For sales leaders, Artificial Intelligence can be an abstract concept that doesn’t really mean anything unless it produces tangible business results. AI, like any other technology, is supposed to help them hit their quota numbers.

AI Results In Business Growth

Because of all the hype around AI lately, everyone seems to be advertising it as a component of their sales and marketing technology stack. These claims are thin, if not strictly aspirational.

Sales managers and directors can benefit today by introducing AI software into their process – but only if they follow a phased approach and rely on accurate data. AI implementation should start with the fundamentals and add capabilities and value along the way, with each phase being self-funding.

In our view, “Four Phases to Sales AI” meets the practicality hurdle of any good CRO and the “future-proofing” hurdle of any good CEO. You can have both.

The XANT Way to Do AI

You can benefit from AI today by following four simple phases.

Phase I: Productivity

Get better data by giving your team productivity tools. You can increase your revenue up to 10 percent, just by increasing productivity for sales reps.

Phase II: Profile Buyers

Use AI to figure out what the heck you should be doing and who you should be targeting. This can lead to around 20 percent revenue increase.

Phase III: Profile Sellers

Learn from what your A players are doing and coach all of your sales reps to repeat these results. The revenue increase is up to 20 percent in this phase.

Phase IV: Custom AI Implementation

Now you can use even more data data to start answering other tough questions across the customer lifecycle. This means tapping into external, cross-company data to understand and predict attrition, loyalty or expansion rates in your business.

This is where we really get to the meat, and can optimize activity for up to 30 percent revenue increase.

Read The Full Article On Forbes Magazine

I dive in deep to explain each of these phases of AI implementation in my Forbes article: “Using AI for Sales? Forget the Hype.” This article was written in collaboration with XANT President, Ken Krogue.

I encourage you to give it a read, you will understand more about how Artificial Intelligence can help sales and marketers make better decisions and lead to real business growth.

The average sales training program can increase your results by a little more than 20%, on average. But sales courses take a lot of time and resources that sometimes a company might not have. So, how do you solve the problem?

Changing Your Sales Model and Your Mindset

A better way to approach the sales conversation dilemma is to focus on what you can control in the sales process. And most of the time, that will have to do with the strategic choice of targets. We need salespeople to constantly focus on the leads that have the most potential to become optimal prospects, and only work on qualified opportunities.

But the way we qualify leads needs to change if we are to succeed.

For years, sales organizations have been using the BANT model for lead qualification. This is the model IBM developed in the 1960s to help their salespeople qualify leads. It is an acronym for:

• B = Budget (Determine whether your prospect has the budget to purchase your product)
• A = Authority (Are you a person who has the authority to make this purchase?)
• N = Need (Find out whether there is a need within the company for your product or service)
• T = Timing (Look for elements of urgency – how soon can they make a purchase decision?)

Many organizations still use this model. The problem is that the BANT process screams “pressure sales” and “manipulation” to prospective customers. Buyers can smell a sales pitch from miles away.

In my opinion, the elements of BANT are still valid. It’s the traditional order of them that is wrong.

ANUM is the New BANT Sales Model

In 2012, we at XANT came up with a new acronym called ANUM. ANUM means annual, so you can think about this formula as the best way to hit your year-end goal. It is based on the idea that authority is in fact the most important part of your sales equation. And the one you must secure first, to increase your chances of success.

• A = Authority
• N = Need
• U = Urgency
• M = Money

In this model, the “Money” element moves to the last position, and “Authority” becomes the first focus. This is because some parts of the sales process have been disrupted with the advent of the Internet. Today, as much as 70 percent of the buyer’s journey happens online. Customers are self-educated and most of the time they are ready to make a purchase decision before they even reach a salesperson on  the phone.

Think about it.

This means that most of the actors in a sales process will already know what your offer is all about!  However, if you reach a person that has the need, budget and even the urgency to make a purchase, but does not have the authority to make the purchasing decision, your deal is less likely to close. Some leaders with authority might have the budget, but might not have the perceived need for your solution.

The ANUM model make sense in today’s high velocity sales world and empowered customers. Focus on decision-makers and make sure they have a need for your product and that the timing is right.

A Selling Secret, on Forbes Magazine

You can read the full article on Forbes magazine, to learn how to apply the ANUM model in your organization.

I’m a regular contributor to Forbes magazine, so visit their website to see what other tips I share from my many years of selling experience.

The “State of Sales 2017” study covers 1,151 companies in U.S. and 28 countries in Europe and shows that companies are doing to accelerate sales.

The combined research of all countries shows an average of 60.9% of all sales account executives are attaining quota, with the U.S. attaining an average of 58.4% and Europe averaging 65.0%.

European Sales Reps are 11.3% Better at Attaining Quota Than U.S.

Inside sales is growing rapidly in Europe, along with as overall sales productivity. While U.S. reps are using more basic activities, their European counterparts are posting more meaningful stats in areas that relate to actual sales conversations and close ratios.

