← DigitalOcean
DigitalOcean role-play cheat sheet
For the mock cold call at the end of most SDR interviews.
What they sell, in one line
DigitalOcean offers simple cloud servers and AI tools so developers and small businesses can build and run apps.
Who you'd be calling
Founders, CTOs, engineering leads and developers at startups and small to mid-size businesses.
Your opener
“Hi [Name], this is [You] from DigitalOcean. I know I'm calling unexpectedly, so can I take 30 seconds to tell you why and you tell me if it's worth your time?”
Problems you solve for them
- Big cloud providers are complicated and confusing to use
- Cloud bills are hard to predict and can grow fast
- Small teams need to launch and scale apps, including AI apps, without a big ops team
Discovery questions to ask
- Where do you host your apps or websites today?
- How predictable is your monthly cloud bill?
- Who on your team manages the infrastructure, and how much of their time does it take?
Objections they'll throw at you
“I'm busy right now.”
→ Of course, I'll be quick. Are cloud costs or complexity a pain point for you? If so, when could we talk for 10 minutes?
“We're not interested.”
→ No problem. Can I ask what you're using now and how it's working for your team?
“We already use AWS.”
→ Lots of teams do. How much time does your team spend managing it, and would a simpler option for some workloads be worth a look?
“Just send me an email.”
→ Happy to. What would be most useful to see: pricing, ease of setup, or AI features?
Competitors worth knowing
AWS, Google Cloud, Vultr
Interview tips for this company
- Know the pitch is 'simple and developer-friendly', so practice explaining cloud hosting to someone non-technical.
- Expect to call smaller companies where the person who answers may be a founder or developer, so keep your tone casual and direct.
Written from public information about DigitalOcean to help you practice. Ask an insider what their role play looked like; it's the best prep there is.