Business Development Representative

Benefits:

• Health insurance
• Paid time off
• 401(k)
• Competitive salary

Location: Freeport, IL (On-Site)
Job Type: Full-Time
Department: Sales & Marketing

About Us
At Nationwide Inbound, we help businesses create better customer experiences by ensuring important customer conversations and opportunities don't get missed. We partner with businesses to provide professional inbound customer support, after-hours and overflow coverage, lead response, and customized communication solutions.

We're looking for a motivated Business Development Representative who enjoys starting conversations, discovering opportunities, and building relationships with prospective business clients.



Job Summary
The Business Development Representative (BDR) is responsible for building and maintaining a qualified sales pipeline through proactive outbound prospecting.

This is a phone-forward role that requires consistent cold calling, email outreach, prospect research, follow-up, and CRM management.

Your primary objective will be to identify prospective clients, initiate meaningful business conversations, uncover potential needs, and schedule qualified discovery appointments for the sales team.

This position is ideal for someone who is confident communicating with business owners and decision-makers, comfortable with outbound prospecting, persistent without being pushy, and motivated by measurable results.



Key Responsibilities


Outbound Prospecting & Appointment Setting
Conduct consistent outbound cold calling to targeted businesses and decision-makers.

• Use email and other approved outreach methods to engage prospective clients.
• Research prospective companies and identify appropriate decision-makers.
• Initiate conversations to understand how prospective clients currently manage customer calls, after-hours coverage, overflow, lead response, and other communication needs.
• Identify potential service gaps and determine whether a prospect meets established qualification criteria.
• Schedule qualified discovery appointments for the sales team.
• Conduct consistent follow-up with interested prospects who are not yet ready to schedule a meeting.
• Help confirm scheduled appointments and support a strong appointment show rate.

Pipeline & CRM Management
Build and maintain a consistent pipeline of qualified prospects.

• Accurately enter new companies, contacts, activities, call outcomes, notes, and follow-up information into the CRM.
• Maintain accurate pipeline stages and next-action dates.
• Ensure prospective opportunities receive timely and consistent follow-up.
• Maintain organized prospecting lists and contact information.

Sales Collaboration
Provide clear notes and relevant background information when handing qualified opportunities to the sales team.

• Communicate prospect feedback, common objections, and emerging needs to help improve sales messaging and targeting.
• Participate in regular coaching, call reviews, and sales meetings.
• Collaborate with sales and marketing to continuously improve prospecting strategies and outreach.

Performance Expectations
Success in this role will be measured through a combination of activity, quality, and results, including:

• Consistent daily outbound calling and prospecting activity.
• Meaningful conversations with qualified business decision-makers.
• Qualified discovery appointments booked and held.
• Appointment show rate and quality of opportunities generated.
• Consistent completion of prospect follow-up.
• Accurate and timely CRM documentation.
• Contribution to qualified sales pipeline.

The goal is not simply to make calls. The goal is to create qualified sales opportunities through effective conversations and consistent follow-up.


Qualifications
Previous experience in B2B sales, business development, appointment setting, telemarketing, or outbound prospecting preferred.

• Comfortable making a high volume of outbound calls and initiating conversations with new prospects.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills.
• Confident, professional phone presence.
• Persistent and resilient when encountering rejection or objections.
• Strong listening skills and natural curiosity about how businesses operate.
• Organized and able to manage multiple prospects and follow-up activities simultaneously.
• Comfortable working with CRM systems and sales technology.
• Self-motivated, coachable, and results-oriented.
• Ability to work independently while contributing to a collaborative sales environment.

What Success Looks Like
A successful BDR consistently creates new conversations with prospective clients, identifies legitimate business opportunities, maintains an organized pipeline, follows through on commitments, and puts qualified discovery meetings on the sales team's calendar.

We're looking for someone who understands that great business development isn't about delivering a scripted pitch—it's about asking the right questions, listening, identifying opportunities, and starting conversations that can develop into long-term client relationships.

· $40,000 - $60,000 Salary (Paid Hourly)

· Plus Sales Commissions &…