Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Outbound Sales Development Representative

🎯 Role Definition

The Outbound Sales Development Representative (SDR) is an early-stage revenue generator focused on proactive, outbound prospecting to build qualified pipeline for Account Executives and revenue teams. This role centers on researching ideal customer profiles (ICPs), running multi-channel outreach (cold calls, cold email, LinkedIn), qualifying opportunities against qualification frameworks, managing CRM hygiene, and consistently hitting activity and meeting-booking KPIs. The successful candidate is coachable, persistent, metrics-driven, and experienced with sales engagement platforms and modern outbound playbooks tailored for B2B and SaaS markets.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

Customer Support / Customer Success transitioning to sales
Inside Sales or Telesales representatives
Marketing Coordinator or Demand Gen specialist moving into direct sales

Advancement To:

Account Executive (AE) / Outside Sales
Sales Manager / Team Lead (SDR Manager)
Business Development Manager / Enterprise SDR

Lateral Moves:

Account Manager / Customer Success Manager
Product Marketing or Sales Enablement roles

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

Proactively generate qualified outbound pipeline by researching, identifying, and prospecting target accounts and contacts within assigned verticals and ICPs using LinkedIn Sales Navigator, company websites, news feeds, and market intelligence.
Execute high-volume, multi-channel outreach campaigns (cold calling, cold emailing, LinkedIn outreach, social selling, SMS where permitted) to secure discovery meetings and demos for Account Executives.
Manage and execute cadence sequencing in sales engagement platforms (e.g., Outreach, Salesloft) and continuously optimize subject lines, messaging, and call scripts based on A/B test results and conversion data.
Perform deep account and contact research to craft personalized outreach that demonstrates clear value and relevance; customize messaging to buyer personas, use cases, and organizational triggers.
Qualify inbound and outbound leads using established frameworks (BANT, CHAMP, MEDDIC-lite) to determine fit, budget, authority, timing, and next steps; document qualification details in the CRM.
Conduct discovery calls to uncover pain points, business objectives, buying authority, and decision-making processes; summarize findings in clear, actionable call notes.
Consistently meet or exceed weekly and monthly KPIs including calls, emails, meetings booked, SQLs (sales qualified leads), and pipeline value contribution toward quota attainment.
Maintain accurate lead and contact records in the CRM (Salesforce, HubSpot), ensuring lead source, activity, qualification status, disposition codes, and next action dates are up to date.
Coordinate handoffs to Account Executives and Sales Managers, providing comprehensive opportunity context, call summaries, and recommended next steps to accelerate conversion.
Build and maintain an outbound pipeline forecast and report pipeline health metrics to managers on a cadence (daily standups, weekly reviews), highlighting trends and risks.
Utilize dialers and call analytics to maximize talk time, track connect rates, and iterate on objection handling techniques to improve conversion rates across segments.
Participate in regular coaching, role-playing, and onboarding sessions to refine discovery techniques, objection handling, and closing behaviors under manager feedback.
Collaborate with Marketing to test and refine outbound messaging, account-targeted campaigns, and content that supports outreach and nurtures engaged prospects.
Implement and follow organized account prioritization and territory management strategies to maximize reach into high-value accounts and to avoid duplicate outreach.
Log and escalate competitive intelligence and buyer feedback to Product, Marketing, and Revenue leaders to shape product messaging, positioning, and roadmap decisions.
Use data to identify best-performing verticals, messaging sequences, and outreach cadences; recommend and help pilot growth experiments based on performance metrics.
Manage and grow a list of target accounts and contacts using enrichment tools and manual research to ensure a steady, refreshed pipeline of prospects.
Handle complex objections during outreach with consultative selling techniques, deflecting price and timing concerns while steering prospects to next-step meetings.
Drive net-new logo acquisition efforts by targeting accounts outside of inbound channels and opening new conversations with previously unengaged buying committees.
Adhere to compliance and privacy policies (CAN-SPAM, GDPR, TCPA where relevant) when conducting outreach, and maintain proper opt-out and consent records.
Contribute to playbook development by documenting successful sequences, scripts, and persona-based approaches that scale across the SDR team.
Champion continuous improvement by analyzing call recordings, A/B results, and conversion funnels to eliminate friction points and improve meeting quality.
Support account-based outbound initiatives, aligning tightly with enterprise sales teams on outreach timing, executive touchpoints, and synchronized messaging.
Track and improve lead-to-opportunity conversion metrics while adjusting daily activity plans to maximize performance against quota.

