Back to Posts
Infographic

The Sales Development Rep vs. The Account Executive

1 min read
Updated Oct. 17, 2023
Published Jul. 1, 2014

Sales development reps (SDRs) and account executives (AEs) are vital to close more deals.

Each has a very specific role to play:

  • The SDR focuses on prospecting. These sellers find people who are a good fit for your product and book meetings using phone and email.
  • The AE focuses on closing deals. These sellers qualify leads, manage pipeline, and maneuver deals through the sales process.

To have a successful sales team you need to understand both.  (Side note: hunters vs. farmers is a different beast – if you need help there, take our Sales Personality Quiz.)

Here’s a detailed explanation of the difference between sales development reps and account executives:

sales development rep vs account executive

Set your sales development reps and account executives up for success with one easy experience where sellers love to work deals, from first contact to close. See Salesloft in action.