Outsourced SDR - Does it Work For My Company?

Find out if outsourcing is right for you.
saas sales outsourcing cover photo
An effective sales team is critical to your company's success if you want a predictable, repeatable, and scalable sales engine.

When deciding whether to outsource your SDR team or hire internally, there are a few things to consider. Outsourcing your SDR team can be a great option if you want to tap into an international pool of talent or if you want to save on costs.

However, it's worth considering whether an outsourced team will be able to meet your specific needs and whether you'll be able to build the same level of trust with an outsourced team as you would with an internally hired team.

In today's competitive environment, businesses must find new ways to drive more qualified leads and sales. The best way to do this is by using every available resource.

Outsourced Sales Development Representatives (SDR) are a great new resource for any business that needs help increasing lead generation and closing deals faster.

But what exactly is an SDR?
How does sales outsourcing work?
And should your business use the services of an outsourced SDR?

If you're unsure whether an outsourced SDR will work for your company, read on to learn more.

What is an Outsourced SDR?

An outsourced sales development representative (SDR) is a salesperson who joined your company or startup through a sales outsourcing company, handling sales development and lead qualification without requiring an office at your business.

Whether through cold emailing, cold calling, social selling, or other outbound prospecting methods, they produce, qualify, and reach out to new leads to turn leads into customers.

Any business can benefit from outsourcing salespeople and sales development representatives, mainly because they provide companies with the knowledge they require to execute their campaigns while freeing up time to focus on other projects.

A company will typically hire a third-party SDR outsourcing company to manage a team of sales development representatives. This SDR team can consist of a single representative or a group of five or more. The team's size is fully based on the needs and resources of the company.

Businesses with smaller sales budgets might benefit substantially from SDR outsourcing companies. You can save time and money by outsourcing the hiring and training of your sales representatives. The third-party SDR outsourcing company takes care of everything for you.

On the other side, B2B and SaaS companies may find it convenient to work with an outsourced SDR company during a moment of fast growth. While the organization recruits and onboards more internal sales representatives, the extra outsourced SDRs help to fill their pipeline.

Outsourced SDR vs. In-House SDR

Time

The first point to consider is how much time you'll need to hire and train in-house SDRs, and how much money a qualified recruit will want compared to outsourcing them.

Since an in-house SDR's typical duration is only 18 months, you'll need to hire new sales reps frequently each year, according to Hubspot.

This will take time and resources away from other business-related activities because you'll need to:

  • Spend hours promoting your open positions on websites and job postings.
  • Interview a large number of candidates.
  • Onboard and train your SDRs.

On the other hand, if you choose an SDR outsourcing company, they take care of everything. All you have to do is to find the best one.

Cost

An internal sales team's onboarding and training could be quite expensive. As previously said, it's risky to prepare them by yourself. If you don't train them, your company will face the consequences of a bad onboarding process, and your SDRs won't fit and won't produce value for your company.

The truth is that burnout is a common thing when it comes to lead gen lead generation. This means that by recruiting and training someone who may not even stay with your business long enough to produce the high-quality leads you were hoping to obtain from the job, you are taking a risk.

In reality, training a new SDR can take up to four months. And it takes a while to see a reasonable ROI.

SDRs who are outsourced are on the scene right away. They have the resume and portfolio to back up your presumption that they won't get bored with the task in hand.

Location

Outsourced SDRs are the solution if you're looking for SDRs for a remote sales team.

Remote work is nothing new for outsourced SDRs. They are very independent, determined to finish the work, they understand how to communicate in a remote team, and they are very tech-savvy.

An in-house SDR can still be familiar with working in an established environment or office. This can be confusing when switching to a remote position for the first time. In addition to not being used to working in a different setting, they won't have a deep understanding of technology outside of those utilized by their employers.

Tips for SDR Outsourcing

It's reasonable to have some assumptions for SDR outsourcing companies when you make the important decision to outsource your SDR activities. Without any input from you and for a cheap cost, you might bet on ROI going through the roof in a month or so.

Although it sounds fantastic, it is not how it actually is.

The following are some essential tips when implementing outsourced sales:

1. Take Your Time

An outsourced SDR will require some time to adjust, just like any other employee. Although you will cut down significantly on onboarding time, the SDR should still be familiar with your industry and target market.

Give it some time while educating them about your product or service, your ideal customer profile, and value proposition.

2. Consider the Outcome

You pay for the expertise of professionals, a committed staff, and a strategy made just for your company. Based on the costs incurred by your SDR outsourcing company/partner, the fee should be fair.

If someone attempted to sell you a brand-new car for $100, you might become dubious. The same is true for outsourced outbound sales.

Ensure to define your objectives, especially regarding the results you expect. Ask lots of questions. Pick an SDR outsourcing company that can help you achieve your goals, and the costs will be worthwhile.

3. Interact With Them

SDR outsourcing companies can assist in maintaining internal team focus on generating new business. It won't, however, be able to function independently.

To boost productivity, you should be willing to communicate with your new outbound sales partners and integrate them into your current teams.

SaaS Sales Outsourcing in 2024

One of the biggest trends in lead generation for 2024 is the outsourcing of sales development representatives. Every day, information is shared at a faster rate. You must provide the best client experience if you want to keep up.

SDRs at SalesPipe nurture and follow up with prospects through a variety of media channels, including cold calling, cold emailing, and social media outreach, to provide high-quality outcomes.

SDR is a very difficult position in outbound sales. The amount of experience needed for this position, however, is steadily declining as demand rises.

The ramp period for SDRs at SalesPipe is significantly shorter than with other outsourcing companies. We also provide SDRs insights that we keep constantly updated with the latest strategies and technologies, so our SDRs are up-to-date in the sales world, to be the best SDRs out here.

Conclusion

If you're still unsure whether an outsourced SDR is the most appropriate option for your business, then you should make sure you have a good grasp of the strengths and weaknesses of both options.

The truth is that outsourced SDRs can be a great option for businesses that can't afford to hire in-house SDRs or that are unable to make in-house SDRs work due to cultural differences.

If you can't train in-house SDRs, then outsourcing is a great option because they can be trained and managed by someone outside of your company.

However, SDRs who are outsourced are not as likely to make an effort to be a part of your team. They are more likely to just be there to do their job.

Since an SDR outsourced to an outsourcing company doesn't have an employer, it's also important to bear in mind that they may always be on the job market and ready to move on should the opportunity arise.

Get in touch with us, to explore how we can help you generate more leads with outsourced SDRs.
Post by Lucy Zorrilla.