9 Ways to Effectively Outsource Sales Development | Sales Outsourcing 101

In business, outsourcing is sometimes one of the most valuable tools that you have. For some companies, hiring a sales team makes perfect sense. For others, the cost of investment is far too great or just unnecessary at this stage of business. After all, most companies spend about 1.2 to 1.4 times an employee’s salary on onboarding, training, and retention. Unless you’ve gotten to a place where you’ve got that kind of money to invest, outsourcing may be the way to go. 

Of course, outsourcing sales development isn’t something that you can just do. It’s a process, a strategy, and it takes time to understand your options and figure out what’s best for your organization. 

What is outsourced sales development? 

Put simply, outsourcing sales development involves hiring an outside team or third-party provider to manage sales development for the company. Companies that need quick access to a well-developed sales team for lead generation can benefit greatly from this option when hiring employees doesn’t make practical sense. 

This is also a great option for those who are scaling their business because outsourced SDR solutions can grow with your company without creating excess overhead. Now that you know the basics, let’s look at nine ways you can outsource your sales development effectively. 

1. Outsource lead generation for new social media campaigns 

When you’re trying to grow your business, you’re eventually going to end up with more marketing campaigns than you have manpower for on the sales end. That’s where outsourcing can come in handy. You can give a specific set of leads to your outsourced team or even just assign them to handle overflow needs and run as many marketing campaigns as you want. 

2. Use sales development services for inbound lead generation 

You already have a lot on your plate. Do you also have the time to learn and perfect lead generation? The good news is that you don’t have to. If you outsource your lead gen to a third-party provider, they will have a team dedicated to that end and allow you to focus on other areas of your business. Inbound lead generation isn’t always easy when you’re short on sales staff, but outsourcing can be the perfect solution. 

3. Consider outsourcing cold calls and outbound sales, too 

Perhaps you hate cold calling—well, now you don’t have to worry about it at all. You can work with a third-party provider that will deliver sales outreach and support for everything that you need, giving you the information and contact details that you need to continue the sales cycle. Plus, many of them can help with other tasks in the sales pipeline, too. 

4. Utilize SDR services for following up, qualifying, and nurturing leads

Does your sales team struggle with follow-up? If you’re great at getting leads and contacting them initially, but don’t get further than that, you might need a little help. Outsourced SDRs (sales development reps) will have the expertise needed to nurture and follow up on leads to ensure that nothing gets left behind. When it comes to growth, you need to follow every lead until it’s no longer a potential asset. 

5. Some SDRs can even help with closing and execution 

You might be wondering why you’d want to leave the closing to someone outside of your company. While it’s not ideal, it’s about expertise. Outsourced sales reps only deal with sales calls and communications. Therefore, they have better skills and more experience than anyone on your sales team. If you’re struggling to seal the deal, try outsourcing and see if you can take some notes from what they do along the way. 

6. Use outsourcing to enter a new market when your resources are already tapped

Like in the first example with social media, you will reach a point in growth where you are out of resources and yet you still need to move forward. This is when outsourcing can come in handy. It’s a great way to check out new markets without investing a lot of your own capital or your team’s time and resources. Plus, they may have better ways to get into new markets than your team. 

7. Consider the capabilities more than the cost 

This is more of a consideration than a way to outsource, but it’s important enough that we need to put it here. When you are looking to successfully use sales outsourcing solutions, you need to make sure that they’re delivering the best capabilities and keeping your sales pipeline flowing. If you focus too much on what you’re spending, you’ll miss out on getting all the best features for less than you’d spend on an employee. 

8. Outsource sales development for new products 

When you’re looking to get into the market with a new product, your current sales team might not have the time to divide between that and their existing accounts. Rather than adding to your payroll right away, you can outsource sales development reps to handle new product marketing and lead generation. This will also help you collect research about your new product and what the market thinks of it. 

9. Outsource sales development with other services like admin and communications

If you want to make the most of your investment, find a company that offers an array of third-party solutions to assist you. Virtual receptionists generally provide all kinds of services for companies in the fields of administration, communications, and even sales development. They can handle everything from cold and warm sales calls to qualifying leads, scheduling appointments, and even fielding calls after hours so you never miss a beat. 

Speaking of outsourcing, a partnership with Smith.ai can assist with sales, admin, and more

At Smith.ai, our 24/7 virtual receptionists deliver all the expertise that you need for outbound sales and support, lead intake and qualification, appointment scheduling, and even things like outreach campaigns, collecting payments, making warm transfers, and helping you craft a strategy to manage it all. 

Schedule a consultation to discuss what the 24/7 virtual receptionists at Smith.ai can do for your sales development. You can also reach us at hello@smith.ai or (650) 727-6484.