Pipeline Growth Requires Investment
Customer acquisition cost (CAC) is on the rise. In a recent survey by Qualtrics, 54% of respondents noted that CAC has increased in the last year.
Two of the biggest go-to-market concerns for startups are CAC and a stalled pipeline.
Understandably, startups want to conserve cash; but the question has to be asked - how can you lower costs while still building pipeline?
Speaking from experience, reducing sales development spend in an effort to create short term savings can hurt your bottom line in the long run.
Investing in lead-gen and pipeline development has a clear ROI. When your lead-gen is successful, your pipeline grows and your company does well.
Unlocking pipeline development:
Investments need to be made to empower sales teams to generate pipeline. The average tech spend per rep is $2,000 to $5,000 annually.
SDRs need tools to reduce their ramp time, maximize opportunities and build a sustainable prospecting and outreach funnel.
As technologies advance, personalization and relationship building remain essential in building pipeline. On average, it take 7-15 touchpoints to land a meeting with prospects.
Most organizations emphasize a combination of calling, email and social media as their leading channels for these touchpoints.
Pipeline generation is the lifeblood of sales
As you can tell, generating pipeline is hard. It doesn’t have a one-size fits all solution. Sales leaders understand the need to invest to generate opportunities and see the value in this investment.
The multi channel nature of generating sales opportunities means there are complex skills needed to succeed as an SDR.
However, it’s often handled by some of the least experienced members of the company…
It’s also a position that experiences constant turnover. 40% of Qualtrics survey respondents noted that turnover has increased in the last 12 months, beyond what they normally experience.
This continuous need to onboard and train SDRs has a direct impact on CAC.
57% of SDRs have a tenure less than 12 months
60% of organization report that onboarding takes 3-6 months
$60,000 - 80,000 is the median salary of an SDR (before overhead)
Despite the cost of hiring and onboarding new reps, companies continue to pursue this model because of the impact these reps have on revenue growth.
Lead-Gen will continue to be the driving engine of a healthy pipeline but with such short tenures (and lengthy ramp times) it can be hard for startups to provide the tools and support to maximize value.
Setting SDRs up for Success:
Teams of inexperienced employees tasked with growing mission critical pipeline without the right tools and oversight, what could go wrong...
The truth is that managing a successful SDR team goes beyond just technology. It’s also about onboarding, coaching, giving reps the ongoing support they need to prospect, communicate and book meetings.
Successful SDRs drive the success of the sales org as a whole!
Startups cannot afford to NOT invest in sales development.
Book some time if you are interested in learning how Health Biz Growth is helping healthcare startups access the value of an effective SDR motion to increase qualified meetings by >200% per month
