need enabling per chat, and some apps forget you between conversations.
- Credits drain quietly. The assistant may call a tool several times to answer one question. Watch your vendor usage for the first week.
- Chat is slow at volume. Twenty rows in a chat is fine. Five hundred is a spreadsheet job. That's the core argument in Saava vs Clay.
- Unverified servers. Anthropic warns that custom connectors can reach services it hasn't checked. Review the permissions you grant.
- Finding isn't sending. A connector helps you build a list. Writing messages that don't read as machine-made is still on you. See AI personalization in outbound.
- Stale guides. Menu paths moved in 2025 and 2026. If a step doesn't match your screen, trust the current help center.
What does it cost?
The research didn't turn up a separate fee from Anthropic or OpenAI for connecting a tool. You pay for the assistant plan that supports connectors and for the vendor's own plan and credits. We didn't verify vendor prices for this piece, so check each vendor's pricing page. If you're weighing a big data contract against something lighter, Saava vs ZoomInfo breaks down that decision.
Where Saava fits
Saava covers a different part of the job. It watches LinkedIn for buying signals, scores people against your ICP, and sends outreach from the LinkedIn account or email you connect yourself. A lead tool inside ChatGPT or Claude helps you look things up on demand. Saava is for when you want signals found and followed up every day without opening a chat, which is the case we make in signal-based selling and manual prospecting is eating your week.
FAQ
Do I need to be technical to connect a lead tool to Claude or ChatGPT?
No. If the vendor is in the directory, you search, click connect and sign in. Only the local config path (Claude Desktop JSON or claude mcp add) needs a developer.
Can I use the same vendor in both ChatGPT and Claude?
Usually, yes. Both run on MCP, so one vendor server can serve both. Each assistant still needs its own connection and sign-in.
Why did my connector disappear in a new chat?
Connectors are enabled per conversation. In Claude, turn it on with the + button. In ChatGPT, some apps such as ZoomInfo must be selected again in each new conversation.
Is it safe to paste a custom MCP URL?
Only from a vendor you already trust. Custom connectors may reach services the assistant vendor hasn't verified, so read the permissions before you click Connect.
If you want signals found and outreach sent without living in a chat window, start a trial