Secondary Functions

Support ad-hoc market research and competitive analysis to identify new segments, pain points, and product positioning opportunities.
Help produce and iterate on email templates, call scripts, and LinkedIn message templates for specific industries and buyer personas.
Attend industry events, webinars, and trade shows as a brand ambassador to capture leads and arrange follow-up meetings when appropriate.
Collaborate with Sales Enablement to develop onboarding content, playbooks, and training modules for new SDR hires.
Provide structured feedback to Marketing and Product Marketing on campaign performance, messaging resonance, and collateral effectiveness.
Assist in refining lead scoring models and suggest adjustments to improve the quality of handoffs to Account Executives.
Participate in cross-functional initiatives such as pricing pilots, packaging tests, and vertical-focused go-to-market experiments.
Support limited inbound lead handling during peak demand periods and ensure consistent service level agreements (SLAs) for response times.
Maintain and uplift the team’s knowledge base by documenting objection handling examples, successful sequences, and case studies.
Contribute to sales contests, pipeline acceleration programs, and quarterly business reviews to share insights and accomplishments.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

Proficiency with CRM platforms (Salesforce, HubSpot) for logging activity, updating opportunity records, and running basic reports.
Experience with sales engagement tools (Outreach, Salesloft, Groove) to build and manage multi-touch cadences and email sequencing.
Strong cold-calling and voicemail-leaving skills using auto-dialers and manual dialing workflows.
Familiarity with LinkedIn Sales Navigator and social selling tactics to identify decision-makers and craft outreach.
Ability to use genomic enrichment and data tools (ZoomInfo, Clearbit, Apollo) to source contact data and enrich account records.
Competence with basic sales analytics and reporting: pipeline metrics, conversion rates, activity KPIs, and forecast inputs.
Working knowledge of lead qualification frameworks (BANT, MEDDIC-lite, ANUM) and the ability to apply them consistently.
Comfortable with G Suite / Microsoft Office for email cadences, calendar management, and preparing meeting notes.
Experience with call recording and analytics platforms to review performance and adopt best practices.
Familiarity with marketing automation basics (Marketo, Pardot) and understanding of lead lifecycle stages.
Basic understanding of GDPR/CAN-SPAM/TCPA compliance for outbound communications.

Soft Skills

Exceptional verbal communication and active listening skills to quickly build rapport and uncover customer needs.
High degree of resilience and persistence: comfortable with rejection and able to sustain high-volume outreach.
Strong time management and prioritization skills to balance prospecting, follow-ups, and administrative tasks.
Coachability and a growth mindset: receives feedback well and iterates rapidly to improve outcomes.
Strategic curiosity: digs into buyer context and competitive dynamics to personalize outreach effectively.
Problem-solving orientation and ability to think on your feet during discovery conversations.
Team collaboration and cross-functional communication to align with AEs, product, and marketing.
Attention to detail and organizational discipline to maintain CRM hygiene and accurate reporting.
Empathy and consultative selling approach to position solutions against customer pain points rather than price alone.
Initiative and ownership mindset: proactively suggests improvements to process, tools, and messaging.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

High school diploma or equivalent; relevant sales experience and a track record of outbound prospecting can substitute for formal education.

Preferred Education:

Bachelor's degree in Business Administration, Marketing, Communications, or related field preferred.

Relevant Fields of Study:

Business Administration
Marketing
Communications
Psychology (buyer behavior)
Economics

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range:

0–3 years for entry/early-career SDR roles; 1–4 years preferred for more senior outbound SDR positions.

Preferred:

1+ years of direct outbound B2B sales or SDR experience (SaaS experience strongly preferred).
Demonstrated track record of meeting or exceeding activity and meeting-booking KPIs.
Experience operating in an Account-Based Selling (ABS) or territory-assigned outbound environment.
Familiarity with the full sales tech stack (CRM, engagement platforms, enrichment tools) and basic sales analytics.