Building a Sales Team from Scratch: David Kreiger on Lessons for New and Growing Agencies

In this video, you’ll learn: 

• Industry Powerhouse: David’s 20+ Years of Experience and Background on SalesRoads
• David Kreiger’s Top Tip for Building Your First Sales Team
• How to Structure Sales Teams for SMB, Mid-Market, and Enterprise
• SalesRoads’ Impact on the Sales Industry Through 2025 and Beyond
• Rapid Fire Round: David’s go-to podcast, hidden superpower, and more!  

Industry Powerhouse: David Kreiger’s 20+ Years of Sales Expertise at SalesRoads

David, can you tell us a little bit about you and your background with SalesRoads?

David Kreiger [00:30-01:33]: I'm the president of Sales Roads, a 17-year-old SDR outsourcing and lead generation company. We help B2B companies, primarily in SaaS but also in services, manufacturing, and agencies, generate predictable appointments with their ideal clients. We develop targeted outreach campaigns using teleprospecting, email, and other channels to book qualified appointments for our clients' sales teams.

David Kreiger’s Top Tip for Building Your First Sales Team

One of the themes I hear over and over is that many agency owners “accidentally” formed companies. If an agency owner was sitting here trying to figure out how to build their first sales team, what would be the first few things you would tell them to do?

David Kreiger [01:38-05:52]: Let me start with something counterintuitive: don't grow too fast. As Warren Buffett said, "More businesses die of indigestion than starvation." Rapid growth can compromise quality, and excellence is your best sales tool. This is especially true for bootstrapped agencies.

For building your first sales team, I recommend starting with founder-led sales. Yes, you'll be wearing multiple hats, but use this time to develop and document your process. Record your calls, track what works, and establish metrics. Your passion for the business makes you the best initial salesperson. Only after you've created a proven process should you consider hiring your first salesperson. The key is methodical growth. We've seen many agencies grow explosively then implode, while our steady approach has kept us successful for 17 years.

How to Structure Sales Teams for SMB, Mid-Market, and Enterprise

Most of the agencies that we work with have a client base that is mostly SMB and mid-market companies. How do you think about structuring a sales force for a target client like that?

David Kreiger [05:53-09:08]:  I really think the setup is similar for SMB and mid-market in terms of team structure, but with different methodologies. Being biased as this is what we do, I've seen our clients benefit from the SDR/AE split model for over 17 years. These are truly two different skill sets – having someone focused on prospecting and qualifying leads, and another person dedicated to closing.

When you merge these roles, one aspect usually suffers. Either you get someone who's great at hunting but lacks strong discovery skills, or more commonly, they focus on working warm leads and pipeline while prospecting falls off. And whether it's SMB or mid-market, investing in quality list-building tools is critical. With today's AI tools, you can pull insights from websites about companies' interests, missions, and products. Really investing in list enhancement – whether for inbound leads or outbound prospecting – helps you properly target and engage prospects. In this day and age, you can find almost anyone, so building comprehensive, well-researched lists is essential for targeting your TAM effectively.

Many agencies want to move upmarket from SMB/mid-market to enterprise. For those at this crossroads, what key differences should they consider when transitioning to enterprise sales?

David Kreiger [09:09-11:50]: The enterprise sales motion is very different from SMB/mid-market. A common mistake is trying to apply your founder-led or SMB playbook to enterprise – while you might get lucky, the buying motion is completely different. For enterprise, start by carefully selecting which companies to target. Why would they choose you over established players? Are you offering something new, or competing with incumbents? Consider switching costs and your unique value proposition.

Then create detailed account plans. You'll need to engage multiple stakeholders, each with different priorities and reasons to buy. The sales cycles are longer and require more patience and planning. You may need different sales talent too – someone who can handle longer, more complex sales cycles versus the faster-paced SMB approach. The biggest pitfall is assuming your SMB/mid-market playbook will work for enterprise. You need a completely different strategy and approach to succeed at this level.

​​How do you approach goal setting with clients, given that SMB might need dozens of closes versus enterprise that might only need 1-2 deals per quarter?

