7 Things Every Salesperson Can Learn From a BDR

You get an email from a qualified prospect who’s expressing interest in your product. The prospect knows what your company does, and why it’s vital to their success. They’ve got the budget, they’ve got the power to make a decision, and they’re ready to close by the end of the month. It’s the perfect sale.

But really, when does that ever happen? We all know that if sales were that easy, everyone would be doing it. In reality, this is a game of numbers, persistence, and smart prospecting. Enter: the Business Development Rep (BDR). As the first stop on the road to a closed sale, the BDR is a vital role on a sales team, laying the groundwork for faster closing times, more qualified prospects, and higher revenue.

And like the sales AE role, the BDR job isn’t easy! Day in and day out, BDRs work to establish relationships with prospects through cold calls, emails, social selling, and networking. Most importantly, the BDR prospects potential customers that slipped through the cracks and return these leads back to the account executive. As such, BDRs must be deliberate, intentional, and unrelenting.

Often, the feedback that BDRs provide will help shape the company’s sales strategy tremendously. With high prospect touchpoints and access to consistent feedback, the BDR team has the chance to become intimately familiar with pain points, pushback, and opportunity. With such intimate customer knowledge, the BDR could be your secret weapon and the key to unlocking your sales potential.

To better understand that BDR role, what it requires, and what salespeople could learn from the-team-behind-the-team, we went straight to the source: the Winmo BDR team.

What Can a Salesperson Learn From a BDR?

While the basics of outreach and follow-up probably aren’t rocket-science, the Winmo BDR team has identified 11 vital traits and qualities for success as a BDR — and beyond.

1. Know Every Touch

Salespeople know that numbers are crucial — calls, meetings, emails and more. Sales teams with routinized processes are likely already tracking things like emails, but there are so. many. more. customer touchpoints. BDRs are consistently tracking all of these touches, and you should be too.

2. Take Note of Positive vs. Negative Reply Rate

A BDR will determine how much interest is shown from their outreach by judging the positive versus negative response rate. With a focus on keeping the number of prospects high, BDRs bring a higher volume of clients in for the sales team to work with. If you or your team doesn’t have a BDR, make sure that your team is tracking replies — and not just relying on anecdotal evidence.

3. The Answer Is Only “No” Until It’s “Yes.”

A majority of the time, BDRs reach out to people that don’t necessarily want to be reached. Over a short phone call or email, it’s their job to explain the value of the product. BDRs do all of the things AEs can’t or don’t want to and continue to pursue people even when they have heard “no” 10 times. The ability to deal with frustration and remain patient when hearing “no” is an essential trait for every salesperson.

4. Curiosity Is a Key to Success

BDRs are ceaseless in their pursuit of success and salespeople need to be as well. Curiosity drives an urge for creativity and finding new customers. Once you find these, figuring out a way to keep them engaged and continue to act on behalf of your organization and grow.

5. Set Clear Expectations From the Outset

Clarity is needed within a sales team and with the customer as well. The BDR position can have high turnover rates. As a sales manager, it is so important to set expectations when hiring about what specific goals for each position so that success will be more attainable as a team.

Clarity with the customer should always be a priority. A BDR is often the first point of contact for a company. You never get a chance to make a good first impression. When selling a product, it’s important to be clear about what you are offering, why, and how it would benefit the customer. As a salesperson, everything you do, say and send reflects the company and its reputation, so make sure you are communicating clearly.

6. There Are No Wins Without a Clear Finish Line

Typically new to the team, BDRs are always looking for ways to improve. This should be something every salesperson does, regardless of how successful they may be. Once goals are set, it’s just as important to keep track of your progress and have regular check-ins with your team to ensure everyone is performing to the best of their ability, and if not attempt to figure out why. Goal setting is a way for teams to boost their motivation and constantly challenge themselves.

7. Attention to Detail

With constant cold calling, research, emails etc. throughout their day BDRs have to stay focused on the small things. Accuracy and focus through everyday tasks will make a sales team successful. While the details can get repetitive or looked over when things get busy, they are crucial to the big picture.