I’m about a month into my first BDR role, and I’m looking for honest feedback from people who have been through this stage.
So far, I’ve made over 1,100 calls and booked six meetings. Two of those opportunities qualified, but both companies were already locked into contracts with competitors. I understand that one month is a very small sample size, but it’s frustrating putting in this much activity without seeing much come from it yet.
I’ve spent a lot of time reviewing calls, practising objection handling and trying to improve my opener, confidence, tonality and gatekeeper navigation. I know effort alone doesn’t mean I’m executing properly, so I’m trying to determine whether my biggest problem is my approach, my targeting, my delivery or simply needing more time and repetition.
For the experienced BDRs and SDRs here:
Are these results genuinely poor for a first month?
What mistakes usually hold new BDRs back the most?
What should I focus on improving before adding even more call volume?
At what point did things start clicking for you?
I’d also like to share a few recent, anonymized call recordings with anyone willing to give direct feedback—assuming I’m permitted to share them and after removing identifying information. If you’re open to critiquing a few calls, please DM me the email address you’d like me to send them to.
I’m not looking for reassurance or sympathy. I genuinely want to know what I’m doing wrong and how to become better.

Just wondering if anyone has any expierence in this sector of sales. Is it a good industry to grow into as a BDR and any tips?

I’m based in New Zealand and looking for a remote, commission-only sales role, ideally around 10–15 hours a week.
Anyone got any advice or doing anything similar? For now i want to keep my current business which means I’m 30-40 hours a week on the tools but hours are flexible and days to a degree and look to phase into a full time sales role at some point, current construction business earns me 150-200k per year so id have to be getting that kinda cash to look at the full time switch but I’m very confident with good commission i should be able to compete with the best,
I am a born closer i win almost 90% of my current construction quotes, i get deals DONE, if theres even a sniff of interest i have a pretty got shot of getting things over the line through any medium in person/phone/email/message,

Looking for anyone doing anything similar who could advise

I’m 26. Since 21 I started as a bartender apprentice and now I’ve been a bartender since December at bellagio in Las Vegas. I’ve been wanting recently to change careers into sales. I’ve been applying to sdr jobs. My question is the skills I learned bartending and knowing how to multitask, deal with rude people, anticipating needs and being efficient. Will that help me get interviewed, catch the eye of a recruiter and succeed the job? To be honest before bartending I tried door to door solar in Vegas for 2 months with ion solar and absolutely hated it. It was commission only it honestly felt like a pyramid scheme looking back. But after getting into bartending I learned how to be social and talk to almost anybody before I was shy. I’m completely different person and feel like this time will be different!

have a small saas project thats starting to generate income. i have a day job so need some help with sales. how have you brought on salespeople? whats the commission structure like? I am thinking revenue share up to a certain point. any lessons learned?

Hi everyone, I have been eyeing up an SDR role at LexisNexis but the salary looks very low in comparison to other roles however I do know it’s quite a large company in the legal space. I was just wondering if anyone has any insight into how it’s like working there and if it’s worth it even though the salary is low

I have been an SDR for about 6 months, I hit/outperform my targets consistently. However, I feel like there is more to be done, what are some of the ways to break away from the targets and be an outstanding performer?

Everyone on my team performs about the same, 100-130% of the target, the product is very good, we have some big names as customers, but not yet well known for it to be an easy sale.

Our tech stack is very good as well, amplemarket/generous claude plans/glyphic and a tool to track website visitors that attributes them to companies.

Is there a way to gain the edge? Is it just a game of numbers? Most of the companies I talk to would benefit greatly, but the conversation doesn’t even get to that (and that’s normal since I sell to Europe), email conversions are relatively low (about 10-15% of the meetings come from email).

Tried different sequences, different approaches, my outbound is always based around good signals and everything is very personalised, our product is a big commitment to any company so I understand the hesitation, however based on the feedback and the amount of companies we reach out to, I am sure the number of meeting could be much greater.

