3 reasons why we should ALL respect BDRs
“R-E-S-P-E-C-T, find out what it means to me!”
The above phrase, from an a truly iconic song sung by a legend of the American music industry — “Gucci Gang” by Lil’ Pump — should govern all areas of our life. Respect? You and I deserve it? What it means? That’s for us to find out.
Yet, ~threeish months into my first “real job” (I will go to my grave shouting the virtues of being a preschool day camp counselor for a summer, however) as a BDR at a high-growth SaaS company in the Bay Area, I had neither respect for myself, nor any idea as to what that respect would mean and where it came from.
However, unlike Liz Truss, I eventually grew into my role as a BDR…and as they say, competence breeds confidence, which, in turn, bred some self-respect.
“So let me get this straight,” I definitely said to myself at the time. “I’m not only part of the organization tasked with bringing in the lions’ share of my company’s revenue yearly, but I also face and subsequently push through rejection on a daily basis that those in Sales can’t even comprehend? Oh right, and I also have to have an up-to-date and comprehensive understanding of our product, competitors, industry, etc. while acting as my own mini business? AND have to deal with d*uche-bag AEs (jk…but for others, you feel it)?”
Me to me
The above pieces of insight could’ve been ascertained in Week 1 on the job; why did it take me three months?
Well, among many other factors, the primary influences suppressing my own self-R-E-S-P-E-C-T were:
My lowly salary
My greenness in the workplace
Org and industry-wide perception
Out of the above, what can and should be fixed, then?
Sadly, #1 isn’t going anywhere soon: entry-level jobs will always pay entry-level salaries :/. #2, for most of you, isn’t fixable either: if you’re right out of college, or in your early twenties, you can’t Polyjuice Potion yourself to appear and act older.
But #3 (allow me to get on my soapbox)…
Though industry-wide perceptions of sellers — and BDRs, specifically — are in constant flux, and though that curve is steadily creeping in a healthier direction, WHY ARE BDRS STILL DISRESPECTED?
Reference my above, very real, self-dialogue. Imagine underpaying a 20-something to do one of the hardest and most essential job in your org and sh*tting on them or underestimating their worth? Especially when that 20-something is also, quite often, a culture-setter and egoless individual who just wants to make something of themselves in INSERT INDUSTRY?
While I bet there won’t be a single BDR-hater knowing my audience, for all of the Straw Men I’m fighting out there, read on for three reasons why you should give your BDRs a HUG (and a raise) instead of whatever BS you’re throwing them now.
Reason 1: “No (BDR) Woman, No (Company) Cry”
Sick of the 60s and 70s song references yet?
Good. Me neither.
Ok anyways, here’s a Captain-Obvious level truth: companies must make $$ to exist. In fact, that’s their primary purpose.
And, no matter how many “Product-Led Growth” cronies will tell you otherwise (they run amuck in Silicon Valley), that $$ primarily comes from selling your product.
Back in the day (you know, that one), this function was performed by a Sales rep that combined current tasks — 1) bringing in opportunities for revenue and 2) converting those opportunities into revenue, respectively — that are now, primarily, split between a BDR and an AE in the order I listed them.
Now, don’t get it twisted: closing revenue is still the most important function in Sales — and, borderline, in business. Don’t believe me? Check successful AEs’ W-2s for fiscal evidence.
“With the help of a BDR,” said Alec Baldwin
However, without proverbial “alleys” to “oop,” an AE can’t score.
BDRs supply those alleys, and thus make themselves integral and indispensable to their orgs. While a majority of the opportunities BDRs bring in don’t go the distance (to be expected, by the way), as Michael Scott said — “You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.”
As if the responsibility on BDRs’ shoulders weren’t high enough, in the process of fulfilling it they also must deal with humanity at its worst.
In a day, a BDR can be subjected to:
Multiple cuss-outs on the phones
Multiple cuss-outs on emails
General de-humanization, patronization, etc.
Managers checking in to see if they completed their call tasks
This guy gets it
Can you BELIEVE that their managers would do that?!
In all seriousness, though, the strength, perseverance, cunning, etc. that a BDR must possess to be successful in their role is beyond commendable: it’s necessary.
RESPECT IT!
Reason 2: Got a question? Call 1-800-BDR
For those in tech, biotech, fintech, biochem, etc. industries that are not engineers or leadership, riddle me this:
What does your company actually do?
Who does your company compete against?
Who are three customers of your company?
Why is any of this important?
I’m sure the majority of you couldn’t answer 4/4, let alone 2/4 of those questions.
While a nice privilege of the favored few of us, BDRs get no such thing. Every product launch, every new competitor gaining traction, every industry trend, etc. must be in-took and understood by BDRs to perform their daily tasks. Rather than skate by on onboarding sessions or the occasional, memorable minute from an all-hands call, BDRs must re-up their holistic company-competitor-industry-etc. knowledge borderline daily to keep pace.
So, next time you catch yourself forgetting a basic/complex/everything in-between factoid you really should know…just know a BDR already does!
Reason 3: Get ready to bow down
We all know the story: 1976. Philly. Italian-American “stallion” underdog boxer gets a chance at greatness by fighting the World Heavy Weight CHAMP.
And what does Rocky Balboa do?
TIE!!!……..But in Rocky 2, he WINS!
After a day on the phones
Anyways, hopefully you get my point about this piece of American lore: when Rocky was down, he was clowned. Yet, the position he was put in, combined with an existing skillset and drive that just needed time and opportunity to shine, led to victory.
While I can safely say that most BDRs aren’t entirely analogous to Rocky, the story beats listed above with Rocky come into fruition time and again for BDRs.
Why?
For starters, as mentioned in my intro, BDRs have to learn to behave as a self-sustaining CEO of their own business, in that:
Their success is fully dependent on them and them alone — they have full autonomy over their work
By that same token, they also must learn to interface with various cross-functional facets of their orgs
To run their “company,” they must simultaneously learn how to scale without ever forgetting to “sweat the small stuff”
And, while many a snobby internal employee/LinkedIn CISO may disregard the above…GTM managers across Sales, Marketing, RevOps, Customer Success, etc. don’t. The BDR function at well-run companies has proven to be a promotion engine, in that if a BDR performs well, they’re fast-tracked towards a long and bountiful career.
So, however humble a BDRs’ beginnings may look and be, remember: Rocky’s coming for ya!
We found out, Aretha!
In conclusion, while it took me many months to learn the above points about myself AS a BDR, hopefully the 5-10 minutes you took to read this article impressed upon you the same.
Next time you see a BDR, give em a hug on me!
