What Metrics Matter Most for an SDR Team?
The answer is simple: leads.
Not just any leads—relevant leads. Buyers who are ready now and those who will be ready soon. But here’s the challenge: Not everyone is ready to buy today.
So what’s the right metric? Is it leads who are ready now? Leads who signal a timeline? Or a mix of both?
If you know me, you know my answer.
Why Do We Have Metrics?
“What gets measured gets managed.”
If we don’t measure our performance, we can’t improve it. If leaders don’t track performance, they don’t know how to help their team grow. And on a company level, metrics prove value. They justify your pay. If you’re hitting goals, you’re showing your worth. If we can’t measure value, we can’t compensate it.
It’s a Mix of Both
The best SDR metric tracks leads with intent—both immediate and future buyers. Why? Because timing is everything.
Picture this: A prospect emails you back—
“Hey Jim, great email. But we just signed with a competitor a few weeks ago. Maybe next year.”
That’s a tough response. You were too late.
Now, imagine if you’d reached out three months earlier:
“Hey Jim, perfect timing. We’re vetting vendors in the next 2-3 weeks. Can we chat?”
That’s a lead. It should count. Even if the meeting is set weeks in advance, there’s intent and a timeline. That’s what matters. You need to track both buyer-ready and buyer-aware leads. Because in sales, you’re not just competing against your own timing—you’re competing against every other vendor in the space.
Sales Conversion: MQL → SQL — Who Owns It?
SDRs aren’t just booking meetings. They’re qualifying leads who fit the right ICP—because setting appointments is easy. Setting the right ones is hard.
A marketing-qualified lead (MQL) isn’t just any prospect—it’s someone with the right title, in the right company, with the right influence. If an SDR delivers that, they’ve done their job.
But here’s the reality: SDRs don’t sell the product. They sell time. They’re the introduction, not the main event. The AE’s job is to convert that lead to an SQL.
So, what does this mean? Three things:
- Clearly define what a lead is.
- Define what it takes to convert an MQL to an SQL.
- Create a seamless lead handoff process from SDR to AE.
The Buyers Market by the Numbers
At any given time, only 5% of your market is ready to buy now. But another 15% will be ready later. If you only focus on the 5%, you’re leaving money on the table.
Let’s say your target market is 10,000 prospects:
- 5% (500 leads) are ready now.
- 15% (1,500 leads) will be ready later.
Even with a 50% SDR conversion rate, that’s:
- 250 buyer-ready leads → Close 30% → 75 closed deals
- 750 future-ready leads → Close 15% → 112 closed deals
Total revenue, assuming a $50K ACV:
- Buyer-ready focus: $3.75M
- Buyer-ready + future-ready focus: $9.35M
That’s nearly $5.6M in lost revenue if you ignore future buyers.
Track both. Win more.
Gabe’s Gauntlet – Actionable SDR Advice
Work with your AEs, not against them.
Your AEs will help make or break your career. Collaborate to ensure success.
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