Sales leaders can leverage Artificial Intelligence (AI) in many ways to deliver on company goals and customer outcomes. Using AI to identify patterns and trends in sales performance, customer behavior, and training effectiveness can help sales teams make more data-driven decisions. But did you know that AI can also be used to optimize the learning and development of your sales team?
In this article, I’ll explore the various ways that AI can be integrated into learning and development strategies to improve sales performance and drive revenue. I’ll also discuss the challenges and considerations that sales leaders must be aware of when implementing AI in their training and development initiatives.
How AI is driving sales strategy
Sales leaders have been using predictive analytics tools like Clari and Salesforce to forecast future sales performance based on historical data, and many have started integrating more AI-powered sales analytics platforms into their tech stack. Advanced AI platforms like Eightfold.ai even offer capabilities for identifying the right skills for hiring.
Companies looking to integrate AI into their sales strategy usually must take time to assess their data infrastructure, ensure data quality, and find knowledgeable specialists to collaborate with for a more seamless integration process. Investing in platforms that either have AI solutions built-in, or offer APIs and integrations for AI solutions, can be a good way to move the needle on AI and begin incorporating it into your sales strategy.
There’s no doubt that operations teams are excited about the potential benefits that AI can offer in terms of forecasting,strategic planning and automating customer interactions, however, many executives and sales leaders are ignoring another critical use case for AI in the sales world: learning and development.
Here are five ways that AI can be used to improve sales training:
1. Using AI to personalize sales training
AI can be used to personalize learning and development experiences for sales teams. By analyzing individual sales reps’ skills, capabilities, and learning preferences, AI can recommend tailored training materials based on rep proficiency and business acumen. This personalized approach can enhance engagement and knowledge retention which ultimately improves sales performance and drives faster close rates.
In addition to personalization, AI can also provide real-time feedback and coaching to sales reps. If a sales rep forgets key information regarding a competitor, they can leverage sales enablement training by accessing content in real-time and getting AI-generated answers to specific questions.
2. Using AI to improve sales pitches and customer interactions
Through natural language processing and sentiment analysis, AI tools can analyze sales calls, emails, and other interactions to provide instant feedback on communication skills, objection handling, and product knowledge. The Litmos AI Video Assessment tool enables salespeople to record and upload videos of themselves delivering communications such as elevator pitches or product overviews. The tool then assesses key word use, rate of speech, and sentiment – providing instant feedback that allows learners to practice and refine their pitches. Continuous feedback loops like these can accelerate learning and development by driving performance improvement.
3. Using AI to address sales skills gaps
Sales managers are often tasked with overseeing the development of team members with diverse backgrounds, experiences, and skillsets. AI can be a powerful tool for streamlining the training process, by helping to identify knowledge gaps and recommending targeted training courses, or by recommending courses based on questions asked by sales reps. By analyzing sales reps’ performance data and comparing it to benchmarks, AI can identify areas where additional training is needed. This proactive approach ensures that sales teams are equipped with the right skills and knowledge to drive revenue.
4. Measuring sales training impact with AI
Likewise, AI can also help managers assess the effectiveness of the learning and development programs that their teams are participating in. By analyzing data on sales performance before and after training interventions, AI can provide insights into the impact of training on revenue generation. This feedback loop enables sales leaders to continuously refine their learning and development strategies for maximum effectiveness. Leveraging productivity metrics, sales outcomes and pipeline progression immediately following training will ensure your organization is optimizing content and training properly.
5. Minimizing administrative strain for sales managers
Administrative tasks such as sending over the latest learning materials, assigning courses, or asking sales reps to update their CRM tool, can also take up a lot of time for sales leaders. The right AI tools can help automate administrative L&D tasks, freeing up more time for sales managers to focus on coaching and mentoring. For example, Litmos’ new AI Assistant feature can handle routine queries and provide on-demand training materials.
Let’s say a salesperson on your team needs to know about a new product feature ASAP. Using natural language prompts, they can quickly surface that information, find relevant course recommendations, and come away with the materials they need to get up to speed. Any responses they receive from the Litmos AI Assistant will include citations so that they can quickly and easily jump to the relevant answer to a question in real-time.
LMS administrators can use Litmos AI Assistant to discover courses, recommend courses, assign courses, and track progress. Admins can control which content is included in responses, and which teams, tenants, and instances have access to which content, keeping valuable internal training secure, while opening customer or partner training content discoverability by external members. AI automations like these streamline the learning process while cutting down on time-consuming administrative tasks for busy managers.
Challenges in adopting AI for sales training
While AI offers immense potential for sales training, there are some implementation challenges to consider. One challenge is the availability and quality of data. Selling is both an art and a science. It’s the art part that can make integrating AI tricky. Publicly available generative AI models can draw on inaccurate, biased, or irrelevant data, especially when used incorrectly. To act on accurate, customized, and company-specific data, your sales team should have access to AI that’s embedded into your learning management system and trained effectively. Leveraging internally vetted assets and documentation is critical to the success of AI internally. Conducting pilot programs and gradually scaling up implementation can help mitigate risks and contribute to a smoother transition.
Integrating AI into existing systems and processes may require technical expertise and resources. However, Litmos’ AI Assistant feature allows for easy customization and guard rails, to ensure that your company’s data is protected, and that your salespeople get the most accurate and contextually relevant responses to their enquiries.
Another challenge that AI poses for sales training is the potential resistance that leaders may get from sales teams. A recent survey showed that just 20% of salespeople use AI tools on a frequent or daily basis. There are so many Large Language Learning Models (LLMs), AI assistants, chatbots, and other AI solutions on the market, so it’s no surprise that many salespeople are either overwhelmed or skeptical when it comes to adopting AI solutions. That’s why it’s crucial for sales leaders to communicate the benefits of AI and provide training that helps sales reps understand how using AI for training can enhance their overall performance.
Consider conducting training sessions or recording demos to familiarize sales reps with any new AI tools in their tech stack. As with all new technologies, practice and familiarity can help build confidence and trust. Continuous communication between teams can help managers address concerns while gathering feedback. A feedback loop can also help managers identify areas of improvement within the AI model, so that they can fine-tune it and better integrate it within their learning solution and content.
With the right approach, AI can revolutionize the way sales teams learn and grow, leading to improved sales outcomes and increased revenue for the organization. Personalizing training experiences, providing real-time feedback, automating administrative tasks, and assessing program effectiveness are all potential benefits of adopting AI technology for sales training. But it’s important to consider the limits, risks, and challenges of this burgeoning technology.
Sales, L&D, and IT leaders will need to work together to assess the unique needs and challenges of their organization and their sales teams, while continuously gathering feedback and adjusting their approach, to ensure AI training solutions are effectively supporting high-impact sales training.