The research results are showing that the U.S. is doing less effective prospecting work that isn’t showing up in actual sales progress when compared against Europe. Why?

U.S. sales reps are expanding their prospecting activities to include email, phone, voicemail, and social media far more than their Europe counterparts with 97.3 average activities per day in the U.S. versus 86.5 for Europe (11.1% more.).

However, there are The State of Sales study shows there’s something sales reps in Europe are doing to improve their quota attainment rates.

Phone Call versus Email – We Have a Winner

Sales representatives in Europe focus quite a bit more on using the phone than email. About 35.7 percent of their activities are phone calls versus 30.9 percent of the US sales activities.

Phone calls result in much stronger sales conversations than email. European sales reps have 12.2 meaningful conversations per day, versus 10.6 for the U.S. – a whopping increase of 15.1%.

This means they are having richer conversations, which seem to be assisting in the closure of more sales.

The other obvious element of the sale that may be a factor would be sales skills in bringing closure to the sale, though it was not an element of this study.

Download the State of Sales 2017 Study

The study was done in partnership with the American Association of Inside Sales Professionals (AA-ISP), as well as Top Sales World, and the Association of Professional Sales (APS) who contributed access to a much-expanded database of companies in Europe.

You can find the full executive summary is available here.

This research report is incredibly telling on the state of sales today. I’ll discuss these results and other research in my columns on Forbes Magazine.

Concepts like “neural engine,” “AI,” and “machine learning” were used in various forms throughout the Apple event, especially in the first few minutes of their biggest announcement of the iPhone X.

The new handset uses facial recognition with its applications of neural networks in animated emojis as well as live lighting adjustments in photographs. Apple also introduces a new custom-built chip called A11–a neural engine that can process 600 billion operations a second.

This is an incredibly important development, especially considering that Apple has been lagging behind other companies when it comes to AI.

A WSJ report notes that Apple has only published four research papers on AI,  while major players like Microsoft and Google produced dozens. In our XANT survey of 1,985 individuals across the U.S. and Europe, Google beat Apple in brands consumers trust in regard to AI by nearly 20%.

AI is the future, and Apple (along with every other big company) knows it.

But there’s another secret message hidden away in the Apple launch event. I looked at this in detail with the co-founder of XANT, Dave Elkington.

Read the whole post on Forbes magazine to find out what the secret message was at the Apple keynote.

AI is here to stay and it’s not just changing the market, it’s shaping the way we live and work. In the sales industry, the growing sophistication and accuracy of predictive analytics is creating significant advances. However, inbound marketing and sales (along with many other functions and sectors) must continue to advance their use of AI in ways that they can build consumer trust.

State of Artificial Intelligence 2017

The study shows that even as AI continue to become more widespread, consumers continue to feel trepidation around the technology.

41 Percent Do Not Trust AI

When presented with a list of popular AI services, 41.5 percent of respondents could not cite a single example of AI that they trust. 

• As with many technological advancements, acceptance is growing most quickly on the East and West Coasts;
• In New England, only 36.6 percent of consumers reported a lack of trust for AI;
• Only 38.0 percent of West Coast respondents report lack of trust;

Nearly half (49.2 percent) of consumers in the Middle Atlantic region (NY, PA, NJ) report a lack of trust in AI.

Respondents in this area are especially wary of its use in industries that have historically required a human touch (such as financial planning, hiring or medical diagnosis). Only nine percent of respondents trust AI with their financials, and only four percent trust AI in the HR hiring process.

How to Build Consumer Trust for AI

So what do these results mean? For vendors whose offerings are centralized on AI implementation, you have your work cut out for you to demonstrate safety and reliability and to generate trust. For industries that are indirectly impacted by AI (especially sales), the message should be clear: always be respectful of privacy.

Artificial Intelligence can bring fantastic results to sales teams, both in revenue as well as productivity.

We must continue, as sales professionals, to use AI for the benefit of our customers, in way that they will consider useful and welcome, as opposed to invasive or “creepy.”

You can find the executive summary of the “State of AI 2017” study here.

Dave also offered some interesting insights into his personal working style, his relationship with technology, the Yin and Yang of customer support requests and the wise approach to financing a startup.

I’ll close this post as David himself closed his interview: rock on.

In fact, I’m on my way to Chicago today with my team from XANT for the AA-ISP Leadership Summit. We used these “commandments” to prepare for and make the most of the show. Enjoy.

1. Never go to an event that you can’t generate more leads than you will need to pay for it, and do it before you get there.
2. Look sharp, be sharp and be kind.
3. Trade leads with as many other vendors as you can at the show.
4. Never go to a show you can’t speak at.
5. When you speak, don’t pitch your products. Try to grow your industry instead.
6. Always have your own event(s) going on simultaneously.
7. Set appointments for people to come meet your executives.
8. Give away cool “swag” that matters and pulls well.
9. Be audacious and memorable, but also smart and relevant.
10. Have your best lead generators at the event and make it a game!
11. Promote the event like it’s your own, because it is.
12. Respond as fast as you can to all requests and set appointments right at the show.

