SDR vs BDR vs Account Executive: what's the difference?
Updated · 5 min read · By the Elevate admissions team
SDRs and BDRs both book meetings, and neither closes deals. SDRs usually follow up on inbound leads. BDRs usually prospect outbound. Account Executives (AEs) take those meetings and close the deals. Most people start in tech sales as an SDR or BDR and are promoted to AE.
Sales Development Representative (SDR)
An SDR qualifies interest. When a prospect downloads a guide, books a demo or replies to a campaign, the SDR reaches out quickly by phone, email or LinkedIn. They ask a few questions and book a meeting for an Account Executive if there's a fit.
Daily work: calls, emails, CRM updates in Salesforce or HubSpot, and short discovery conversations. Success is measured in meetings booked and pipeline created.
Business Development Representative (BDR)
A BDR does the same job outbound. They research target companies, find the right contacts and start conversations cold. Many companies use the two titles interchangeably, so read the job description rather than the title.
Account Executive (AE)
The AE owns the deal from first meeting to signed contract. They run discovery and demos, handle objections, negotiate, and close. AEs carry a revenue quota and usually earn a larger share of their pay from commission.
Side by side
- Goal. SDR/BDR: book qualified meetings. AE: close revenue.
- Experience. SDR/BDR: entry-level, often no degree required. AE: usually 1–2+ years in sales development.
- Pay. Both use base salary plus commission, called on-target earnings (OTE). AE OTE is higher, with more of it variable.
- Core skills. SDR/BDR: prospecting, cold calling, writing, resilience. AE: discovery, demos, negotiation, forecasting.
How to break in without experience
Hiring managers for SDR roles look for coachability, communication, and proof you can handle rejection. Customer service, retail, hospitality and serving jobs translate well.
Elevate's 10-week SDR bootcamp trains prospecting, cold calling and Salesforce, then runs mock interviews and makes employer introductions. Graduates have been hired as SDRs and BDRs at companies including DNSFilter, Outreach and Sticky.io. Elevate lists expected Year 1 earnings of $60,000–$85,000 OTE for SDR and BDR roles, based on public compensation data from RepVue and Indeed.
The Elevate program
Frequently asked questions
Is an SDR the same as a BDR?
They're closely related entry-level roles that book meetings for Account Executives. SDRs usually follow up on inbound leads and BDRs usually prospect outbound, but many companies use the titles interchangeably.
How long does it take to go from SDR to Account Executive?
It varies by company and performance. Many SDRs are considered for promotion after hitting quota consistently for 12–24 months.
Do you need a degree to become an SDR?
Usually not. Many tech companies hire SDRs based on communication skills, drive and training rather than a degree.
What does OTE mean in sales?
On-target earnings: base salary plus the commission you'd earn by hitting 100% of your quota.