Job Description Blog - Alex Ster

Business Development Representative 

As someone who has held many different internship roles in various fields and industries, there is only one similarity between each role. That similarity is sales. I have enjoyed working in the Real Estate, Insurance, and Retail industries. However, this past summer, I worked in technology and want to continue to pursue that in the future. I interned as a business development representative (BDR) at a software stealth company. You might be wondering what that means or fully entails. 

A Business Development Representative is a fancy way of saying a sales representative who sells go-to-market products. The company I worked for the past few months focuses on cybersecurity, keep-faking, and phishing. It was a unique first experience working at a startup company since I would like to found my own company down the line, but I am also glad I learned more about the cybersecurity space. 

Not in a million years would I say that I am a cybersecurity sales professional; however, I am lucky enough to have received an internship offer with the team for next summer and a full-time role once I graduate with my master’s in December 2025. 

When people think of sales, they typically think of the traits of a car salesman: 

• Snaky 
• Tricky 
• Over promise 

However, that is different for a business development representative in the technology industry.

Traits of a business development representative (specifically in cyber security) daily: 

• Patient 
• Persistent 
• Collaborative

Patient

BDRs contact clients daily through email, LinkedIn, and phone calls. These cold conversations can get frustrating when you don’t receive feedback or a response from the target client. 

Here is an example: I was lucky to learn firsthand what that felt like this summer.  As the only intern with previous sales experience, I earned a promotion during the summer to begin company outreach, and I excelled in the role. During my first week doing it, I booked seven clients, and each week after that, I only booked more.  Booking clients can feel like a game of luck. Full-time BDRs and I were reaching out to different clients, but we all had the same target customer.  I was performing well during my internship because I had something to prove. On the other hand, the full-time BDRs, who came straight out of their senior year with no experience, were booking the same amount or lower than me each week.  

It can be challenging to book clients on days when you don’t have any. However, you must be patient and continue the cold outreach, as it will pay off. 

Persistent

Despite being patient, BDR must stay persistent in its communication and outreach efforts.  

For example, I worked for a Business-to-business (B2B) company. That means we would contact their Chief Executive Officer, Chief Technology Officer, and Chief Information Security Officer. These roles had the power and experience to know the value of the product we were contacting them about. Sometimes, people said they wanted to meet to hear more about the company but never followed through. This is where the role of BDR is essential to stay organized and know who to continue reaching out to. 

Being persistent with potential clients is the only way to gain a sale for the company.

Collaborative

Collaboration with the other BDRs and Sales Leads (AEs) is essential in this role.

Although I was an intern, I learned much from the full-time employees who truly helped show me the ropes. The role has a base commission with an additional commission salary for each client booking and sale made. That means that many sales roles can get cutthroat and competitive. The company I was working for in Beverly Hills, everyone encouraged each other to succeed in the company's overall growth and success. 

Comparisons

Co-workers

Regarding sales, getting competitive and wanting to be better than those around you is easy. However, comparing one's outreach success one day can drastically change the next. 

Competing Companies

Success in other companies helps motivate Business Development Representatives to outperform competitors. Looking into other companies effectively benchmarks the sales outreach and identifies weaknesses.

Sales Stigma: 

When you tell anyone, you want to go into sales, they immediately think of the sales Carman stigma: a snaky person who will try to drain you for the most money you are willing to spend. That is not the case in the cybersecurity industry or technology in general. There are set prices, and it is up to the potential customer to implement the service to protect their company.  

Sometimes, it is as simple as that. BDRs reach out to potential customers to help them solve a potential problem for their company. 

Passive Sentences: 0%

Flesch Reading Ease: 60.2 

Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level: 8