11 ways to increase your SDR productivity (Without working 70 hours a week)
Read time: 4 min 46 sec
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This week, I want to give you 11 ways to improve your productivity.
As an SDR working remotely, with a lot of distractions, has been able to get 200%+ of quota and be a top performer during various months at Chili Piper.
With productivity, you can get more done with less time. The feeling of accomplishment is another benefit of productivity (making your 40 calls of the day, for example). Each task you cross off your to-do list gives you an increase in energy and mood.
Being productive as an SDR is the first step to performing.
When I started as an SDR, I underestimated productivity and didn’t have any idea how to plan my day or think about taking breaks.
No game plan
No blocking distractions
No routine
No breaks
Do the things that are easiest first
With no game plan, you don’t know if you are working towards your goals. Nothing wrong with that, it’s just not very helpful to perform.
To perform in your role, you need structure around your day, relax, and turn off notifications.
For the past years, I’ve been experimenting with different ways to improve my productivity. I want to share what I use to help me perform.
Here are 11 ways I have found to increase my SDR productivity.
Let’s go!
1) Plan your day better
Last week I read this LinkedIn post from Tom Alaimo @ Gong, where Mark Cuban gave him the plan when you are struggling. His step number 1 is: Plan your day better.
That’s something I did too when I struggled and that’s the first thing I’m working with SDRs who need coaching.
At the end of the day review your day, and plan your next day.
Self-reflect on your day:
What went well?
Where could you improve?
What can I quickly eliminate?
Plan and prep your next day:
Prep for your next day: time block your Revenue Generating Activities on your calendar, research your accounts, etc.
Have your cold call list ready: no bigger impact on the day than having the list of people you’re calling and why already written out
Prepare before you get started. Being productive happens before you start your day. Never end the day without planning. Don’t skip this step.
2) Turn off all distractions
It doesn't take a genius to realize that every time you get a text, get a Slack message, a colleague asks you a question, your office door opens. Your action plan is ruined.
We love to think we can do different tasks at the same time. But we can’t.
To truly perform, turn on your focus mode. You can’t be getting distracted every 30 seconds.
Turn off your notifications
Let your team know you will be prospecting for 50 min
Bonus: if you work in an office setup. Go to a booth.
3) Create your routine
The best SDRs follow a daily routine to know when it is time to work and when it is time to relax.
Cold calling at the same time, or always writing your cold emails at the same time, or always prospecting on LinkedIn at the same time, every day. You train yourself to know when is the best moment to be focused to do your best work.
Having a routine reduces the need to focus on adjusting to something "new." With your routine you are consistent.
4 types of activities for your routine:
Revenue Generating Activities (RGAs = tasks that move you towards your commissions)
Non-RGAs
Breaks
Internal meetings or projects
Self-development
4) Measure
If you can't measure it, you don't know how to improve it, or you spend too much time on something that might won't work. Be conscious of measuring what you can measure so that you can tweak as you go along and see where you can become more efficient. Elite athletes know their numbers. Top SDRs too.
5) Take breaks
Being a "productive SDR" doesn’t mean sitting still for eight straight hours. You can work for 8 straight hours for a few days but you are not a robot. You will burn out.
Maybe it’s 10 min break after your 50 min blocks. Maybe a 1h after a 4-hour block.
Do what works for you. What works for others might not work for you.
6) Use your calendar as your todo list
When you prep your day, schedule your blocks in your calendar.
Use color for each type of activity (RGA, breaks, Non-RGA, the rest, Self-development) to make it visual and know if you spend your time on the right ones.
Set a specific goal for each block on your calendar.
50 min of cold calling? 30 dials.
1h of research? 5 accounts researched.
7) Protect your Revenue Generating Activities
We are paid for the results we are producing, spending time in internal meetings doesn’t help to achieve your goals. So make sure you focus on those activities during your days. During those RGA, turn on your focus mode. Close all the tabs not related to your calls or cold emails.
8) Eat the frog
Identify what’s the most difficult for you. Cold calling or LinkedIn prospecting? You identify one challenging task and complete it first thing in the morning. Doing the most difficult task before you do anything else will help you with a boost of energy for the rest of day.
9) Monetize your activities
Making your calls just because you need to make them doesn’t help to do them.
To motivate yourself and think about your outreach differently. Let’s think about: how much $ do you earn for each activity? Let’s say our commissions for Q4 are $3k USD. For calls, you’re making $0.47. For each call, you don’t make you’re losing money.
You know that if you don’t make your calls you won’t get your commissions.
If you do them you see how much money you earn per activity.
10)Time constraint
We talked about time blocking above. In a 50 min block of RGA you want to put a limit for each activity, for example:
5 min for researching a prospect
15 min for researching an account
5 min to write an email
2 min for a call
Conversations on the phone 8 min max.
For example, over-researching prospects is a waste of time. When you're doing your research, adopt the "first is best" mentality. Search for your highest priority trigger. Search for your highest priority trigger.
Constraining your activities will help with doing instead of procrastinating too much during 1 block of 50 min.
11) Less internal meetings
If you have too many internal meetings, some of them will be recorded, and some of them don’t need your presence. If they record it, tell your manager you’ll watch the recording later. So you can have more time to focus on your RGAs.
That's all for this Sunday. I hope you find these 11 ways helpful on your journey to be a productive SDR.
Quick Reminder: If you like my emails please do “add to address book” or reply.
See you next week.
Happy prospecting,
Elric
PS: Here're the 3 last issues if you miss them:
#24 - My prospecting process to book more qualified meetings
#23 - How to hit your quota in Q4 easily (Tips + Calculator)
#22 - 3 ways to handle "running into a meeting" objection on the phone
If you want to read the previous ones, you can here.
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