AI in B2B Sales: How It’s Used in 2024 and the Biggest Benefits [New Data]

Download Now: The State of AI in Sales Report

Over the course of my career, I've seen AI go from a sci-fi pipe dream to a real tool that I use every day. But what is the impact of AI in B2B sales?

Today, B2B salespeople are leveraging AI-powered tools to streamline processes, save time, and create a more personalized experience for prospects. In this article, I'll walk through how salespeople are feeling about AI, how they're incorporating AI into their B2B sales strategies, some of the biggest risks to keep in mind, and my own top tips for implementing AI in B2B sales.

Table of Contents

• How Do B2B Salespeople Feel About AI?
• AI Uses Cases in B2B Sales
• Tips for Building a B2B Sales AI Strategy
• Risks of Adopting AI in B2B Sales
• The Future of AI in B2B Sales
• How to Implement AI in B2B Sales

How Do B2B Salespeople Feel About AI?

According to recent data from HubSpot, AI adoption among sales teams has surged to 43% in 2024, a 9% increase from 2023. Moreover, 87% of salespeople - nearly nine in ten - report that AI has enabled them to use their CRM tools more, as AI integrations have helped them better analyze data, forecast about the future, and drive efficiency throughout the sales process.

Personally, one of the main reasons I've found AI can be particularly powerful is that it enables teams to dramatically scale their sales efforts. Indeed, 50% of sales professionals surveyed in HubSpot's report agreed that AI enables scalability in ways that would otherwise be impossible, and 41% shared that they believed full AI integrations at their organization could drive unprecedented growth.

Clearly, AI has a lot of potential to drive growth in B2B sales. But how exactly are salespeople using these tools?

AI Uses Cases in B2B Sales

1. Writing Content

From ChatGPT to DALL-E and more, generative AI has taken the world by storm. As such, it's no surprise that the number one way today's B2B sales teams are using AI is to help them write sales content and develop prospect outreach messages.

Specifically, sales reps are using generative AI in several key ways:

• Repurposing messages and adapting them to different audiences (e.g., asking an AI tool to turn a message written for a small business owner into a message targeting a decision-maker at a large company).
• Writing messages to prospects (e.g., asking an AI tool to write a first draft of an email).
• Repurposing messages to prospects by adapting them to different formats (e.g., asking an AI tool to turn an email into a LinkedIn message).

For example, HubSpot's Breeze Content Agent enables users to generate landing pages, podcasts, case studies, and blogs. This automatically-generated content can be targeted toward a specific buyer persona and replicate a brand's voice, enabling sales teams to scale their content generation efforts without sacrificing quality.

Source

Importantly, when it comes to writing sales content, AI isn't replacing humans - it's just assisting them. That's why the vast majority of sales professionals make at least some edits to text created using AI.

2. Saving Time on Manual Tasks to Focus on Selling

The next most common AI use case in B2B sales is automating manual tasks such as data entry, note-taking, and scheduling. When asked why they used AI, 35% of HubSpot's survey respondents reported that AI tools saved them time and/or automated manual tasks, and 27% shared that AI tools allowed them to spend more time selling.

Indeed, while exact time saved varies from role to role and task to task, across tasks, 40-65% of HubSpot survey respondents reported that using AI saved them at least an hour per week. After all, when manual tasks are completed automatically, that gives salespeople more time and energy to focus on what they do best: connecting with customers (and closing deals).

As a recent report from BCG explains, AI tools "can improve the effectiveness of sales reps by helping them spend more time doing what they were hired for - selling." In other words, AI tools are making the B2B sales process more efficient by taking over the routine tasks that might otherwise use up valuable time (time that reps could be spending on high-impact tasks, like building relationships and creating unique value propositions). At the end of the day, when AI covers the simple tasks, teams are empowered to create a more efficient, value-forward sales process.

3. Optimizing the Sales Process with Data

More than one in three respondents in HubSpot's recent survey shared that they used AI tools to gain access to data-driven insights related to sales forecasting, lead scoring, pipeline analysis, and more. Indeed, I've learned firsthand that businesses can create a lot of data … and it's not always easy to sift through that data and extract valuable, actionable intel from it.

