TL;DR
Build a structured 30-60-90 day plan with clear milestones: product mastery in week 1, ICP and messaging training in week 2, supervised calling in week 3, and independent ramping with quota from day 31. Document everything — the SDR should have a playbook on day one, not six weeks later.
Most SDR onboarding fails because it's unstructured. "Here's your laptop, here's your CRM login, figure it out" is not onboarding. It wastes 60–90 days of ramp time and leads to early attrition.
30-60-90 Day Onboarding Plan:
Days 1–7: Foundations - Company, product, and market: What do we do, who's it for, why do we win? - ICP deep dive: Who are we targeting, what are the firmographic criteria, what are the trigger signals? - CRM training: How to use HubSpot/Salesforce, where to log activities, what a pipeline stage means - Listen to 5+ recorded customer calls with your best AEs - Shadow the founder or top AE on live calls
Days 8–14: Messaging mastery - Read all 5 emails in the standard sequence aloud with the manager — every word matters - Run roleplay objection handling sessions: "Not interested," "We're not looking right now," "Send me more information" - Write 10 personalized first-touch emails on mock accounts for review - Learn the tech stack: Apollo, LinkedIn Sales Navigator, your sequencing tool
Days 15–30: Supervised sending - Launch first sequence with manager oversight — all emails reviewed before sending - First calls with manager listening in - Begin logging activities independently in CRM - First qualified meeting target by day 30
Days 31–60: Ramped execution - 50–75% of full quota - Weekly 1:1 to review call recordings, email performance, and pipeline - Identify and address early skill gaps
Days 61–90: Full ramp - 100% of quota target - Independent pipeline ownership - Manager review shifts from activity to outcome coaching
The critical document: Create an SDR playbook before they start. Minimum contents: ICP criteria, sequence copy, objection-handling script, meeting qualification criteria, CRM process guide, and escalation paths.
From Cactus: Cactus builds SDR playbooks as part of our sales enablement service — we've structured onboarding programs that cut time-to-first-meeting from 90 days to under 45 for multiple clients.
Cactus Marketing embeds with B2B tech startups to turn strategy into pipeline. We've worked with 60+ companies, supported 12 exits, and contributed to $7B+ in client valuations.
Book a free 30-minute call — we'll give you a concrete plan for your situation.
Book a free strategy call →How do I hire my first SDR?
Hire your first SDR only after you've personally closed 5–10 customers and can articulate exactly what messaging, ICP, and objection handling worked. An SDR hired before the founder has figured out the sales motion will fail — they need a playbook to follow, not to build one from scratch.
What should an SDR quota be?
A typical SDR quota in B2B SaaS is 8–15 qualified meetings booked per month, or $150–300K in pipeline generated per quarter. The right number depends on your ACV, lead source, and market. Set quota based on what's achievable from proven activity metrics, not what would be convenient for the business.
What is a good SDR conversion rate?
A good SDR conversion rate is 2–5% of outbound contacts to qualified meeting, and 25–40% of qualified meetings to SQL (sales accepted opportunity). Below these benchmarks suggests targeting, messaging, or qualification issues — not necessarily SDR execution.
How do I build a sales sequence?
Build a 5–8 touch sequence over 3–4 weeks across email and LinkedIn. Alternate channels, add value at each touch, and end with a breakup email. Each touch should have a clear purpose — not just 'following up.' Test copy variants systematically rather than changing everything at once.