Hi y'all. VP Sales @ Avarra here. I'm setting aside a fair amount of budget for pipeline generation for 2026. I don't want to hire SDRs. Currently we're seeing about 50% of our net new pipeline from customer referrals, network, and events, which are difficult to scale. I'm looking to rapidly increase pipe gen ahead of hiring a cohort of AEs. Our ICP is wider, but for this I'd want to target companies with between 50-500 sales reps (a reasonable proxy for us). Anyone have success with outsourced BDR function, service, or something similar? Other ideas you'd suggest I consider? Super open minded but looking to act quickly with a "test and iterate" approach.
Great recent episode from Lenny’s Podcast that could be relevant to check out! https://x.com/lennysan/status/1995622960598843883?s=46&t=QnEJfRb6DxlmDGKNi0U0hQ
The GTME in question also did an AMA here: https://x.com/dbredvick/status/1995682667128652285?s=46&t=QnEJfRb6DxlmDGKNi0U0hQ
Hey Dan — we’ve seen a similar pattern with teams scaling AEs before building out SDR/BDR layers. We’re currently supporting several orgs with **20–30 AEs**, handling all their **data operations, targeting, list building, and outbound automation** using Clay, Apollo, and manual research. For many teams, this becomes a scalable alternative to hiring SDRs too early. If you’re exploring a “test and iterate” model, happy to share what’s been working and what hasn’t. Best, Sourabh panopticanalytics.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sourabh85/
We should chat - just sent you a message on LI
This looks like a job for:
Demand Generation - content to drive inbounds, webinars to start conversations, the like
Outreach Automation - you can run a lot through the tools out there already that go right to your exec team, run by you.
Glad to talk shop around this, Dan, whatever helps!
I know a great outsourced BDR function (mostly cold calling but they do emails as well, happy to connect if you want), but LinkedIn ads and ABM could be great too.
Dan S. Honestly, delaying the SDR hire until you have the pipe to support it is the smart play. Not selling you a pitch here, but I read your situation and the math jumped out at me: targeting companies with 50-500 sales reps gives you a very finite universe of accounts. If you hand that list to a typical "high volume" outsourced agency, they’ll burn through your TAM in 3 months with generic outreach, and you can’t un-ring that bell. You need a precision approach, not just volume. We actually launched UnboundIA (part of UnboundB2B) for exactly this "Brand-to-Revenue" gap. Instead of just cold calling, we use intent data to identify which of those specific companies are actually in-market, then run a full-funnel play so the "test and iterate" phase actually yields data you can use. It safeguards your brand while filling the calendar for that future AE cohort. If you want, you can straight on book a demo call with us.
I was having the same conversation with my head of sales. He suggested something that had not crossed my mind: a fractional sales team. I have been talking to https://northpulsegtm.lovable.app and they have an interesting business model. Ping me if you want a warm intro. The team behind that agency is great
Dan S. you have a great product. I would push on marketing, paid ads, and events virtual or physical as William pointed out and have Sourabh run the GTM ops. I tried your bot, its great. Let it handle all the inbound, leading to that training bot for 5 minutes and enrolling for free training. Cheers