That's where AI can make a huge difference. Leveraging automated, AI-powered tools enables B2B sales reps to use data to optimize the sales process at scale. This is especially important because research shows that today's salespeople view data as increasingly important in informing their sales strategies.

As such, I wasn't surprised to see that using AI to drive a data-driven sales strategy was one of the top three AI use cases identified in HubSpot's survey. After all, in a world where data is king, tools that help sales teams make sense of that data - and determine the best way to incorporate that data into their decision-making - are critical.

4. Automatically Qualifying Leads

The next most popular AI use case in B2B sales was AI tools that assist with qualifying leads, with 22% of respondents reporting that they use such a tool. These lead qualification tools are especially powerful because they enable sales reps to save time while still identifying high-quality leads.

Indeed, I've learned that while qualifying leads is incredibly important, it can also be incredibly time consuming. That's why AI tools that automatically qualify leads can be so helpful.

For example, HubSpot's Breeze Intelligence uses data from more than 200 million buyer and company profiles to unlock vital insights about which leads are most likely to convert. Armed with these insights, sales teams can focus their time and energy on connecting with the most qualified leads, ultimately boosting efficiency and productivity across the sales process.

Source

5. Supporting Prospect Outreach

According to data from HubSpot, one in five sales professionals currently uses AI tools that assist with prospect outreach. But what exactly does this look like in practice? One of my favorite ways to use AI to support outreach is through generative AI tools like ChatGPT. For example, I'll often ask ChatGPT to write a first draft of an outreach email or to give me ideas for content that's likely to resonate with my target audience.

That said, generative AI isn't the only way today's B2B sales reps are using AI to support prospect outreach. Beyond content generation, automated tools can also help with fast-tracking many of the manual data entry tasks necessary to gather and organize data related to prospects. In addition, salespeople can use AI tools to research markets and specific customers, in order to get a better sense of the best way to reach out to a prospect.

Indeed, as sales expert Jeff Loyd argues, "AI marks a new era of cold B2B outreach, one that is characterized by gentle nudges, personalized interactions, and streamlined processes." New, automated tools promise to revolutionize prospect outreach, enabling faster, more effective communication throughout the entire process.

6. Simulations and Training

Finally, the last common AI use case that HubSpot's survey respondents identified was AI tools that analyze or simulate sales calls for training or coaching purposes. In HubSpot's recent survey, 19% of professionals reported using tools like these, whether to analyze how past calls went or to simulate customer interactions.

While some sales reps might be nervous to get their training from an automated tool, I've found that these systems can actually be incredibly valuable. After all, reviewing our own performance or that of our colleagues is hard. Moreover, both giving and receiving feedback can be very uncomfortable, and in many cases, people may be hesitant to give constructive feedback that will be most useful to a young professional.

However, AI has no such qualms. An automated analysis program will effectively identify what a sales rep did well and where they may have room for improvement, giving reps visibility into key insights to help them grow. Similarly, while simulations with real-world colleagues can be awkward and uncomfortable, in my experience, a training simulation with an AI can serve as a highly effective learning tool.

Tips for Building a B2B Sales AI Strategy

Clearly, there are a lot of ways sales reps are leveraging AI. But what's the best way to build an AI strategy for B2B sales? Below, I've laid out some of my favorite tips.

1. Assess all the ways you can use AI.

First, I've learned that it's important to take a step back and consider all the options before moving forward with a new AI tool. Rather than jumping into the latest new product, take the time to assess all the ways you can use AI. Then, make an informed decision about the best way to add value to your unique organization.

For instance, you may find that an automated chatbot to help you qualify leads on your website could save your team time and offer a source of high-quality leads. Alternatively, you may find that using an automated tool to take over routine, manual tasks would be the best way to free up salespeople's time, empowering them to focus more on important conversations and outreach.

The best tool (or tools) for a given situation will depend on your unique needs, strengths, and weaknesses - so make sure to think carefully before diving in.

