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A study conducted by the McKinsey Global Institute found that AI technology automation can be applied to almost 40% of a business’ sales processes. This means unburdening sales reps from mundane tasks such as processing orders, reporting sales visits and transmitting market information, allowing them to focus on building deeper customer relationships.
One particular branch of AI sales enablement technology making headway in this sphere is natural language processing (NLP). Essentially it provides field reps with a Siri-like experience when interacting with the mobile CRM. They talk to the system, which in turn uses speech-to-text software to immediately translate this data and upload it into the system, shaving hours of admin time off a field rep’s week.
What’s more, the system feeds back contextual information depending on a rep’s location such as the fastest routes between visits, high-value prospects in the area and the ability to automatically call or warn a client if they are running late.
Take a look at just how much time a rep can save in a single day:
The advancement in digital technology has also impacted the customer experience with brands. They now have access to a wealth of information, including available products and services, their corresponding pros and cons and perhaps most importantly, access to peer reviews.
This has dramatically shifted the ownership of the conversation back in favor of the customer. They decide when, how and with who they want to engage with and if salespeople want to remain relevant they must learn to align and integrate with the customer journey.
Only then can they embrace the consultative sales role customers have come to expect from modern-day organizations.
The road to becoming a consultative seller means gaining the clients’ trust, which takes time and effort. AI and automation tools can deliver customer insights and offload administrative tasks, helping salespeople understand customer needs and become more efficient at nurturing relationships.
