Success in sales isn’t about fancy tricks. It’s about getting the basics right, day in and day out. We recently had the pleasure of hosting Debdutta Saha, a seasoned SDR who shared his daily routine and tips on how to crush it in sales. Turns out, there’s no secret sauce—just habits that drive results.
1. Start With a Plan: Winning Begins Before the Day Starts
Deb doesn’t show up to work wondering what to do. He has a plan before he even sits down. His day starts with reviewing yesterday’s progress: What worked? What didn’t? Sent 50 emails and got zero responses? Time to change the approach. Sent 10 and got three responses? Double down on that strategy.
Here’s the reality: Your day is like a game, and every action is a play. If you don’t know what worked yesterday, you’re just throwing the ball around hoping to score. Deb reviews his calls, emails, and outreach every morning. He tracks his numbers to see if he’s moving in the right direction and tweaks what isn’t working. High performers clear out the noise, prioritize what’s working, and attack the day with purpose.
2. The First Hours Are for Money-Making Tasks
Deb shared his golden rule: Mornings are for money-making. The first few hours of your day are when you’re the sharpest. Don’t waste that time on busy work. Use it for prospecting: emails, LinkedIn outreach, research, and calls. Deb focuses on building a strong pipeline early in the day. This means targeting the right people, understanding their pain points, and crafting personalized messages that resonate.
Prospecting Is Priority: The goal isn’t to send 100 emails; it’s to send the right emails. Deb dives into research, crafting tailored messages that address specific pain points. He knows that quality beats quantity every time. Top SDRs focus on the prospects most likely to convert, not just on hitting a high number of sends.
Practice Like an Athlete: In the mornings, Deb practices his pitches and cold-calling scripts. He treats this time like a training session. You wouldn’t see an athlete going into a game without warming up, right? The same goes for sales. A bit of daily practice sharpens your skills and builds confidence for when you’re in front of prospects.
3. Know Your Numbers: Track Like Your Career Depends on It
Most SDRs struggle because they’re not tracking their progress. Deb emphasized the importance of metrics. He tracks everything—calls made, emails sent, meetings booked. This gives him a clear picture of what’s working and what needs to be adjusted.
Here’s what Deb tracks:
Calls: He logs the number of calls made daily and monitors his conversion rate. If 50 calls result in one meeting, he analyzes what he can tweak to make that two.
Emails: He tracks open rates, response rates, and conversion rates. If a certain subject line gets a higher open rate, he uses it more. If responses are low, he revisits his messaging.
Meetings: He sets a weekly target for booked meetings. If he’s not hitting it, he digs into the data to find out why. Maybe it’s the pitch. Maybe it’s the timing. The key is to know what’s happening so you can fix it.
Successful SDRs like Deb don’t wait until the end of the month to see if they’re hitting their goals. They check progress every week and make adjustments on the fly. It’s about constant, incremental improvements.
4. Communicate: Get Noticed and Get Ahead
Deb also highlighted something most SDRs overlook: internal communication. It’s not just about what you do; it’s about who knows what you’re doing. High performers share their wins. They tell their managers, their team, and other departments. It’s not bragging—it’s visibility. Debdutta makes sure to update his team on his progress, whether it’s booked meetings or new tactics he’s trying out.
Pro Tip: When you share your wins, give credit where it’s due. Did the marketing team provide solid leads? Did a colleague offer a useful tip? Acknowledge them. This builds goodwill and shows that you’re a team player. Your visibility in the company matters as much as your performance. The SDRs who get promoted aren’t always the best at selling; they’re the best at communicating their value.
5. Focus on Fundamentals: Consistency Beats Flash
Deb stressed that success in sales isn’t about random bursts of productivity. It’s about showing up every day and doing the basics right. Here’s what he focuses on:
Mindset: Rejection is part of the game. You’ll hear “no” more than “yes.” The best SDRs don’t take it personally. They use every “no” as feedback to refine their pitch. If rejection gets under your skin, you’re finished. Deb views rejection as part of the process, not a reflection of his abilities.
Organization: He keeps an Excel sheet to log calls, meetings, and follow-ups. It’s not just for show; it’s his personal playbook. This habit helps him stay on top of his pipeline and quickly identify which prospects need attention. It’s simple, but it works.
Practice: Even after years in the game, Deb practices his skills daily. Cold calling, email scripting, objection handling—you name it. It’s not about reaching perfection; it’s about getting a little better every day.
6. Your 3-Month Roadmap to Success
We broke down how to plan your first 90 days in a new SDR role. Here’s deb’s playbook:
Month 1: Spend the first two weeks learning about the company, team, and product. Deb suggests meeting with different departments: sales, marketing, customer success. Ask them what customers love, what objections they face, and why people choose your company. This gives you insider knowledge that most SDRs skip.
Month 2: Start light outreach. Emails, LinkedIn, and some cold calls. Don’t stress about booking meetings yet; this is your testing phase. Deb emphasizes making mistakes now while expectations are low. Test your messaging, refine your scripts, and figure out what resonates with prospects.
Month 3: Now it’s time to go full throttle. Set a small target and focus on hitting it. By now, you should have the knowledge and practice to make a real impact. Track your results daily and review them with your manager at the end of the month. The aim is to learn what works, what doesn’t, and how to improve.
Zoom Out: Success Is Simpler Than You Think
Here’s the bottom line from Deb’s experience: Most SDRs fail because they overcomplicate things. Winning in sales isn’t about fancy tactics; it’s about getting the basics right, consistently. Plan your day, practice, track your results, communicate your wins, and focus on improvement.
It’s not glamorous work, but it’s what separates the good from the great. Deb’s approach isn’t some secret formula—it’s a commitment to doing the right things every day. You don’t need to reinvent the wheel; you just need to roll it forward, one step at a time.
Consistency, mindset, and relentless action are what make top SDRs. Do the work, track your progress, and let the world know about your wins. That’s how you get noticed, promoted, and paid.
When you’re ready, we’re here to assist you in three ways:
B2C SDRS or Aspiring first-time SDRs - Join our Online Cohort beginning October 8th (admissions now open) to learn from us and your peers about securing a role at a B2B SaaS company. We cover everything from the process and skills to extensive mock interview practice.To Apply, You can book a time here Companies like Birdeye, Rippling, Epicor, Salesforce, Deel, Alaan, LambdaTest, Chargebee, VWO, Netradyne, Sogolytics, ConvertCart & Zluri has hired our SDRs with CTC that will blow your mind.Now we have 2 Mentors from the Top SaaS companies to help you not only learn the skills but understand how hiring managers hire.
Check out our free resources at learn.schoolofsdr.com
Train your SDR Team: We offer a 4-week/onsite customized program designed to train your B2B sales reps on modern prospecting. Get in touch by replying to this email or set up a time here.
Hire SDRs from us- We are currently training a team of 15 SDRs who’d be job ready SDR in 4 weeks. Get in touch by setting up a time here. Companies like Birdeye, Salesforce, Zoom, Rippling, Alaan, LambdaTest, Chargebee, VWO, Netradyne, Epicor, Sogolytics, ConvertCart & Zluri has hired our SDRs in the past 3 months.
Bonus: Try Blue, Our AI powered Sales Coach to help you get instant feedback on Cold Emails and Cold Calls.