2. Lean into personalization.

Today's consumers have access to more information than ever before. That means that by the time they choose to talk to a sales rep, they already know the basics, and they'll be looking for more focused conversations about how exactly your solutions apply to them. That's why I've found that when using AI for B2B sales, it's often helpful to lean into personalization.

Indeed, according to a recent survey from HubSpot, 22% of sales professionals use AI tools because they make their outreach efforts more personalized. Whether you're leveraging generative AI to create personalized responses to emails or using lead qualification tools, AI can be a great way to add a personal touch to your prospecting and outreach efforts.

3. Leverage AI analytics tools for all they're worth.

When it comes to trying new things, it's normal to be a little nervous. But take it from me: AI tools may be scary, but they have the potential to add a huge amount of value to your sales process. So don't be afraid to dive in, exploring all the ways these tools can save you time, give you access to data-driven insights, and empower you and your team to make smarter decisions.

Specifically, with AI analytics tools, you can:

• Enrich your CRM data with data from third-party sources to get a full view of your leads and customers.
• Use predictive scoring tools to identify the highest-quality leads.

• Forecast and get accurate projections to help guide your decisions and address potential roadblocks.

• Improve your training process with conversational intelligence tools that assess sales calls to see what works and what doesn't.

4. Don't let AI take over your strategy.

At the same time, it's also critical to recognize the limitations of AI. While automation can improve many sales processes and help sales teams meet their goals faster and more effectively, I've also learned firsthand that it's important not to become overly reliant on AI.

For example, many salespeople use generative AI to write messages to prospects and other sales enablement content - but 98% still edit this AI-generated content, rather than just copying, pasting, and sending it off.

In other words, even when automating substantial elements of your workload, it's important for humans to still be involved in the process. After all, AI tools can be great to assist and supplement your processes and strategies … but the best sales reps know not to let these tools take over entirely.

Risks of Adopting AI in B2B Sales

As with any new technology, adopting AI in B2B sales isn't without risk. Below, I'll walk through several of the most important risks to keep in mind when considering implementing an AI tool as a sales leader.

1. Content could sound awkward and unnatural.

While generative AI has made major strides in recent years, it's still not uncommon for AI-written content to come out sounding awkward and unnatural. Luckily, in my experience, it's often fairly straightforward to edit AI text to sound more human, especially for content like emails or blog posts that you're likely used to editing anyway.

However, this can be riskier when it comes to automated tools like chatbots or training simulations, where AI-generated content may be used in real time without a human in the loop. For use cases like these, I've learned that it's vital to make sure adequate quality control processes are in place - and to make sure that complex or highly sensitive tasks are left to the humans.

2. Information could be inaccurate.

Beyond content that's just a little awkward, sales teams can run into real issues when the AI tools they rely on produce inaccurate information. Especially when it comes to using automated data analysis tools to make major strategic decisions, small errors can drive major downstream challenges.

Of course, these mistakes are largely the result of inaccuracies in the source data, since AI models are trained on the data that humans give them. So, to reduce the risk of inaccurate outputs, the best thing sales teams can do is ensure the accuracy of the data that's inputted into the system.

3. Algorithm aversion.

Research has shown that many professionals may be hesitant to use AI tools. This phenomenon, known as algorithm aversion, can meaningfully limit the extent to which organizations are able to benefit from adopting AI. After all, even if a new tool has the potential to add value, that potential will only be realized if the people meant to be using that tool actually do so.

To mitigate this risk, I've found that it's helpful to be as open and transparent as possible. In some cases, this may mean reassuring people that they won't be blamed if they make a mistake due to an algorithmic error, while in others, it may mean sharing data and evidence to demonstrate the quality and reliability of the AI tool. Whatever the source of people's algorithm aversion, it's important to acknowledge these issues and address them head-on.

4. Fears of being replaced by AI.

Another major challenge I've run into is that implementing an AI solution can lead people to worry that they will be replaced. Indeed, recent data from HubSpot found that 59% of sales professionals are concerned that AI will make their jobs obsolete.