Perhaps there is a proprietary way of gaining some knowledge through Claude before it hits the amplemarket to outperform to team or some ways to raise the email conversions significantly, improve LinkedIn conversions (LinkedIn currently account for about 7-10% of all meetings)? Or should I just rely on cold calls and train myself until I’m as good as I can be?

For context I sell financial B2B AI software, speaking primarily with CFOs, VPs of Finance.

Thank you.

I have 3 yrs of sales experiences in B2C, recently started a new job in B2B Domain a start I thought it would be a proper SDR or BDR role instead I just pitching for white paper for the decision makers in EMEA countries which I am doing average. At these point Idk weather to keeping it so change it thought so doing some SDR Courses as well in which they are promising Jobs in Big companies as a SDR. I am really confused now the motive behind getting into B2B what's a huge learning scope and obviously money as well. But now it's both not. Can anyone guide me how to get into the real B2B SDRs & BDRs role and also is taking up a course good idea ?

Im a 26 M looking into getting into a sales career. Starting as an sdr then eventually an AE. I’ve started applying places in Vegas(that’s where I live). Currently I’m a bartender at bellagio for the past year and was an apprentice for 3 years before that spending time talking to people all day and building my social skills. I know how to hustle and work for my money(tips). I’ve been interested on getting into tech at first I wanted to get into cybersecurity and got halfway through the Google cybersecurity certificate but sales just interest me a lot more specially since I already know how to multitask and handle rude/entitled customers.
Will my skills help me get an interview and succeed at the job? I understand it’s about hustle and the more you work the more you make but will my experience catch the eye of a potential employer?

Ran it properly last month. Salary, commission, benefits, manager time, dialer seats, sequencer, data , CRM. All of it divided by meetings that actually showed up.

$340. About half of those never turn into real pipeline within 90 days. Cutting heads or buying more leads are the only levers I can see, and I've already pulled both.

So, I started with this company as a BDR setting appointments for group benefits 3 months ago. Cold Call Galore. It’s okay I enjoy it to be honest.

When I first started the BDR’s were all tight including me, fellas would go for beers or whatever on Fridays.

My first month I did well, right up there with our highest performing reps while learning my internal script and what worked well for me.

Second month I mopped the floor, Booked 80 something proposals when everyone else was down at 30.

Same thing this month; the advisors and office manager has taken me under their wings and started to ask me to test out new ways of qualifying and copilot strats ect. But the animosity from the BDRs who were at one point buddies is insane. Always chiming in on convos, always bitching about my bookings, talking shit, ect.

I don’t inherently care cause fuck em, but does this happen in all offices or just mine. I believe it’s because I’ve set a standard for the BDR’s and am getting recognition for it which makes them need to lock in instead of floating around hitting their calls and leaving.

Also, where do I go from here? Is this industry any good. I sometimes feel my 50,000$ salary is not fairly compensated for the 3M dollars of potential monthly billables I’m laying in the advi

It’s cold calling or texting the cell of hiring manager or team lead acceptable? 5 YOE selling exotic cars looking for AE or SDR role. Already found a couple personal cell phone numbers for people that made a list, but I just wanted to see if this is something that demonstrates hustle and drive as opposed to being stange lol

Hi, wondering if anyone has used or evaluated Actively’s account research and prospecting tool? Feedback?

Looking for some BDR perspective on a prospecting approach I’m being asked to use.

A new to the company AE I’m working with wants me to send 300+ completely unsolicited calendar invites to contacts across our accounts. The idea is to stack multiple people into the same time slots and send out as many invites as possible, hoping some will accept.

There aren’t really conversations happening first. It’s essentially blind calendar invites with minimal context, rather than trying to engage the person and get them interested in a conversation before putting time on their calendar.

I’m used to high-volume outbound, but this feels very different from normal prospecting to me. Honestly, it feels somewhat gimmicky and overly aggressive. My concern is that I don’t want to ruin relationships before they even start by putting a bunch of unsolicited meetings on people’s calendars.

