Process
Dev Agency Sales Cycle
The time and stages between first contact with a software agency buyer and a signed statement of work.
What is the dev agency sales cycle?
For custom software and staff augmentation, the cycle usually runs 6 to 16 weeks from first conversation to signature. It is longer than most founders expect and shorter than the cycle they experience, because outreach is normally stopped somewhere around week five.
Typical stages
- First conversation, usually about capacity or a specific technical gap.
- Technical qualification: stack, team seniority, timezone overlap, references.
- Scoping or discovery, sometimes paid.
- Commercial review: rate card, contract, procurement.
- Start date, which frequently slips one month.
Why it matters for outbound planning
If the cycle is 12 weeks, outbound started in September produces revenue in December. Judging a campaign at week four means judging it on replies, not deals, and treating a normal ramp as a failure. This is the single most common reason agencies abandon a channel that was working.
What shortens it
Trigger-led timing, a technical person in the first call, a scoped pilot instead of a large first commitment, and multi-threading to the person who signs.