Tips for Building a Strong SDR Pipeline

Back in my Oracle SDR days, sometimes we were allowed to go home early if we could set 3 meetings in a given day. My record was leaving the office at 9:45 am 😂 I have a love / hate relationship with cold calling, but it's damn effective. Over the years, I've spoken to hundreds of SDRs/AEs/Mgrs on this topic. Here are the steps I've seen teams take that have truly "figured it out"💡 I'd consider each a non-negotiable. Step 1: Build a very targeted list with the *strictest* mobile phone accuracy filters for a single buyer persona. Step 2: Write out (word for word) an A+ call script that, in theory, will set a meeting with that specific persona in <60 seconds. The most experienced SDR/manager/founder should own writing this, and get feedback from at least 2+ others. If qualifying questions might take this conversation 2-3 different ways, ensure each path is written out 100%, just as you'd like the call to go. Step 3: Write out (again, word for word) responses to the top 3 objections you'll get most often. Step 4: Hit the phones until you have 5 or more 20+ second conversations, ensuring calls are (legally) recorded, or others on your team are listening in. Step 5: Critique what went well / poorly in each call (this will uncover inevitable areas of product / industry knowledge gaps amongst your team). Step 6: Iterate, iterate, iterate. Tweak your script based on objections you're getting, where you sound awkward, or too salesy. Push yourself, and your team, to find new ways to boost conversion rates at the top of the funnel. Make sure any changes are clearly documented on the master script, in one single & easy to access place. Step 7: Add a recurring slot to review good and bad call recordings. Steps 4-6 should be on non-stop repeat. Especially for any team with 3+ SDRs, only after you've nailed this would I recommend tweaking the script to be used across the rest of your outbound motions (between sequence steps, calling people who have opened your last email, etc.). For enterprise companies with 100s of SDRs, these fundamentals are just as important. Given the slow-moving nature of messaging evolution across larger orgs, it's super likely that changes in the market (or from your competitors) are making parts of your core script redundant more often than you'd think. You. need. to. keep. investing. in. your. sales. team's. resources. If anything else has been elemental to your process which I didn't include above, I'd love to hear about it, please comment below!

I’ve stood up 500+ SDR teams for clients in countless industries. Do NOT send an SDR live on the phone if they haven't mastered these 5 elements. 1️⃣ Key industry lingo/terms Each sector has its own language, and reps need to be comfortable using it if they’re going to talk to decision-makers. Develop a glossary of terms to help them communicate confidently. 2️⃣ Persona statements Persona statements are indispensable tools for understanding the key individuals working at your target companies. SDRs need to understand the unique concerns of the people they speak to so they can tailor their outreach. This is especially true if there are multiple stakeholders who oversee a particular area. 3️⃣ Targeting criteria These are the key firmographic or behavioral qualifiers that must be true for a lead to move forward. SDRs need to master this info so they can properly qualify leads early in the sales process. 4️⃣ Value proposition The value proposition is a statement that encapsulates the overall benefit a product or service offers to customers, including how it solves a problem and why it's a better choice. They also need to understand the nuance of how the value proposition relates to the specific persona they are calling. Value props are different from scripts; they inform the script and approach. SDRs need to internalize the value prop so they can effectively think on their feet when calls go off-script (as they inevitably do). 5️⃣ Competitive differentials Competitive differentials are distinct features, capabilities, and benefits that set a product or service apart from other options within the market. “We already have a competitor” is a common objection, and understanding the competitive landscape us the only way around it. The difference between a good SDR and a great one lies in the details, and these 5 drive sales excellence. #prospecting #leadership

I interviewed an SDR hitting 140%+ for 3 straight quarters. Here’s what they’re doing differently: 𝟭. 𝗦𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 ↳ 6–8 steps, not 15+ ↳ No filler. Every touch delivers value ↳ Call + email always paired ↳ Last step = custom video or voice note 𝟮. 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿 𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗴𝗲𝗿𝘀 ↳ New fiscal year = budget convos ↳ Earnings calls = warm hooks ↳ Major events = better outreach windows ↳ They don’t just work the lead list—they work the calendar 𝟯. 𝗢𝗯𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘀𝗲𝗱 ↳ Weekly call roleplays ↳ Objection flashcards ↳ Builds 1–line rebuttals for each major persona ↳ “I don’t fight objections—I prepare for them” 𝟰. 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗿𝗲𝗳𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗙𝗿𝗶𝗱𝗮𝘆 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝗰𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗸𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 ↳ What worked? ↳ What didn’t? ↳ Which touches landed? ↳ Which CTAs converted? Success is repeatable—if you study it.