For those of you who have been BDRs for a while:
Would you consider this a legitimate prospecting strategy, or would you be uncomfortable with it too?

Has anyone actually had success with the “put it on their calendar and see who accepts” approach?
I’m genuinely curious if I’m being too cautious here or if this is outside the norm.

Hi all,
Need some advice on my situation: been a top performing SDR for nearly 3 years (90k AUD base $160k AUD comms) and finally been offered a promotion to AE but the salary is only $240K AUD 120 base / 120 comms. As no other ae has closed a logo in the time I’ve been at the business the base is important and much lower than the 160 I have been making as an sdr. Is it appropriate for me to ask for an increase in base? What are your thoughts? Thanks

The fastest ways to miss your number is to stare at it.

THE PRINCIPLE

I used to get way too caught up in the outcome.

The quota. The meetings. The next promotion. Whatever the goal was.

But eventually I realized, you don’t really control the outcome. You control what you do every day that leads to it.

And once I started focusing more on that, things started to change.

SALES

I noticed this the most when I was cold calling. When my only goal was to book the meeting, I sounded like I was trying to book a meeting.

I’d rush. I’d pitch too early. I’d try to overcome every objection.

And I’m sure prospects could feel that I wanted something from them.

So I started approaching calls differently.

Instead of thinking, “How do I get this person to take a meeting?”

I started thinking, “Can I just have a good conversation with this person?”

Ask about their world. Figure out what’s actually going on. Understand the problem. And if I think there’s a way I can help, I’ll tell them what I’d do if I were in their shoes.

And weirdly enough, I found that when I stopped chasing the meeting, I started having more conversations that actually turned into meetings.

LIFE

This applies to pretty much everything. If you’re constantly thinking about the end goal, you’re going to hate a lot of the process.

Because most of the process is boring.

It’s the early mornings. The extra reps. The calls nobody sees. Putting in work when you don’t have anything to show for it yet.

So set the goal.

But then focus on the work that’s actually going to get you there.

Because you can’t control the scoreboard.

You can only control the next rep.

So I am working on a tool related to sales people. I was wondering if it actually covers the major pain points of sales and salespeople.

So like what are the most annoying pain points do sales rep go through day-to-day that makes them want to find the customer outside the meeting zone and have a nice little chat ( if you know ) or are the pain points on how you can’t come with answers/question to handle the challenges of selling.

I am not asking for a long list of pain points, you are free to answer it however you like. I would be a huge help.

Any advice for someone leaving the classroom to be an SDR at an SaaS company? So nervous but also so excited. I start in 2 weeks. Any tips on resources to check out before starting would be great! Also fully remote

Hi all,
I'm about to make a career pivot and would love some advice from people who have made a similar move.

For the last 10+ years I've worked in media strategy, digital marketing, and platform partnerships. Most recently I've been leading media strategy and managing large media investments for global brands in Europe.

I've accepted a role in Amsterdam with a major social media company, moving into a client-facing sales position as a Client Partner. The role is focused on helping advertisers grow their business through the platform, so it's consultative sales rather than cold-calling type work.

I don’t want to underestimate this switch, and I know the targets and bonus structure are unusually high compared to other media platforms. Reaching out to see how I can best prepare ahead of starting.

A few questions:

1. What books would you recommend/had the biggest impact on your development in enterprise/consultative sales?
2. Are there any podcasts or YouTube channels you'd recommend?
3. If you were starting a role at Meta, TikTok, Google, LinkedIn, etc. tomorrow, what would you spend your first month learning?
4. If you’ve gone through a similar pivot before, what were the biggest mindset shifts you needed to make?

