The Ultimate SDR/AE Playbook to Drive More Pipeline (Without Driving Each Other Crazy)

Give an AE a demo, and you'll feed them for a day. Teach an AE how to collaborate with SDRs, and you've fed them for a lifetime.

We (Annie and Marleyna) put our ideas together from our respective AE and SDR leadership perspectives on how SDRs and AEs can make the most out of their partnership.?

(And yes, it’s a partnership!)?

To the SDRs and AEs out there, keep reading to level up your 1:1s, account planning, communication, and of course, pipeline!?

Section 1: How to Run the AE/SDR 1:1 Meeting

Yes, you should have them!

One of the main places you will collaborate is in a 1:1.?

Making the most out of regular 1:1 meetings will foster stronger cross-functional relationships and create better business results.?

Let’s dive in.?

AEs, here are 3 tactical tips to have better 1:1 meetings with SDRs:

1. Make it important

If you have already established a regular 1:1 meeting cadence with SDRs you share accounts with, you are ahead of the curve. Keep it up!

If you haven’t, get a recurring meeting on the calendar.? Remember to make this a priority. Agree to day/time that works well for both of you on a weekly/biweekly/monthly cadence and stick to your meeting time. Don’t constantly cancel or reschedule!

Don’t you hate it when prospects and customers cancel or constantly reschedule? Don’t put SDRs through the same pain! Everyone is busy...but we all make time for things that are important to us. Make SDRs feel important! BECAUSE THEY ARE!?

2. Identify your goals, as well as the value you will provide during the meeting.

What is the 1 thing that you want to accomplish during this meeting? What is 1 thing that the SDR will find value in?

If you don’t know, ask the SDR what would be most valuable for them to accomplish and/or better understand during your regular meeting. Add it to the agenda. You may be surprised! There could be something that is super valuable to them that’s really easy for you to help them with and also helpful to you.

3. Take ownership

Don’t show up with a long list of to-dos for your SDR. While some direction is helpful, it’s more helpful to lead the conversation about ownership.

As an example, will you handle above the line prospecting, while the SDR handles below the line? Or, will you look to identify strategic relationships for referrals, while the SDR handles direct mail campaigns? The point is, come with action items for yourself. What are you going to commit to doing to help secure meetings with each of your top 10 accounts? This is a team sport. You are in it together.

SDRs, here are 3 tactical tips to have better 1:1 meetings with AEs:?

1. Bring the right data?

Use a mutual doc for information that doesn’t change (like account history) or needs to be highlighted (that juicy reply you just got). For information that’s evolving, look to your tools.?

Show your AE where they can find the most up to date information - bonus points if you provide them a preset Outreach view or Salesforce report! Your AE will have the best view and you won’t be replicating data that will be out of date shortly anyways (like that planning sheet that only last the first two weeks of last quarter…).?

2. Add in a co-prospecting session

There is a lot you can learn from your AE, but it’s on you to continue to find ways to transfer that information. Pick an account and have your AE share their screen. Start with the research, all the way through selecting a lead and sending a message. What article headline or prospect title jumped out at them that you might have looked over? This will give you a chance to find valuable and replicable strategies that you won’t learn from a high level conversation.?

3. Don’t always focus on “stuck” accounts

It can be tempting to use your 1:1 to talk through the accounts you are having the hardest time with. Instead, ask yourself “which account do I think I should have gotten a meeting with by now?”. Use your time on accounts that have a high chance of success.

Section 2: How to Think About Account Prioritization

So your 1:1 is on the books, and you know what activities to do, but which accounts do you focus on?

Account Prioritization is one of the most important things to do at the beginning of a new quarter. Yet, many AEs and SDRs don’t take the time to do it. Or arguably worse, AEs and SDRs are not aligned on the right accounts to prioritize.

?Scenario 1:?

AE and SDR share 100 accounts together. The AE and SDR never prioritize their shared accounts.?

?Scenario 2:?

AE and SDR share 100 accounts together. They both prioritize a Top 10 account list, but never share their lists with each other. There’s little to no overlap of their Top 10 list.

Do these scenarios sound familiar??

Continue reading for some tactical tips to improve Account Prioritization and alignment. We are confident you will establish a stronger AE/SDR partnership.

Prioritize, Prioritize, Prioritize

Prioritization should be a priority.

Depending on the company and the segment, the actual number of accounts that you are able to “prioritize” may vary.? If you don’t know what the right number is, start with 10 and adjust from there. The list shouldn’t be overwhelming.

AEs should always have a shared list of their top priority accounts with the SDRs they work with. SDRs should do the same. Both should revisit the list together on a regular basis.? Revisit your "Top 10" and backfill each 1:1 meeting you have with the SDRs you work with, as necessary.?

For example, you may need to backfill for accounts that you've already secured a meeting with since your last 1:1 (yay!), accounts with a reasonable timing-based objection, or accounts that you recently discovered were a bad fit.

How do you create the list??

