Dear SaaStr: Should I Hire a Sales Consultant as My First Sales Rep?
No, you shouldn’t hire a sales consultant as your first sales rep.
Here’s why:
As the founder, you need to be the one to close the first 10–20 customers yourself.
This isn’t just about getting deals done—it’s about deeply understanding your sales process, your customers, and what works (and doesn’t) in your pitch. If you skip this step and bring in a consultant, you’ll lose that critical learning, and you won’t be able to guide or scale your sales team effectively later on 25.
Once you’ve closed those initial customers and have a basic playbook, the next step is to hire two full-time sales reps—not one.
Why two? Because you need to A/B test. If one rep is successful and the other isn’t, you’ll know whether it’s the rep or your process that’s the issue. With just one, you’ll have no way to tell 212.
Consultants can be helpful later, maybe to refine your process or train a growing team, but they’re not a substitute for the foundational work you need to do as the founder.
Customers want to talk to you, the CEO, in the early days. Use that to your advantage 5.
Focus on building your own sales muscle first. Then, hire two reps to scale. Skip the consultant for now.
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