What is fractional business development?
Fractional business development means retaining an experienced business development manager for part of their time, instead of hiring one full-time. A fractional business development manager (BDM) is an experienced, in-market sales professional you retain for part of their time to open or grow a market for you. With Repserve you choose 25%, 50% or 100% of a BDM's time. 25% is 40 client-facing hours a month. A shared-time BDM works for a maximum of three non-competing companies, so you get an established network and local know-how without the cost and risk of a full-time international hire.
Is this right for you?
- Companies entering a new country or region
- Exporters growing sales in a market where they have no team
- Firms that need local relationships faster than they could build them
- Businesses that want a sales presence without an overseas entity or payroll
Matched with fractional business development managers
- A BDM already working in your sector, with existing relationships with the buyers you need to reach
- Your choice of 25%, 50% or 100% rep time, on a monthly retainer
- Optional commission for exceptional performance, which we encourage
- Market insight on local business culture, pricing and competitors
- A Repserve manager at your first meeting, and ongoing support from our regional sales managers
Maximum of three non-competing clients. Every Repserve professional works for no more than three clients at a time, and never for two that compete with each other.
From request to first meeting
- Post a requestChoose the country and city, your monthly budget, and tell us what you need. Add more markets to the same request if you like.
- We screenOur talent acquisition team checks experience, sector, network and languages before anyone reaches you.
- Review profilesAnonymised profiles of screened candidates come to you. Fees are handled by Repserve, not negotiated with the candidate.
- Meet and engageAsk to meet anyone you like. A Repserve manager arranges and attends the first meeting.
Market Entry / Growth FAQs
How much of a BDM's time can I retain?
You can retain a Repserve BDM for 25%, 50% or 100% of their time. 25% is 40 client-facing hours a month and 50% is 80. Their working days do not need to be consecutive.
Will my BDM work for my competitors?
No. A Repserve BDM works for a maximum of three companies at a time, and never for two that compete with each other. You are told about their other clients before you engage them.
Do I have to pay commission?
Commission is optional but encouraged. You set it when you post your request, as a reward for exceptional performance. There is no commission-only option: every BDM is paid a monthly retainer.
How much does a fractional business development manager cost?
On Repserve, a fractional BDM starts from $1,000 a month, paid as a monthly retainer, and you set the budget when you post your request. A full-time BDM costs about £47,000 a year in the UK or $150,000 in the US once employer costs are added, and outsourced SDR agencies typically charge about $4,000 to $18,000 a month.
Fractional BDM or full-time hire: which should I choose?
A fractional BDM suits a market you are opening or testing: you get an experienced local seller with an existing network within weeks, on a monthly retainer you can scale from 25% to 100%. A full-time hire makes sense once a market brings in enough revenue to keep a senior person busy every day, and usually needs a local entity or an employer-of-record provider.
Do I need a local company to use fractional business development?
No. You sell from your existing company while the BDM represents you in the market, so you need no local entity or payroll. You will still need advice on VAT, invoicing and product rules in your sector.
Is fractional business development the same as outsourced business development?
Fractional business development is one form of outsourced business development. Instead of an agency team working from a central hub, you retain part of one experienced BDM who lives in your target market and goes to meetings for you.
Request fractional business development managers
Free, with no commitment. Add as many services and markets as you need.