Paul Edwards ⋅ Olympia , WA U.S. Army, Sergeant ⋅ 8 years served

I do outside sales as an indie contractor for an advertising/marketing firm. The upside is that your team signs a 1099 and handles all of their own expenses, including payroll, Social Security and health care. The downside is, or can be (as it is in my case) if they're working for straight commission without fees or some kind of salary ... depending on how well they perform, they can drop like flies if they're not highly experienced salespeople with proven track records. But that caliber of salesperson must be able to earn a very high commission to be willing to take on working with a start-up.

Michael Morrison ⋅ Groton , MA Datawatch Corporation ⋅ 24 years experience

I agree with Arnie - it's difficult to get too detailed without more information. What is the price point of the software? What is the target market? Does the solution require installation assistance? I have had experience developing go-to-market sales channels in the enterprise software space for almost 20 years. I would be happy to have a quick conversation with you to learn more about your solution and hopefully provide more definitive guidance.

Arnie Scott ⋅ Stratham , NH MFS Investment Mgt. ⋅ 35 years experience

This is tough to answer without knowing more about our market. Do you need to reach individual buyers or enterprises of varying sizes in varying industries.
But consider that you can take small steps to find what works best for your co. For instance, you can sign up an outsourced sales team for a specific industry or market segment, while using your internal team to focus on other segments. Experience thus gained will help you pick the best approach for your firm.