Read Time = 6 minutes
I completely understand the frustration. When I first tried to break in (even with 2 years of sales experience on my resume) I still couldn’t get interviews.
The job market is even tougher today than it was when I was trying to break in.
With over 100,000 tech layoffs just 3 months into 2026 and AI on the rise… it can be incredibly difficult to break in, let alone get interviews.
Applying to a bunch of different open SDR/BDR roles & hoping you get interviews isn’t the answer. It doesn’t work.
A lot of people trying to break in fall into this common trap:
Apply to 100 positions → Get rejected → assume they need more experience
Experience definitely helps - but in all honesty, it isn’t required.
For example, there is a rep on my team who broke in as an SDR at 18 years old. He couldn’t afford to go to college so he went straight into tech sales.
It can be done. You do NOT need prior experience & a college degree. Anything helps, but it is 2026. College isn’t the end-all, be-all anymore. My degree was literally in finance.
To give you an idea of what you are going up against:
The role that I’m currently in (Series E high-growth org) had over 500 applicants in the first 24 hours that the role was open. And over 1000+ applicants in the first 72 hours.
Don’t be so naive that you think you can just apply & get an interview.
All this to say, you most likely are qualified for the role, you just have a visibility problem.
Couple things to note first:
-Never apply through LinkedIn, always apply directly from the company’s website.
-You should have a resume template & customize it specifically to each company you are applying to. Create an AI chatbot specifically for this. Paste the job description & have it craft your resume specifically with your experience.
-99% of resumes get trashed before a recruiter even looks at them. Your resume has to pass the AI filter first.
Use keywords: prospected, cold called, cold outreach, generated pipeline
And don’t just say what you’ve done - prove it with numbers
-Generated $450k+ in revenue
-Hit 120% of quota
-Set meetings with [big logos]
-Ranked Top 5 out of 60+ reps
-#1 new business rep for Q2
No Signal = No Interview
I’ve said it before & I’ll say it again: you have to do the job, to get the job.
The key to getting interviews for an SDR role is to create signal.
Signal = proof that:
- you actually want the job
- you understand sales
- you can do outreach
What does this look like in practice?
Emailing hiring managers & reaching out to SDRs / AEs on the team.
Treat it like your first sales cycle. Because it is.
The reality is most won’t do this. Of 1000+ applicants, only 10-20 people will multi-thread & reach out to people in the org to have a conversation about the open role.
This is how you stand out. This is how you get referred.
What I Did to Land a Role (steal my playbook)
I didn’t just apply to 50+ organizations. Start with 5-10 the first week.
Not sure where to start?
I wrote a previous article on how to spot promising companies / sales org.
Go through LinkedIn and find the SDR Managers & Directors. These are the key people to get in touch with because they are likely the hiring manager too.
Secondly, and potentially more important - reach out over LinkedIn & email to current SDRs & AEs in seat. They’ll tell you what the org is really like. Remember you are interviewing the company too & you’ll want to see if it’d be a good fit.
I used tools like Hunter.io & Apollo.io (not affiliated) to find the email addresses of these people. The free plans work just fine, all you need to do is figure out the email format (first.last, f.last, etc.) for the company & then it is plug-and-play.
When it came to reaching out I always tried to start with people who I had something in common with.
Typically this was college, hometown, etc. Make the messaging relatable to them. They’ll be much more likely to respond and help you out.
Continue to reach out to SDRs, AEs, GTM Recruiters, Sales Managers / Directors until you get responses and calls.
Something else to note - most people are never going to respond. Congratulations, welcome to sales. 97% of people don’t. But those 3% that do, is what makes it worth it.
Keep pushing & have that ‘next one’ mindset. The next email will get a response. The next sales org will give you an interview. The next phone call will lead to a referral, etc.
However, when you do get responses - offer to chat over the phone for 15 minutes.
Have some good questions prepped, make sure you aren’t wasting their time. Ask about their role, promotions, current funding or company growth, goals of the business, etc.
At the end of the call ask if they’d refer you to the open role (fyi - they have bonuses and incentives if they refer talent that gets hired too).
This is the only way. Getting referred takes you from applicant #1031, to the top of the list and a guaranteed HR call screen.
This is exactly what I did to get the job I’m in today. Cold outreach over LinkedIn, to an AE who went to the same university as me. Referred me to the role, got an interview, coached me through the interview process, and the rest has been history.
I’m sharing this because it works. It did for me & I know it will for you.
Overall, you need to just start positioning yourself to stand out in a sea of resumes.
All the opportunity is there, the jobs are open, companies are hiring, it may be tougher to get a job now… but all that means is you need to do what others aren’t.
Until next week.
– Rook ♜
ps… I respond to all emails (let me know how this works for you!)