The development of a robust set of Account Based Sales Development vendors (ABSD) was a trend I missed in my original Field Guide.  But as vendors began to announce content partnerships with the Sales Intelligence vendors, it was a trend I was unable to ignore.  Readers of my blog will find steady coverage of “Sales Acceleration” firms such as SalesLoft, Outreach, and QuotaFactory.  Just last week, I was writing about InsideSales.com.

As part of the 2017 edition of my Field Guide, I am including profiles on four ABSD vendors:  SalesLoft, Outreach, QuotaFactory, and KiteDesk.  I selected these four because they have all developed partner ecosystems which include the SI vendors.

KiteDesk is an Account Based Sales Development (ABSD) platform that provides Account Based Prospecting (FIND) and Sales Development workflow tools (FLOW). Content partners include InsideView, Zoominfo, and D&B NetProspex, for prospecting within the FIND module.  Other partners include Full Contact for social media linkages and GoodData for analytics.

FIND is KiteDesk’s “Lead Gen On-Demand” tool.  It supports contact prospecting (300 contacts per month per user), company and contact profiles, social links, and a Google Chrome extension.

Not only is prospecting supported, but marketers can upload and enrich company files for contact prospecting.  The company list is matched and then users can prospect for contacts at the targeted companies.  For example, marketers can upload a lead list from a webinar or tradeshow, enrich it with firmographics to help score and route the lead, and then search for additional contacts at the top prospects.

FLOW provides “Sales Orchestration” workflow tools such as pre-defined cadences, email templates, an integrated dialer, task logging, Salesforce.com integration, and analytics.  FLOW is sold with FIND included.

FLOW’s orchestration tools include

• Scripts, Checklists, and Discovery Questions
• Disposition, Note Taking, Sentiment icons (for analytics)
• Social Steps and Custom Actions
• Automated logging and sync to SFDC
• Meeting Scheduler

FLOW provides integrated support for Exchange, Outlook 365, and Gmail temples.  Reps can customize the messaging within a graphical editor.  Tracking features include read receipts, click through, download, and reply.  Users can also schedule an email to send.  Thus, a sales rep could queue up emails over the weekend and have them send when response rates are higher.

FLOW also supports call bridging via softphone, mobile, or PBX.  Other dialer features include call logging with SFDC sync, voicemail drops, local number display, and call queueing.

Distinguishing features include a Chrome extension, meeting scheduler, and predictive prioritization of the FLOW task queue.  The Chrome extension helps SDRs find company or contacts based upon the URL, LinkedIn, or CrunchBase page.  Users can also highlight a name and search for it.  At the company level, KiteDesk will provide a list of contacts at the firm with filtering by job function.  Other features include Save as Prospect (in KiteDesk), Contact (in SFDC), Lead (in SFDC) or CSV Export.

An integrated meeting scheduler helps appointment setters identify meeting times across their team.  It also assists with bringing in experts for follow on calls.

Upcoming features include A/B Testing, expanded analytics, automated flows from sales triggers, and dynamic scheduling whereby prospects can view available windows.

KiteDesk FIND is priced at $75 per user per month and includes up to three hundred prospecting or enriched records per seat per month.

KiteDesk FIND+FLOW is priced at $125 per month and includes workflow tools, email templates, an integrated phone dialer, analytics, and an SFDC connector.  The service includes both prospecting and account flow tools with unlimited dialing and emails.

FIND may be licensed for a single user, but FIND + FLOW requires three seats.

ABSD solutions such as KiteDesk are elevating the role of Sales Development Reps (SDR) at B2B companies.  Whereas this role was traditionally populated by inexperienced sales reps that worked off of scripts and a call dialer, the SDR function is being professionalized.  SDRs are now expected to support corporate messaging and focus on establishing a warm relationship with ABM targets.  The days of B2B smile and dial are quickly passing.