The spreadsheet has long been a staple for sales reps, serving as a reliable way to gather sales reports and track leads. But, as the pace of business accelerates, customer expectations increase and competition grows, the humble spreadsheet just isn’t keeping up. Luckily, there’s now a far more powerful tool to support sales processes, connect with customers and drive small business growth – AI-powered CRM.
Let’s walk through a day of AI-powered sales to see how the right technology can power your team to close more deals and deliver more value for your small business without adding headcount.
Logging On: Automated Insights to Start the Day
Imagine if your sales team started the day by logging in and were instantly presented with a complete overview of their sales pipelines and performance and an organised list of tasks and priorities. With the power of AI, the leads that have come in are automatically analysed and scored based on their engagement and how well they match your business’s ideal customer profile. Speed to lead is key to creating a great first impression and winning the customer, and AI-powered CRM points your sales team directly to the most promising leads so they can contact them first and close the hottest deals.
Mid-Morning: Faster and More Personalised Follow-Ups
It can be tricky to strike the right balance between working efficiently and maintaining a personal touch, but CRM outreach tools make it faster than ever for your team to send personalised emails or messages to prospects. As a new lead comes in, sellers can scan their engagement history and see what content they’ve engaged with. Then, with the help of AI and stored information like product details, they can generate and personalise an email with just a few clicks. They can work through follow-ups in less time, freeing them to focus on building relationships with existing and potential customers to drive more value for customers and the business.
In the Field: Smart Scheduling and Territory Management
AI doesn’t just help your sales team when they’re sitting at their desks. It’s also a powerful tool for when they’re on the road. When planning a client visit, the CRM can optimise the route based on locations and traffic data. It suggests the best times to visit each customer and can even help them plan where to stop for lunch. This level of organisation ensures they make the most of their field time, reducing logistical stress and allowing more time for face-to-face customer interactions and relationship-building.
Afternoon: Real-Time Deal Management
Back in the office for the rest of the day, your sellers check on ongoing deals and see what’s changed since the morning. AI highlights the opportunities that need attention and suggests actions to keep deals moving forward. If a prospect has gone quiet, AI prompts them to schedule a check-in based on their engagement history, so they can re-engage them and prevent the deal from going cold.
Finishing Up: Closing Deals and Reaching Quotas
As deals progress, AI-powered CRM can rapidly generate quotes and secure payment links, so your team can end the day by turning today’s opportunities into customers. For your sales managers, gone are the days of compiling sales reports in a tedious spreadsheet. Automatically generated reports and dashboards provide an overview of the entire team’s performance, so everyone stays on track to reach their quota and drive the business forward.
Swapping Spreadsheets with AI and Automation
Moving beyond the spreadsheet and into an AI-powered CRM like Salesforce Sales Cloud is the future for your sales reps, particularly in small businesses where balancing productivity with customer-centric service is essential to keep costs low and margins high.
