What an AI SDR Needs From You Before It Books a Meeting
An AI SDR needs a written brief before it books anything: who you want, who you don't, what to ask, how to answer objections and when to hand over.
An AI SDR needs a written brief before it books a single meeting. That brief covers who you want, who you don't, the offer, the questions to ask, answers to common objections, calendar rules, handover rules and tone. Skip it and the AI SDR books the wrong people, fast. Fill it in and it books the right ones.
What does an AI SDR actually need to know?
An AI SDR (sales development rep) does the first part of the sales job. It replies to new leads, asks qualifying questions, handles simple objections and books a call with a person. It works across email, SMS, LinkedIn and voice, so a lead gets the same rules on whichever channel they use.
It only knows what you tell it. A human SDR picks up context over weeks of sitting next to the sales team. An AI SDR gets one shot: the brief. If the brief says "book anyone interested", it will book anyone interested, including the student doing a uni project and the competitor checking your prices.
So the work is not in the software. It is in writing down what your best salesperson knows in their head. If you want the numbers on AI versus human reps, we covered that in AI SDR vs human SDR. This post is about the brief.
The fill-in AI SDR brief
Copy this table and fill in the right-hand column. One or two lines per row is enough to start. You will sharpen it after the first week of real conversations.
| Section | What to write | Example (a commercial cleaning business) |
|---|---|---|
| Ideal customer | Who you want to talk to, in plain words | Office managers at sites over 500 square metres in Brisbane |
| Offer | What you sell and why people buy it | Regular after-hours office cleaning with one fixed contact |
| Disqualifiers | Who to politely decline | Homes, one-off bond cleans, sites outside the service area |
| Qualifying questions | Two to four questions, in order | Site size? Current cleaner? When does the contract end? |
| Objections and answers | The five you hear most, with your real reply | "We already have a cleaner": offer a free site walk-through to compare |
| Calendar rules | Who takes the call, which slots, how much notice | Sales manager, Tue to Thu, 10am to 3pm, at least 24 hours ahead |
| Handover rules | When the AI stops and a person steps in | Sites with more than three locations, any complaint, any request for a person |
| Tone | How you sound, with two sample replies | Friendly, short, no exclamation marks, first names |
Which channels should an AI SDR cover?
All four of the channels your leads already use. One brief runs every channel, so the rules stay the same. Only the length and tone of each message change.
- Email: longer replies and follow-up when a lead goes quiet. Good for details, links and recaps.
- SMS: short, fast replies to new enquiries. A two-way text agent can ask the qualifying questions and book the call inside the thread.
- LinkedIn: replies and follow-up with people who fit your ideal customer, at a human pace and inside LinkedIn's rules on automation. Often that means the AI drafts and a person presses send.
- Voice: calls to leads who asked for one or would rather talk. A voice agent runs the same questions out loud and books the meeting on the call.
Write one extra line per channel in the tone row. A text is two sentences. An email can be a short paragraph. A call needs a friendly opening and a clear reason for ringing.
How do you describe your ideal customer to an AI SDR?
Use facts the AI can check in the conversation. "Growth-minded business owners" is useless, because the AI can't test for it. "Clinics with two or more practitioners" works, because it can ask.
Write the ideal customer as two or three things the lead can confirm in a sentence each. Size, location and the problem they have are usually enough. If you sell to two different types of customer, write two short profiles, not one blurry one.
Why disqualifiers matter more than you think
Most briefs we see are all about who to book. Very few say who not to book. That is how a sales calendar fills with calls that go nowhere.
List the jobs you don't take, the areas you don't cover and the budgets you can't work with. Tell the AI what to say instead. A kind "that's not something we do, but here's who might help" keeps your name good and your calendar clean. A disqualified lead handled well often sends a referral later.
What qualifying questions should an AI SDR ask?
Two to four, no more. Each question should change what happens next. If the answer doesn't change anything, cut the question.
Order matters. Start with the easiest question to answer, then the one that rules people out. Save budget or timing for last, once there is some trust. For a law firm, that might be: "What area of law is this about?", then "Is there a court date already?", then "When would you like to talk it through?"
The AI should also answer questions back. Leads who ask something and get dodged go cold. Speed matters here too: a reply within minutes beats a perfect reply tomorrow.
How should it handle objections?
Write down the five objections your team hears most, with the reply your best person actually gives. Not a script from a sales book. The real words.
Then add a limit. After one objection is handled, the AI can try once more. After a second "no", it thanks them and stops. Pushing past that does damage. It also creates risk, because a "stop" or "unsubscribe" must be honoured. The ACMA rules on marketing messages require consent and a working unsubscribe. Our post on Spam Act and DNCR compliance for AI outbound goes deeper.
When should the AI SDR hand over to a person?
Handover rules are the part people forget. Write them as clear triggers, not judgement calls:
- Asked for a person: hand over straight away, no "I can help with that".
- Big or unusual deal: above a size you name, a person takes it from the first call.
- Upset or complaining: stop selling, apologise, pass it on.
- Existing client: route to their account manager, never into a sales flow.
- Off-script question: anything about contracts, legal terms or pricing exceptions.
Every handover should carry the full conversation so the person never asks the lead to repeat themselves.
What about personal information?
Your AI SDR collects names, numbers and details about the lead's business. Treat that like any other customer data. The OAIC guidance on direct marketing explains when you can use personal information for marketing and when people can opt out. Keep the data in your CRM, not in a separate tool nobody checks.
Where Njin fits
When we build an AI SDR, the brief comes first. We sit with your best salesperson and pull the real objections from past calls and emails. Then we write the rules together. Then we set it up inside your CRM and read every conversation in the first week. You can see how that works on our AI-powered SDR service page.
Common questions
What is an AI SDR?
An AI SDR is software that does the first stage of sales. It replies to leads, asks qualifying questions and books meetings for a person to run. It works across email, SMS, LinkedIn and voice, inside your CRM.
How long does it take to set up an AI SDR?
The brief usually takes a few working sessions with the people who sell today. The tech setup is often quicker than the brief. Plan for a first week of close review before you let it run on its own.
Can an AI SDR book meetings directly into my calendar?
Yes, if it is connected to your calendar or CRM booking tool. Give it clear rules on who takes calls, which slots are open and how much notice you need. Without those rules it will fill gaps you meant to keep free.
Will leads know they are talking to AI?
They should. Be upfront in the first message or when asked. People mostly care that the reply is fast, helpful and passes them to a person when needed.
Not sure your sales process is ready for an AI SDR? Take the free AI readiness check. Ready to write the brief? Book a call.
