Business Development Representative

Foods Connected•Bentonville, AR

16d•Hybrid

About The Position

The Business Development Representative (BDR) will play a key role in building and qualifying the sales pipeline for Foods Connected. This role involves managing Marketing Qualified Leads (MQLs), nurturing them to Sales Qualified Leads (SQLs), and performing initial qualification of SQLs before handoff to the Business Development team. The BDR will work closely with Sales & Marketing to execute campaigns, maintain data hygiene in HubSpot, and support reporting on sales metrics. A strong understanding of HubSpot lifecycle stages and CRM best practices is essential. The ideal candidate will also have knowledge of buyer intent signals and, ideally, experience developing outbound strategies based on intent data. The Business Development Representative will become an instrumental part of the Sales & Marketing function and will report into the Head of Sales. A strong interest and curiosity of the Food Industry is beneficial as well as an ability to build a strong understanding of systems and solutions that we offer. Through utilisation of tools such as LinkedIn Sales Navigator, our CRM platform (HubSpot) you will be responsible for the successful conversion of prospects to qualified leads and work closely with the Business Development team to progress these conversations with target clients through the sales lifecycle. You will be an outgoing individual with a determination to succeed, with a pre-disposition to stay positive. The role will require excellent communication skills and prior experience with campaign management and CRM systems and information systems. The BDR will also be expected to leverage AI capabilities within current and future tools to enhance lead qualification, intent-based outreach, and overall efficiency in the BDR process.

Requirements

High level of proficiency in HubSpot or similar CRM system to include:
Logging activities
Managing leads, contacts and opportunities
Using views, reports and dashboards
Understanding lead routing and scoring
Knowledge of prospecting and research tools e.g. LinkedIn Sales Navigator and ZoomInfo
Knowledge of sales engagement platforms and tools e.g. HubSpot sequences
Microsoft: 365 Suite (Excel, PowerPoint, etc.)
2+ years’ experience in a similar role interacting with a CRM system such as HubSpot, as well as experience with LinkedIn Sales Navigator
Experience using a contact database such as Zoom Info to build lists in the CRM.

Nice To Haves

Prior experience with the Software or Food industry.
Familiarity with AI-powered sales enablement tools and ability to apply AI insights to outbound strategies.

Responsibilities

Developing a pipeline of qualified campaign leads generated through strategies led by the Foods Connected Marketing team.
Own the process of engaging MQLs, nurturing them to SQLs, and conducting initial qualification of SQLs.
Understand and apply HubSpot lifecycle stages to ensure accurate lead progression and reporting.
Monitor buyer intent signals and prioritise outreach based on engagement and readiness to buy.
Collaborate with Marketing to optimise lead handoff and campaign follow-up.
Utilisation of tools to manage campaign effectiveness and track progress via CRM (HubSpot, Zoom Info and LinkedIn Sales Navigator).
Researching prospective accounts in targeted markets, including but not limited to; retailers, food manufacturers and food service businesses
Fully understand the Foods Connected software solutions to a high level which allows initial engagement with prospective customers.
Maintain accurate and complete data in HubSpot, ensuring compliance with SOPs.
Support reporting on key sales metrics, including lead conversion rates, pipeline velocity, and campaign performance.
Assist in identifying process improvements for CRM usage and lead management workflows.
Utilize AI-driven features in HubSpot and other platforms to improve lead scoring, intent detection, and workflow automation.
Ability to qualify and prioritise prospects by working across our Business Development and Marketing teams.
Follow SOPs in relation to updating our CRM platform HubSpot and managing the sales lifecycle from initial outreach to engagement with the Business Development team.
Research prospective accounts in targeted markets (retailers, food manufacturers, food service businesses).
Where possible, leverage buyer intent data to develop targeted outbound strategies.
Partner with senior Business Development team members to prepare demos and progress qualified opportunities.
Work toward KPIs related to lead generation, engagement, and conversion.