What Is a Sales Development Representative?
A specialised sales role focused entirely on prospecting, qualifying leads, and booking meetings for account executives.
A Sales Development Representative (SDR) is a specialised sales role focused entirely on the top of the sales funnel. SDRs prospect for new business, qualify inbound and outbound leads, and book meetings for account executives. They do not close deals. Their entire job is to fill the pipeline with qualified conversations.
The SDR model became standard in B2B after Aaron Ross popularised it in Predictable Revenue. The insight was simple: separating prospecting from closing lets each role specialise and perform better. SDRs become experts at opening conversations. Account executives become experts at closing them.
SDRs typically use a combination of email, phone, LinkedIn, and video to reach prospects. The best SDRs in 2026 also use intent data and buying signals to prioritise their outreach, focusing on accounts that are most likely to be in a buying cycle right now.
Why It Matters for B2B Companies
The SDR role exists because prospecting is a full-time job. Account executives who prospect for themselves spend 40-60% of their time on non-revenue activities. Dedicated SDRs free up AEs to focus on demos, proposals, and closing, which is where they generate the most value.
SDRs also create a natural talent pipeline. Many of today's top sales leaders started as SDRs. The role teaches discipline, resilience, product knowledge, and customer empathy, all skills that translate directly into account executive and leadership positions.
For companies looking to scale revenue predictably, SDRs provide a lever. If one SDR books 15 meetings per month and you need 60 meetings, you need four SDRs. The math is straightforward, which makes planning and budgeting easier.
How ORRJO Approaches This
ORRJO provides outsourced SDR services for B2B companies that want pipeline without the recruitment and management overhead. Our SDRs are trained on your product, your ICP, and your messaging, and they start booking meetings within the first three weeks of engagement.
Frequently Asked Questions
A typical SDR day includes researching target accounts, writing and sending personalised emails, making cold calls, sending LinkedIn connection requests and messages, qualifying inbound leads, and updating the CRM. Top SDRs spend 70% of their time on outreach and 30% on research and admin.
SDR compensation varies by market and experience. In the UK, SDR salaries range from 25,000 to 40,000 base with OTE (on-target earnings) of 35,000 to 55,000. In the US, base salaries range from 45,000 to 65,000 with OTE of 65,000 to 90,000. Top performers consistently earn above OTE.
Core SDR metrics include meetings booked, meetings attended, pipeline generated, activity volume (emails, calls, LinkedIn touches), response rates, and conversion rates at each stage. The most important metric is qualified meetings that convert to pipeline.
A new SDR typically takes 2-3 months to fully ramp. The first month focuses on product training and process learning. The second month sees increasing activity and early meetings. By month three, a good SDR should be hitting quota consistently.
Get SDR-level pipeline without the hiring timeline.
Book a strategy call and we will show you how outsourced SDRs can start filling your pipeline in weeks, not months.
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