I realize I’ve just given you a short summary of my “12 Commandments.” For a more detailed discussion, read my Forbes.com article:

The 12 Commandments of Incredibly Successful Trade Shows

If you would, please take a moment and comment on this article, especially if you’re in the inside sales or lead generation space. I would be very interested in reading your thoughts. The easiest way to share this article is to click on the large link above and share it through the social icons on the left side of the page.

If you like what you’ve read, you can +Follow me on Forbes.com to receive updates via email of my latest posts focused on sales, marketing and entrepreneurs. If you have a topic in mind that you would like me to address on Forbes.com, email me at kk (at) www.insidesales.com.

To get additional resources and content on the inside sales industry, follow XANT on social media:LinkedIn, Facebook, Google+ and Twitter.

Author: Ken Krogue | Google+
Summary of Ken Krogue’s Forbes articles

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This year, 197 B2B companies answered questions about key metrics that lead to the success in inside sales. Half of the companies said they were software companies and a third of those claimed to be SaaS companies.

The study examined many different metrics, including the average job experience and pay in the past year in comparison to the years previous to it. Another interesting insight the study shed light on was the results of using dialer software and lead research.

You can read more about this groundbreaking study in my latest Forbes.com article:

Inside Sales Jobs and Career Demand Up 54%: But Most Leverage Comes With Dialer Software and Lead Research

Take a moment and comment on this article. If you’re in the inside sales or lead generation space, I would be very interested in reading your thoughts. The easiest way to share this article is to click on the large link above and share it through the social icons on the left side of the page.

You can also read the full announcement of the research report on the XANT press page.

Please also +Follow me on Forbes.com to receive updates of my latest posts focused on sales, marketing and entrepreneurs. If you have a topic in mind that you would like me to address on Forbes.com, email me at kk (at) www.insidesales.com.

To get additional resources and content on the inside sales industry, follow XANT on social media:LinkedIn, Facebook, Google+ and Twitter.

Author: Ken Krogue | Google+
Summary of Ken Krogue’s Forbes articles

Free Inside Sales Industry Research

Gain access to additional inside sales industry research, including the original Lead Response Management study.

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In the last 20 years of working in sales I’ve discovered that the competitive nature in athletes and the trustworthiness of Eagle Scouts equate to the same thing in the sales world. That one thing is success.

When we hire at XANT we are looking for a correlation between what is on their resume and the results they have had in life. We’re looking for hard working, disciplined and trustworthy individuals who can join our team. It’s usually the Eagle Scouts and athletes that have these things instilled in them.

There’s a lot more to it than that and you can read more about why these two types of people do so well in sales in my latest Forbes.com article:

1 Think Eagle Scouts and Competitive Athletes Have in Common.

Take a moment and comment on this article. If you’re in the inside sales or lead generation space I would be very interested in reading your thoughts. The easiest way to share this article is to click on the large link above and share it through the social icons on the left side of the page. You can also read the full announcement of the research report on the XANT press page.

Please also +Follow me on Forbes.com to receive updates of my latest posts targeted at sales, marketing and entrepreneurs. If you have a topic in mind that you would like me to address on Forbes.com, email me at kk (at) www.insidesales.com.

To get additional resources and content on the inside sales industry, follow XANT on social media: LinkedIn, Facebook, Google+ and Twitter.

Author: Ken Krogue | Google+
Summary of Ken Krogue’s Forbes articles

Free Inside Sales Industry Research

Gain access to additional inside sales industry research, including the original Lead Response Management study.

Get Research Now

While we were at the show, I announced in my keynote presentation the XANT research team had conducted a “ResponseAudit” on hundreds of the attendees at the show. This audit measured how fast these companies respond to Internet, web-generated leads.

What we found was the attendees of the show have improved their response time over the last two years by nearly two days (39 hours). Great job, folks! You’re drinking your own medicine.

For the complete results of the study and to see the top 50 responders, read my latest article on Forbes.com:

Lead Generation Companies are Finally Responding Faster to Their Leads: Latest Research

Take a moment and comment on this article, please. If you’re in the inside sales or lead generation space I would be very interested in reading your thoughts. The easiest way to share this article is to click on the large link above and share it through the social icons on the left side of the page. You can also read the full announcement of the research report on the XANT press page.

Please also ‘+Follow’ me on Forbes.com to receive updates of my latest posts targeted at sales, marketing and entrepreneurs. If you have a topic in mind that you would like me to address on Forbes.com, email me at kk (at) www.insidesales.com.

To get additional resources and content on the inside sales industry, follow XANT on social media: LinkedIn, Facebook, Google+ and Twitter.

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