What is AI and What is Its Role in Sales?
Artificial Intelligence is a branch of computer science focused on creating systems and software that can perform tasks typically requiring human intelligence. These systems are built to increase productivity and efficiency, freeing people to focus on other important tasks. Generative AI (like ChatGPT or Sora) is equipped to synthesize data points into new organic information. With the proliferation of AI in almost all aspects of daily life, where does that leave sales professionals and what are the real-world implications of introducing AI into our sales process?
In an article in the Harvard Business Review titled “How Generative AI Will Change Sales,” the authors explain the sales profession has lagged fields like finance and marketing in integrating AI because of the unpredictable and complex nature of a sales journey. The micro-interactions made during a sales conversation are hard to quantify (for example, how does one quantify a shrug or change in posture?). These unstructured interactions, however, are exactly where generative AI can help a sales professional. The article asserts, “The creative and organic nature of selling creates immense opportunities for generative AI to interpret, learn, link, and customize.” Tasks like writing emails, updating CRM’s (Customer Relationship Manager) and creating presentations are all traditional administrative work that can be performed by AI. The article suggests eventually AI will be every sales professional’s office assistant, freeing them from the mundane managerial work so they can better serve customers and onboard new clients
AI Tools and Applications
With so much information available online about prospective buyers, integrating AI into your sales process is useful in helping identify prospects and in curating messaging that will be sure to resonate with them. Here are some helpful tools to use when integrating AI into your sales process and the tasks they perform:
1. Leverage AI-driven email marketing and CRM tools to personalize messaging to prospects. AI can send custom emails tailored to a prospect based on industry, stage of the buying journey, and uncovered needs, increasing the chance of meaningful engagement. Salesforce Einstein is embedded within Salesforce and analyzes CRM data to provide insights to customer needs and buyer readiness.
2. Utilize AI to process historical territory data to help forecast and set realistic sales goals. Tools like Aviso and People.ai analyze sales pipelines to identify opportunities and risks. They also synthesize territory history information to generate more data-driven sales plans.
3. Construct detailed Prospect Personas. AI can pull data from multiple sources (including email interaction, social media posts, and web purchases) to help you construct an accurate model of your ideal prospect. Leadspace can be used to help sales teams understand their prospects’ needs on a deeper level, leading to more meaningful solutions.
4. Receive real-time coaching. AI can analyze recorded sales calls to provide feedback and suggest improvements. Gong.io and Chorus.ai transcribe and analyze sales calls and provide feedback on rep performance.
5. Improve high-priority lead generation. AI can help identify qualified prospects based on search engine history. Tools like ZoomInfo, 6sense and InsideSales.com analyze prospect data to identify high-priority targets.
6. Automate your follow-up. Outreach.io and Conversica follow up with your prospect with custom email campaigns leveraging optimized timing and messaging to drive engagement with readers.
Don’t Wait and Don’t Worry
With so much information available online about prospective buyers, integrating AI into your sales process is useful in helping identify prospects and in curating messaging that will be sure to resonate with them. It also promises to be a time saver by automating data entry, a task I hated doing after long days on the road. Adopting any technology can be overwhelming, but remember—while you’re being timid and slow to adapt, your competitor is learning, practicing, and reaping the benefits.
Sales professionals’ relationship with Artificial Intelligence is not without complexity. While it promises to change many industries, I am always struck by the unique “humanness” of sales. No matter how automated your processes are, there will never be a replacement for a perfectly crafted question, a lean in, or a knowing smile. While AI can simulate certain aspects of empathy and resilience, it can’t truly experience them. This technology looks for recognizable patterns but can’t react with genuine concern or understanding. It can’t learn from failure and display perseverance in trying again. It has no true self-awareness or emotional depth. At the end of the day, AI can mimic human behaviors associated with empathy and resilience, but only a human can feel them.
Let’s Connect
Are you a sales professional looking for support in your quest to reach the next level of your career? Connect with Rebecca Kilday on LinkedIn or Instagram for information on all things “sales,” including practical advice from seasoned professionals, hard lessons learned, and what it truly means to Sell INSPIRED.