David Kreiger [11:51-12:55]: We create an ROI calculator and strategic plan for every client. We work backwards from their revenue goals and close ratios to determine how many appointments they'll need. If the math doesn't work – like if their average revenue per deal is too small – we'll be honest about it not being a good fit. Whether starting out or pivoting to new markets, having clear metrics and goals is crucial to defining success.

SalesRoads’ Impact on the Sales Industry Through 2025 and Beyond

How is SalesRoads impacting the companies you work with? Anything you are really looking forward to as we wrap up 2024, and looking to 2025?

David Kreiger [12:56-15:54]: After 17 years, we've built a strong reputation in the market. When you have a great product and reputation, sales tend to take care of themselves - though I say that with a grain of salt. The number of leads we get through referrals and people coming in is a big part of our sales mission now. We have a very tight process for these leads: qualification, discovery call, then a success analysis call where we build a mini strategic plan and create an ROI calculator. This rigorous process helps us properly field all opportunities.

Ironically, though we're an outbound agency, we don't do outbound ourselves. Two reasons: First, we get enough warm leads, and I encourage others to pursue warm leads when possible as they're easier to close. Second, it's very difficult to differentiate through cold calling in our space - there are so many agencies doing what we do, and I even get emails from competitors trying to sell me appointment setting services, promising "ten appointments a month." It's muddied the waters in terms of explaining how we're different in a cold environment. So instead, we focus on delivering excellence to drive referrals and reputational leads, working with partners like Clutch, and having a rigorous process for handling leads properly through our sales process.

Rapid Fire Round: David’s go-to podcast, hidden superpower, and more!

What’s your go-to podcast right now?

David Kreiger [15:56-16:20]: This is one actually I just discovered like a month or two ago, but I've been obsessed with it and it's called “Acquired.” It's a very long form podcast where they take one company and they tell the whole history of the company. I just listened to the Microsoft episode.

One thing that people who don’t know you well would be surprised to learn about you?

David Kreiger [16:21-17:12]: People might be surprised that I'm introverted, especially as a sales leader. There's a stereotype that you can't be a successful salesperson if you're introverted. But I actually think it's my superpower - I'm a really good listener. I love hearing about people's challenges. And that's the essence of sales: listening to prospects and solving their problems. It might be contrary to the typical sales stereotype, but it's worked well for my sales journey.

What’s the most memorable moment for you in your professional career so far?

David Kreiger [17:13-19:12]: During COVID, being work-from-home wasn't new for us - we've always been remote. There's debate about whether you can build real culture virtually, but I believe you can create meaningful relationships, just differently. Here's a story that proves it: During the 2020 toilet paper shortage, two of our SDRs who had never met in person - one in rural Arkansas, one in urban Virginia - had become such good friends that the Arkansas SDR shipped toilet paper to help out their Virginia colleague who couldn't find any. It was a small gesture, but it showed that our team had built genuine connections and cared for each other, despite being fully virtual.

About David Kreiger, Founder and President of SalesRoads

David Kreiger is the Founder and President of SalesRoads, an award-winning B2B sales outsourcing firm providing appointment setting and lead generation services.  With over 20 years of experience, he has led the development of 500+ SDR teams, generating 100,000+ sales opportunities. His company is a 2X INC 5000 honoree, and he contributes to Entrepreneur Magazine. David's success stems from a methodology focused on attitude-driven hiring, precision prospecting, continuous training, and maintaining strong human connections in sales. He has helped companies from startups to Fortune 500s exceed their sales goals through these proven principles.

Interviewed by: Tim Condon, Chief Revenue Officer at Clutch

About the Author

Tim Condon Chief Revenue Officer at Clutch

Tim Condon is the Chief Revenue Officer at Clutch, the leading global marketplace of B2B service providers. Prior to Clutch, Tim served as the Chief Revenue Officer at Homesnap, the top-rated real estate app built for agents, which CoStar Group acquired in 2020. During his tenure, Homesnap grew its paying user base from 0 to over 80,000 clients. In addition, he previously served as the Director of New Ventures at The Washington Post. In this role, he built several new businesses, including The Capitol Deal, which became the third largest deal site in the DC metro area and was known for giving away 100,000 pizzas

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