Here, too, transparent communication is key. While AI is transforming many jobs - and it may, indeed, eliminate some - there are often plenty of tactical steps organizations can take to alleviate people's fears of being replaced. For example, managers can provide guidance and training around the job areas where human input is most likely to continue to be needed. In addition, I've learned that a little bit of positive feedback can go a long way: If people are feeling nervous or underappreciated, reminding them just how valuable they are can help assuage their fears.

The Future of AI in B2B Sales

According to HubSpot's recent report, 76% of sales professionals believe that by 2030, most people will use some form of AI or automation to assist them in their jobs. Clearly, the impact of AI on B2B sales is massive. But where do we go from here?

By 2030, three out of four salespeople believe that most software they use will have AI or automation capabilities built-in, and 72% believe that AI and automation will be advanced enough to reach out to prospects completely independently. Moreover, two-thirds of respondents predicted that most people will use chatbots like ChatGPT to answer their questions rather than search engines like Google, and 73% agreed that most people will use a generative AI tool like ChatGPT to assist them in their jobs.

Of course, the future is far from certain. But, one thing is clear: AI is here to stay, and it's making big waves in the world of B2B sales.

How to Implement AI in B2B Sales

Over the course of my career, I've learned that there's no one-size-fits-all solution to implementing AI in B2B sales. That said, there are several strategies that can help any organization make sure they're set up for success.

Below, I've outlined five key steps that I've found can ensure sales teams adopt automated tools effectively and efficiently:

1. Define SMART goals.

First, whenever I launch a new project, I've learned that it's essential to set goals for myself that are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART).

When it comes to incorporating a new AI tool into a B2B sales workflow, a SMART goal might be something like "boost conversions by 20%" or "reduce time spent on data entry by 50%." The most relevant goals will vary depending on the specific organization and business context, but it's always important to define clear objectives that will guide your decision-making in the right direction.

2. Follow the rules.

To maintain the trust of your customers and employees alike, it's vital to ensure compliance with all applicable regulations. For businesses operating in the EU, the GDPR is one of the most important regulatory frameworks to consider, but I've also learned that relevant rules can vary greatly based on location, industry, and more.

That's why I always make sure to do my research before implementing a new AI tool, taking the time to ensure that I'm following both the letter and the spirit of the law before I move forward.

3. Experiment and iterate.

Once you've defined your goals and ensured regulatory compliance, it's time to get creative! Implementing AI is seldom a one-and-done project. Instead, I always recommend embracing a spirit of experimentation.

Try one approach, see how it goes, and iterate accordingly. That means monitoring your KPIs religiously - and not being afraid to make a change if the results are less promising than you had hoped for.

4. Expand slowly.

No one becomes an AI whiz overnight. I've found that even for the most tech savvy salespeople, it takes time to get accustomed to using a new tool. That's why I always make sure to expand an AI rollout gradually, giving people a chance to get comfortable with each new use case before launching the next one.

For example, rather than completely overhauling your content generation system, it may make sense to start by encouraging sales reps to use an automated tool just to help them create one or two email templates for prospect outreach. Then, once they've got the hang of that, you can expand into other kinds of content generation.

5. Integrate with existing tools.

Finally, don't forget to integrate your new AI capabilities with your existing tools. After all, if different tools remain siloed, it's easy for bottlenecks to emerge, often creating even more manual work to connect these systems. But with effective integration, all your systems will be in sync, working together to boost your team's efficiency and productivity.

Over to You

Every use case for AI in B2B sales will come with its own challenges and opportunities. Indeed, over the course of my career, I've learned that it's important to embrace new technologies as they emerge - but it's equally important to consider all the challenges associated with implementing a new tool and avoid rushing in without a clear plan. It's up to today's sales leaders to recognize the risks and take steps to implement AI in the most effective manner for their organization.

To learn more about how to apply AI in sales, check out HubSpot's State of AI in Sales Report.

Topics: Artificial Intelligence

Don't forget to share this post!