Effective Work Sample Exercises for Hiring Top Sales Development Representatives

The Sales Development Representative (SDR) role serves as the critical first point of contact with potential customers and the foundation of your sales pipeline. Hiring the right SDRs can dramatically impact your company's growth trajectory, while poor hiring decisions in this area can lead to missed opportunities and wasted resources. Traditional interviews often fail to reveal a candidate's true capabilities in the specific skills required for SDR success.

Work samples and role plays provide a window into how candidates will actually perform on the job, beyond what they claim in interviews. For SDRs, these exercises test critical abilities like communication skills, resilience in the face of rejection, research capabilities, and adaptability—all essential traits that determine success in this challenging role.

By implementing structured work samples in your SDR hiring process, you gain objective data points to compare candidates fairly. These exercises reveal how candidates think on their feet, handle pressure, and respond to coaching—all crucial indicators of future performance. Additionally, high-quality candidates appreciate rigorous hiring processes that demonstrate your company's commitment to excellence.

The following four exercises are designed to evaluate the core competencies of successful SDRs: communication excellence, drive and initiative, learning agility, and resilience. Each exercise simulates real-world scenarios your SDRs will face daily, providing both you and the candidate with valuable insights into their potential fit for the role.

Activity #1: Cold Call Role Play

The cold call is perhaps the most fundamental skill for any SDR. This role play evaluates a candidate's ability to engage prospects effectively, handle initial objections, and generate interest in your solution—all while maintaining a positive, professional demeanor under pressure. The exercise reveals communication skills, resilience, and the ability to think quickly while following a structured approach.

Directions for the Company:

• Prepare a fictional prospect profile including company name, industry, size, the decision-maker's name and title, and 2-3 potential pain points your solution addresses.
• Provide the candidate with basic information about your company's product/service and value proposition 24 hours before the interview.
• Assign an experienced sales team member to play the role of the prospect, with instructions to present 2-3 common objections during the call.
• Limit the role play to 5-7 minutes.
• Record the call (with permission) for evaluation purposes.

Directions for the Candidate:

• Review the company and product information provided ahead of time.
• Prepare an opening script and potential questions to uncover the prospect's needs.
• During the role play, introduce yourself professionally, establish rapport, and attempt to schedule a follow-up meeting with a sales representative.
• Your goal is not to close a sale but to generate interest and qualify the prospect.
• Be prepared to handle objections while maintaining a positive tone.

Feedback Mechanism:

• After the role play, the interviewer should provide specific feedback on one strength (e.g., "Your introduction was concise and engaging") and one area for improvement (e.g., "You could ask more open-ended questions to uncover needs").
• Give the candidate 2-3 minutes to prepare, then allow them to redo the opening 60 seconds of the call, incorporating the feedback.
• Observe how receptive they are to feedback and their ability to implement changes quickly.

Activity #2: Prospect Research Exercise

Effective SDRs must be able to quickly research potential customers and identify relevant information to personalize their outreach. This exercise tests a candidate's research skills, attention to detail, and ability to identify potential pain points that your solution could address—demonstrating their drive, initiative, and business acumen.

Directions for the Company:

• Select 2-3 real companies that fit your ideal customer profile (or create fictional ones if necessary).
• Provide the candidate with only the company names and ask them to research these organizations.
• Create a simple template for the candidate to complete with their findings.
• Allow 20-30 minutes for this exercise.
• Provide access to a computer with internet connection.

Directions for the Candidate:

• Research the provided companies using LinkedIn, their company websites, news articles, and any other publicly available information.
• For each company, identify:
• Key decision-makers and their roles
• Company size, industry, and recent developments
• Potential pain points or challenges they might be facing
• 1-2 specific reasons why the company's solution might benefit them
• A personalized opening line you would use in an email or call
• Complete the provided template with your findings.
• Be prepared to explain your research approach and rationale for your conclusions.

Feedback Mechanism:

• Review the candidate's research findings, noting the depth and relevance of information gathered.
• Provide feedback on one strength (e.g., "You identified a relevant recent company announcement that creates a timely opportunity") and one area for improvement (e.g., "Consider focusing more on identifying specific pain points").
• Ask the candidate to revise one of their personalized opening lines based on your feedback.
• Evaluate their ability to incorporate feedback and improve their approach.

Activity #3: Email Outreach Sequence

Written communication is increasingly important for SDRs as email and social selling become prominent prospecting channels. This exercise evaluates a candidate's ability to craft compelling, concise messages that generate interest and prompt action, while demonstrating their communication excellence and understanding of the sales process.

Directions for the Company:

• Create a scenario with a fictional prospect, including their role, company, industry, and potential pain points.
• Provide the candidate with information about your product/service and its key benefits.
• Specify that they should create a sequence of three emails: initial outreach, follow-up, and final attempt.
• Allow 25-30 minutes for this exercise.
• Provide a computer with a word processor or email drafting tool.