For AEs, think about these accounts as accounts that you would love to get a meeting with within the next 30 days.?

The accounts you’d be really excited to get in front of.

After you do this, ask yourself, what are the unique identifiers that would qualify an account to be put in the Top 10??

It’s critical that AEs share these differentiators with the SDRs they work with.?

This is a wonderful opportunity for AEs to teach SDRs and help them grow in their success in their current role, while also helping them set a great foundation for their next step (potentially) as an AE too.

Likewise, SDRs should know the key attributes about an account that excite AEs.?

Rockstar SDRs take the time to learn the definition of “good account” from the AEs they work with!?

As an SDR, it might be the one with the most engagement or good contact information, but an AE probably has a different definition.?

Talk about what makes a good account from your AE’s perspective!?

Great questions for SDRs to ask...

Which accounts do you think are most open to hearing our pitch? Why?

Which accounts would you be most excited to get a first meeting with?

Which accounts would make the best customer? Become a customer most quickly?

Consider "Bang for Your Buck"

While it's tempting to always prioritize your largest accounts, try and also consider which accounts might be easier to convert no matter the size.??

Think about the ratio of amount of effort to potential win - some might have better ratios than your “top tier” accounts!

IMPORTANT NOTE: As an Account Executive, you should also be able to actively participate in the prospecting efforts for each "Prioritized" Account. Check out some ideas to spice up your prospecting efforts here.

Section 3: How to Practice Great Communication

Now that SDRs/AEs are meeting regularly and have the right game plan for success, it’s time to dive into optimized communication. AE/SDR pairs need to set up communication and relationship expectations that will serve them well for quarters to come.

So how do you develop communication that leads to better outputs?

Be Clear About What You Need

The best AE/SDR partnerships leverage each other’s skills to ensure the best pipeline production.

Collaborating sounds easy in theory, but oftentimes asks can be confusing or are acted on too late to be effective.?

If you want your partner in pipeline generation to help out, remember:?

Be clear and make it easy

Be clear. Sometimes asking for something highly specific can feel awkward, but in reality, you are making it more likely that you will get what you need and the person you are asking will spend the minimum amount of time on your request.?

Make it easy. If it is easier and faster for someone to say yes than no, they will most likely help out.

Take this common SDR ask: I am not sure how to respond to this prospect's reply, could you take a look and tell me how you might approach?

Instead: Prospect X just replied and I am confident in responding to their “not the right time” objection but would like to hear how you would respond to the cost objection. Here’s my reply so far.

Communicate the Good

When it comes to establishing the best communication and relationship, winning AE/SDR pairs know how to pay attention to and articulate the good.?

Recognizing positives and wins reinforces behavior and makes it happen more frequently.?

So what do you celebrate??

Those new meetings, demos, and opportunities of course!?

But also remember to celebrate the process, the small wins, and the learnings.?

Those are all aspects to reinforce as well.??

As an AE, if you were able to get solid next steps or nail discovery because of the prep you had, send your SDR a slack. SDRs, if your AE sent you an article that booked you the meeting, tell them it worked.

If you want to use celebration to reinforce behavior, it has to be timely and specific.?

Positive feedback is essential to reinforcing the good!?

AE/SDR relationships are about enabling each other to do your best work.?

Instead of saying “Thanks for X!” try phrasing it as “Because you did X, I could do Y.”??

Make it specific enough that your partner in pipeline generation knows exactly what to keep doing.?

And of course, recognize BOTH the SDR and AE in public wins :)?

While closing is often the most noted aspect of the deal cycle, the SDRs never forget the AEs who was intentional about redirecting or sharing praise.?

Make Space for Feedback

Constructive feedback shouldn’t look that different from positive feedback (even constructive feedback can be shared with a positive and future-oriented framing).?

Start with your intention for the feedback, and phrase feedback in a way that lets you both get better.

?"If we did X, I think we could see more results in Y."?

You probably have a lot of mutual goals or positive current practices you can align feedback to!

AEs and SDRs get a lot of insight into each other’s process. The best pairings leverage that visibility to get feedback they might not get other places. If you are an AE, this starts with empowering your SDR to give you feedback. Make sure you set the expectation that you would appreciate the constructive feedback before asking for it. Ask your SDR, how did you think that call went? From your perspective, anything I could have done better? Was there anything you thought I missed? The top AEs don’t underestimate a fresh perspective :)

Treat Others How You Want To Be Treated

If an AE wants an SDR to go the extra distance, they should too (and vice versa).?

If you want to go even more up and to the right here is how to be the AE every SDR wants to book meetings for. SDRs, here is how you can go above and beyond for AEs.

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Annie Roche has been a top performer in both SDR and AE seats at early-stage startups and is now a Sales Manager at Attentive

Marleyna Mohler previously managed with the Sales Development team at Snowflake and is now Director of Inside Sales at Attentive.

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Attentive is hiring remote SDRs and AEs! BONUS points on your interview if you share your learnings from this article.

Submit your resume on our website: attentivemobile.com/careers