How Certa Turned Down Traditional SDR Agencies and Built Their Own Enterprise Sales Engine

Every B2B founder’s inbox is flooded with automated outreach from SDR agencies promising qualified meetings. But in a recent episode of Category Visionaries, Certa founder Jag Lamba revealed why his company took the opposite approach, building their entire sales engine in-house.

The Case Against SDR Agencies

“I’m always opposed to outsourcing things, outsourcing work to agencies, even in SDRs,” Jag explains. “As you know, there are a lot of companies that will book meetings with you. I’m opposed to that.” This stance might seem extreme, but it comes from a deep understanding of enterprise sales dynamics.

The Hidden Cost of Automated Outreach

The problem with outsourced SDR programs becomes clear when you examine their impact on brand reputation. “I have a lot of sympathy for folks who are just trying to do outreach and especially sympathy for folks who, not just the firms, but also the people, because its one of the hardest jobs in an enterprise,” Jag acknowledges. However, he adds a crucial caveat: “The only way to do outreach effectively is in a highly targeted manner. Otherwise you risk harming your brand.”

Building the Alternative

Instead of following the standard playbook, Certa focused on building deep expertise and relationships. Their first major client, Uber, came through an introduction from an angel investor who, ironically, passed on investing in the company. This experience showed them the power of authentic relationships over automated outreach.

“I felt really strongly from every part of me that I knew that they were taking a risk on a new company,” Jag shares. “And I had this commitment inside me. I said, I’m not going to let my clients down.” This commitment manifested in everything from response speed to product flexibility.

The Enterprise Focus

Certa’s approach to sales is deeply tied to their market focus. “We’re lucky that we focus on the largest enterprises only, which means it’s classic account-based marketing,” Jag explains. This focus enables them to be more targeted and thoughtful in their outreach.

For enterprise deals, reputation is everything. As Jag notes, their success stems from a track record of delivery: “We’ve been able to successfully deploy Certa at every single client we’ve sold Certa to.” This perfect deployment record becomes a powerful selling point in enterprise conversations.

The Three-Month Rule

While Certa isn’t entirely against external help, they have a strict guideline: “Anything more than three months I think is a mistake.” This applies especially to sales development. The logic is simple—if a function is critical enough to need external help for more than three months, it’s important enough to build internally.

Building for the Long Term

Their sales strategy aligns with their broader vision for the future of enterprise relationships. “Companies will be able to onboard and work with each other with one click,” Jag shares. This vision requires deep trust and relationships that can’t be built through automated outreach.

Lessons for B2B Founders

For founders building enterprise sales organizations, Certa’s experience offers several key insights:

1. Automated, broad outreach can damage enterprise credibility
2. Building internal sales capabilities takes longer but creates sustainable advantage
3. Focus enables more targeted, effective outreach
4. Perfect delivery creates its own sales momentum

The success of Certa’s approach challenges the conventional wisdom about scaling B2B sales. While building an internal sales engine might seem slower initially, it creates a stronger foundation for long-term enterprise success. The key is maintaining focus and investing in relationships that can’t be automated or outsourced.