SDRs or AEs? It depends on this

One of the fastest ways to stall an ABM strategy has nothing to do with accounts, channels, or messaging.

It comes down to one decision:

Who are you partnering with in Sales?

SDRs or AEs?

Most teams don’t think about this upfront.

They just assume, “We’ll align with Sales.”

But alignment with who matters more than most people realize.

The right answer depends on what you’re trying to accomplish.

If your ABM strategy is focused on:

• Booking new meetings
• Opportunity creation
• Pipeline generated

Then your primary partner should be SDRs.

Why? Because that’s exactly what they’re measured on.

Their day-to-day priorities already align with what your ABM strategy is trying to drive.

A common pattern I see with new ABM programs:

They’re focused on generating pipeline…

But they try to partner with AEs.

On paper, it sounds right, but in reality, it creates friction.

Because AEs are focused on something different:

• Advancing open opportunities
• Closing deals
• Expanding existing customers

That’s how they hit quota.

Booking net-new meetings is usually lower on their priority list, which is why many AEs prefer their SDR to handle it.

So what happens?

Not because ABM doesn’t work, but because you’re not aligned to the right team.

There are absolutely cases where AEs should be your primary partner.

If your ABM strategy is focused on:

• Deal acceleration
• Late-stage influence
• Customer expansion (upsell / cross-sell)

Then AEs are the right place to spend your time.

Because now you’re aligned with what they care about:

In these scenarios, ABM becomes a lever to help AEs win faster and bigger.

ABM works best when your strategy aligns with how Sales is already measured.

Not how you wish they operated.

If you’re starting with a pipeline generation goal, partner with SDRs.

If you’re focused on expansion or deal acceleration, partner with AEs.

It sounds simple, but this is where a lot of programs break down early.

Because the wrong partnership creates misaligned incentives.

And misaligned incentives kill momentum.

If you’re building or refining your ABM strategy right now, pressure-test this:

• What is our primary goal?
• Which sales team is measured on that outcome?
• Are we aligned with them from the start?

Get this right early, and everything else gets easier.

Get it wrong, and you’ll spend months trying to fix something that isn’t a messaging or channel problem.

It’s a partnership problem.

If you want help thinking through how your ABM strategy should align with your sales org, SDRs, AEs, or both, that’s exactly the kind of conversation I’m happy to have.

Are you building or refreshing your ABM strategy, but not sure where to start? I’m now offering limited spots for ABM consulting services to help you get your ABM strategy in the right place to be successful.

This is a low-cost, high-reward offer for your team to build a strategy that works and makes an impact, this year.

Simply fill out this form with your details and we’ll schedule time to talk soon!

For more details on ABM Tactics consulting services, click here.