How to Succeed in Your First 6 Months in Tech Sales (SDR and AE Edition)

INTRO

Your first six months in a new tech sales role are everything. They set the tone for your results, your reputation, and your trajectory. Whether you're an SDR just breaking in or an AE stepping into a new role or company, this guide gives you a clear path to start strong and build momentum fast.

This is not theory. These are the exact strategies used by top 1 percent reps at elite companies like Snowflake, AWS, and Datadog.

WHAT YOU’LL LEARN

• How to quickly identify and model the best reps at your company
  
• Where to focus your time and energy during ramp
  
• Tactical ways to build pipeline early using data already inside your CRM
  
• The right way to build internal credibility without looking like a try-hard
  
• How to plan and execute territory coverage for long-term success
  

CONTEXT: WHY THIS MATTERS

Most reps waste the first few months getting lost in training content and trying to look busy. By the time they realize they have no real pipeline, it's too late. They go into panic mode and start throwing Hail Marys.

Top reps do the opposite. They treat ramp like their pre-season. They study the game film. They build systems. They figure out what works early so they can go on offense before everyone else is even warmed up.

As Eric said in the podcast:

‍You will never have a better chance than your first month to dive deep and build the foundation. Once the calls stack up, that window closes fast.

STEP 1: STUDY WHO’S ACTUALLY WINNING

Every company has a leaderboard. But being number one on the dashboard doesn’t always mean someone is doing something you should copy.

Here’s how to find the people worth learning from:

• Look for reps with consistent wins, not just one-off big deals
  
• Check internal Slack wins channels or your CRM to see who is closing and how frequently
  
• Talk to your manager and peers to get context on who actually drives pipeline versus who catches layups
  
• Once you have a shortlist, go into Gong or Chorus and listen to 10 or more of their calls. Look at how they open, how they guide discovery, how they handle objections
  

Don't just copy their talk track. Pay attention to their structure, their pace, and their control of the conversation.

And always ask yourself: are they winning because of skill, timing, or territory?

STEP 2: STOP WORSHIPPING ENABLEMENT

If you're relying solely on training modules to ramp, you're already falling behind. Most enablement content is too theoretical or built by people who haven’t carried a quota in years.

Use enablement to get baseline context. But then get into the real stuff:

• Go to Gong and use AI to extract questions, objections, and how top reps respond
  
• Compare calls from top reps when they win versus when they lose
  
• Write down common prospect patterns, pain points, and decision criteria
  

That becomes your playbook. Not the PowerPoint from orientation.

STEP 3: BUILD AN INTERNAL BRAND THAT ACTUALLY MATTERS

Top reps are known before they're promoted. Not because they talk the most in team meetings, but because they consistently show up prepared and perform.

Here's what that looks like:

• When given the chance to present at a QBR or team kickoff, overprepare. Bring clean data, be concise, and know your pipeline inside out
  
• Early on, say less. Let your performance speak first. Once you’ve earned trust, your ideas will carry more weight
  
• Focus on delivering value when it counts. Don’t chase visibility just for the sake of being seen
  

One of the fastest ways to stand out is to treat your early QBRs and product rollouts like tryouts. As Eric shared, in his first job as an SDR, he nailed a full-team pitch competition on the third day of his sales career and it changed how leadership viewed him from that moment forward.

STEP 4: USE THE DATA INSIDE YOUR CRM TO BUILD PIPELINE FAST

There is gold sitting inside your CRM. You just have to know where to look.

Start here:

• Closed-lost opps: Reps spend hours chasing cold leads while ignoring prospects who already had budget and a problem. Rework those opportunities. See what went wrong and re-engage
  
• Old free trials or demo requests: Prospects who showed intent 6 or 12 months ago often resurface with a trigger event. Start with accounts where decision-makers are still at the company
  
• High-performing SDR cadences: If your company uses Outreach or Salesloft, go into the analytics tab. Find the highest open and reply rates. Frankenstein your own messaging from the best performing steps
  
• Webinar and event attendees: Not all leads are created equal. Start segmenting by lead source to find the ones most likely to convert
  

Don’t just batch and blast. Study the patterns. Reverse engineer the wins. Systematize what other reps are spending the majority of their time manually doing every day.

STEP 5: FOCUS ON SYSTEMS BEFORE CREATIVITY

You will see a lot of LinkedIn posts telling you to send memes, voice notes, and other 'outside the box' startegies. Skip that early on.

Creativity is great, but only once your foundation is rock solid. In the beginning:

• Focus on building a system that gets you to 75 to 100 percent quota
  
• Document your daily workflows and repeatable motions
  
• Automate what you can, but stay close to the results
  
• Once your baseline is proven, use the extra time to test creative strategies or double down on what’s working
  

There is no prize for being the most original rep who misses quota.

STEP 6: START SMALL WITH TERRITORY PLANNING

Your territory will feel like an ocean, especially as a new AE that has to close business, let alone break into the account. Don’t try to boil it.

Instead:

• Choose 30 target accounts to start with
  
• Break them into A, B, and C tiers
  
  • A: warmest leads or current customers with expansion potential
    
  • B: high-fit prospects with clear ICP match
    
  • C: strategic or long-term bets
    
• Start tracking patterns. Which verticals reply fastest? What triggers create urgency? What titles engage more?
  

The goal isn’t to hit 500 accounts. It’s to learn enough from your first 30 that you can scale intelligently in quarter two.

Check out the full podcast for even more detailed walkthroughs of each of these steps.

FAQ

Q: What should I do on day one of a new tech sales role?
A: Identify the top reps at your company and begin reviewing their calls, cadences, and CRM workflows. Build your ramp plan from what is already proven to work.

Q: Should I prioritize enablement or real sales data?
A: Use enablement for baseline knowledge, but prioritize real call recordings, live cadences, and actual CRM performance data. That is where success patterns live.

Q: How can I stand out internally without overdoing it?
A: Be composed, deliver clean work, and overperform in key moments like QBRs or team presentations. Do not try to impress everyone in Slack on day one.

Q: What are the best CRM reports to use during ramp?
A: Start with closed-lost opportunities, old trials, webinar attendees, and cadences with high reply rates. Focus on intent-rich data sources.

Q: How do I plan my territory as a new AE?
A: Start with 30 accounts, broken into A/B/C tiers. Focus on quality, not volume. Track engagement and conversion trends as you go.

→ If you are an SDR or AE who wants to ramp faster, generate real pipeline, and become a top performer, check out our SDR Accelerator and AE Mastery programs. Built by real President's Club Winning sellers from the best companies in the world, for sellers at the best companies in the world like AWS, Snowflake, Datadog, Oracle, Salesforce, Ramp, Deel, Rippling, Databricks, MongoDB, Hubspot, Gong, and more.

TL;DR

• Study top reps' calls and workflows, not just dashboards
  
• Supplement enablement with real call analysis and CRM insights
  
• Build your internal brand by performing when it counts
  
• Use CRM gold like closed-lost opps and trial leads to generate pipeline
  
• Start with 30 accounts, learn from them, then scale strategically