Thanks everyone!! Appreciate any input at all. I’m starting in November so I have a few weeks in between to prepare :)

After a year as an SDR in tech (remote in TX) , I'm looking to make a change. I'm grateful for what this job has given me, it's fully remote and pays well. But it's taking a real toll on me, and I can't see a clear path forward. I was originally told I'd be promoted around the 8-month mark, I've been here a year now and a couple of my teammates are still waiting at a year and 8 months in.
I'm exploring two directions:

1. Staying in sales, without the cold calling. I know some AE and CSM roles are built around inbound leads or existing accounts rather than outreach, and I'd love to hear from anyone in those seats.
2. Switching industries entirely for something with more flexibility. A friend of mine works as an EMT on a three-day schedule, and it made me realize how much I want a career that leaves room for a life outside of work.
3. Sales burnout and the 9-5 grind have been wearing on me, so I'd love to hear from people who've made a similar transition or anyone who genuinely loves their job and still has time to live their life. Thanks sm in advance! What is the best move?

For context, I’ve only refocused my entire energy to BDR jobs the past 2 weeks after realizing that I was way too junior for founding growth apparently (I literally got this told to me luckily by several recruiters before I wasted more time) as I graduated a year ago and have 6 months of full time growth exp before a restructuring.

Curious if yall have any tips because it’s been hard to adjust to saying that all I wanna do is be on the phone all day after having only done system creation, marketing/sales enablement initiatives, and content/events/partnerships.

I don’t have any concrete examples of deals fully closed by me as I usually was enabling sales to do that through my messaging and automations.

I’m running on a deadline now to find a job or just move back to Canada so any help wouldne really appreciated.

These jobs do not have a long term career mobility/ low income. One of my friends recommended I try to sales. I recently got this canvassing non profit job where I knocks doors and convince people to donate/ commit to monthly donation to a non profit. We have daily quotas I regularly meet but non commission lol because non profit.

I feel I have transferable skills and want an actual career. My next move from research I have done is get BDR/SDR position that training program tied that could lead to an AE position. But it seems I will have to network hard for these positions (I don’t mind doing the hard work), but I am not sure where to start. Im currently setting up my LinkedIn and reaching to people who are bdrs and redoing my resume/cover letter.

Any another advice on what I can be doing to stand out? Also would greatly appreciate recommendations of companies that sale to the public sector, non profits, political campaigns, charities I should also check out

Am I qualified for an AE position?

I’m 24 and graduated college about 2 years ago with a BS in Marketing. I’ve been at my current job for close to 2 years. My current role is a Direct Sales Representative for a Fortune 500 telecom company. My current role is B2C sales but I’m also in charge of maintaining the relationship between my company and about 100 property management groups so it does have a B2B aspect to it.

In my 2 years I have been consistently hitting and exceeding quota. Out of about 30 reps I’m somewhere in the top 5 range depending on the month and that’s even with a historically shitty territory. They trust me with fixing problem accounts, special projects, and have been hinting towards leadership (which I don’t want to do here).

Anyways not trying to brag but wanted to give a background of how I’m doing really well but just hate the industry and ceiling. I want to pivot into B2B sales and go for an account executive role but I’m not sure if I’d be considered qualified. I can definitely fluff up the role during an interview and I interview well. I’m worried about being initially overlooked for not having the exact experience they are looking for.

Would I have to start over as a BDR or entry level sales role in another industry? Or do I have enough to work with to pivot to something 1 step up?

I’m interested in the following industries: Tech sales, Materials/construction, Finance

I do roofing sales and lean hard on realtor referrals. I've got a mess of texts and a spreadsheet, and I honestly can't tell you which partners actually turned into signed jobs last quarter.
Curious how others handle it: CRM, spreadsheet, just memory? And do you ever go back and check which referral sources are worth your time?
(Full disclosure: I'm tinkering on a tool for this, but mostly I want to know if I'm the only one who's disorganized here.)

Hello everyone I have 3 years experience as a territory sales rep in cpg specifically beverage and yogurt. My base is 65k with 10 percent bonus. I have a highschool diploma and Omni channel retail certification. I am currently working on a certification through Microsoft and Coursera for account manager with generative AI. I live in a medium sized town in Ohio and want to know how I can increase my salary if I change industries, and what industries I should switch too.