Directions for the Candidate:

• Based on the information provided, craft a three-email sequence to the prospect:
• Email 1: Initial outreach that introduces yourself, establishes relevance, and includes a clear call to action
• Email 2: A follow-up email assuming no response to the first email (to be sent 3-4 days later)
• Email 3: A final attempt email with a different approach (to be sent 7 days after the second email)
• Each email should be concise (no more than 150-200 words) and include:
• An attention-grabbing subject line
• Personalized content relevant to the prospect
• Clear value proposition
• Specific call to action
• Focus on generating interest and securing a meeting, not selling the product directly.

Feedback Mechanism:

• Review the emails for clarity, persuasiveness, personalization, and proper grammar/spelling.
• Provide feedback on one strength (e.g., "Your subject lines are compelling and likely to generate opens") and one area for improvement (e.g., "Your value proposition could be more specific to the prospect's industry").
• Ask the candidate to revise the weakest email based on your feedback.
• Evaluate their receptiveness to feedback and ability to improve their writing.

Activity #4: Objection Handling Scenario

SDRs face rejection and objections daily, making resilience and adaptability critical success factors. This exercise tests a candidate's ability to navigate difficult conversations professionally while maintaining a positive attitude—revealing their problem-solving skills, emotional intelligence, and persistence.

Directions for the Company:

• Create a scenario where a prospect has expressed initial interest but is now raising several common objections.
• Prepare a script with 3-4 specific objections relevant to your industry (e.g., "We're already working with a competitor," "We don't have budget right now," "Call me back next quarter").
• Assign an experienced sales team member to role play the objecting prospect.
• Allow the scenario to run for 7-10 minutes.
• Consider recording the interaction (with permission) for evaluation.

Directions for the Candidate:

• Review information about the company's product/service and common objection handling techniques.
• During the role play, respond to each objection professionally while attempting to keep the conversation moving forward.
• Your goal is not necessarily to overcome every objection, but to demonstrate:
• Active listening skills
• Empathy and understanding of the prospect's concerns
• Ability to provide relevant information that addresses concerns
• Professional persistence without being pushy
• Skill in finding alternative paths forward when faced with resistance
• Focus on maintaining a positive, helpful tone throughout the interaction.

Feedback Mechanism:

• After the role play, provide feedback on one strength (e.g., "You showed excellent empathy when acknowledging the budget concern") and one area for improvement (e.g., "When faced with the timing objection, consider asking more questions to understand their timeline better").
• Ask the candidate to handle one of the objections again, incorporating your feedback.
• Evaluate their ability to implement feedback and improve their approach.
• Note their emotional response to constructive criticism, as this indicates how they'll respond to coaching on the job.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long should we allocate for these work samples in our interview process?

Each exercise typically takes 30-45 minutes including setup, execution, feedback, and the opportunity to implement changes. We recommend selecting 1-2 exercises that best align with your specific needs rather than attempting all four in a single interview session.

Should we tell candidates about these exercises in advance?

Yes, informing candidates about the types of exercises they'll complete helps them prepare appropriately and reduces anxiety. For the cold call role play, providing basic product information 24 hours in advance is particularly important, as it mirrors the real job where SDRs have time to prepare before calls.

How should we evaluate candidates across these exercises?

Create a simple scoring rubric for each exercise based on the key competencies being tested. Rate candidates on a 1-5 scale for specific skills (e.g., communication clarity, objection handling, research thoroughness) rather than giving a single overall score. This provides more nuanced data for comparison.

What if a candidate performs poorly on one exercise but excels at others?

Consider which skills are most critical for success in your specific SDR role. Some organizations prioritize research and written communication, while others value phone skills above all. Weight your evaluation accordingly, and remember that coachability (demonstrated by implementing feedback) can sometimes outweigh current skill level.

Should we use the same exercises for experienced SDRs and entry-level candidates?

The same basic exercises can work for both groups, but adjust your expectations accordingly. For experienced candidates, look for more sophisticated approaches and higher baseline skill levels. For entry-level candidates, focus more on aptitude, learning agility, and coachability.

How can we make these exercises feel less stressful for candidates?

Create a supportive environment by explaining that the purpose is to understand their working style, not to trick or test them under pressure. Have interviewers adopt a collaborative rather than evaluative stance, and consider providing a short warm-up period before timed exercises begin.

The hiring process for Sales Development Representatives deserves careful attention and investment. By implementing these practical work samples, you'll gain valuable insights into candidates' actual abilities that traditional interviews simply cannot reveal. This approach not only helps you identify top performers but also demonstrates to candidates that your organization values excellence and invests in proper evaluation.

Remember that the best SDRs combine strong communication skills with resilience, initiative, and learning agility. These exercises are designed to reveal those qualities in action, helping you build a high-performing SDR team that consistently delivers quality opportunities to your sales organization.

For more resources to enhance your hiring process, check out Yardstick's AI Job Description Generator, AI Interview Question Generator, and AI Interview Guide Generator. You can also find the complete job description for a Sales Development Representative at Yardstick's SDR Job Description.

Ready to build a complete interview guide for your SDR role? Sign up for a free Yardstick account today!