BY Jessica Helinski
Using AI in B2B sales can transform your success – but only if you use it effectively. It’s easy to approach AI as a do-it-all tool. But sellers should instead think of AI as part of their strategy rather than the strategy itself.
The true value in sales comes from humans. In fact, 90% of B2B buyers say that they’d rather work with a salesperson than AI, according to SalesFuel research.
So the key for sellers is to leverage AI to improve how they sell. But how?
How can sellers integrate AI in B2B sales?
Already, a large number of sellers report they are using AI as part of their sales process. The Voice of the Sales Rep study found that reps are primarily using AI for:
- Customer research/business intelligence — 30.84%
- Analysis of internal data/content (CRM, billing, marketing automation, databases) — 28.19%
- Conversation intelligence — 27.83%
- Client help/support — 26.27%
- Automating routine tasks (data entry, scheduling, etc.) — 26.02%
- Automatically sending follow-up emails — 25.78%
- Presentation creation/rehearsal — 25.42%
- Competitive intelligence — 25.54%
- Writing outreach/sequences — 25.30%
In addition to these areas of sales, AI has the potential to help with others as well. The professionals at SAP point out that the ever-expanding abilities of AI can assist sellers in ways they haven’t considered.
More effective outreach
One way AI in B2B sales can assist is to act as a seller’s eyes and ears. This type of automation can monitor customers and prospects for important business changes. These changes could be anything from leadership moves to product launches.
And AI can even capture the very latest industry changes, thanks to monitoring fast-moving changes like social media sentiment and price fluctuations.
Sellers can then be alerted to these trigger events and reach out in a timely manner to snag the opportunity.
Tailored coaching
Another way that sellers may not consider using AI is for coaching. This largely untapped area of AI use can have major benefits, as SAP points out.
“By using AI sales tools to analyze negotiation tactics and identify win/loss patterns, teams can build an internal best practice guide to elevate each rep's performance.”
Co-selling support
In addition to automating administrative tasks, AI can offer additional complex support like creating a slide deck or gathering data points to discuss during an upcoming call.
“Unlike other recent automation technologies that primarily improve productivity,” SAP explains, “the latest AI capabilities for B2B sales can now play an active role in generating revenue alongside…salespeople.”
What should sellers keep in mind when using AI?
There are certain best practices that reps must remember when using AI in B2B sales. First, as SalesFuel notes, any AI use should be overseen by a human who then verifies all output. AI is not infallible, and its errors can cost you your credibility.
Focus on enhancing
As mentioned earlier, AI should complement your strategy, not replace it. Think of it as another tool that you are adding to your process.
Be patient
Like with any other tool or process, learning it will take time. Don’t expect to use AI seamlessly right away. Take advantage of quick guides, training and any other available support resources.
AI should never replace the human side of B2B sales. The most successful sellers will use it in a variety of ways to enhance their process and deliver value to clients. Following best practices ensures that you can use AI tools alongside your own expertise to get the results you want.
Photo by Vitaly Gariev on Unsplash
