Stop Wrestling With AI - Make It Your Sales Bestie
Your AI Assistant is Like That Brilliant But Weird Sales Intern (I will show you how to talk to them)
Hey there, AI Sales Revolutionary!
Ever feel like you're playing charades with ChatGPT? You know what you want, but somehow the AI gives you everything BUT the answer you need? You're not alone. A recent survey showed that 78% of sales reps struggle to get useful responses from AI tools.
But here's the thing: The difference between frustration and fantastic results isn't the AI - it's how you finesse it. We will get into how to think about your AI Assistant, how to talk to it and much more this week...Let's Go!
Stat of the Week:
"Sales professionals who master AI prompting report 62% faster task completion and 47% more accurate outputs than those who don't."
Salesforce AI Adoption Study 2024
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This Week in AI Sales:
- The Art of AI Conversation: Your Guide to Prompting
- Why Your AI Assistant Is Like That Brilliant But Awkward Intern
- How to Make Your AI Do Your Research for Cold Outreach Success
- AI For Meeting Follow-up
Deep Dive:
Understanding AI: Your New Sales Assistant
Look, let's get one thing straight - AI isn't magic, and it's not a human. Think of it as a brilliant but socially awkward intern who's read every sales book ever written but has never actually been to a sales meeting. Understanding this concept is your first step to mastering AI prompting.
AI is like this intern, who knows virtually everything but has trouble talking to people. So with this new viewpoint, you now realize you need to provide a complete explanation to get the best output possible.
Hereβs what makes AI tick:
Context is King
Remember that brilliant but weird intern? They need background info on what you ask of them - and lots of it. Instead of saying
βWrite me a sales email,β try:
βIβm a senior sales rep at a cybersecurity firm targeting financial services companies with 500+ employees. Write me a first-touch email highlighting ransomware protectionβ¦. Here is my personal history context, my professional context, my product context and my target customer context. Etc etc etcβ.
Let's dig deeper.
Best Practices for Prompting:
The Four-Part Prompt Formula
Remember those 'assembly required' furniture instructions that made you want to throw the whole desk out the window? Well, here's your IKEA manual for AI prompts (minus the frustration and extra screws)..."
You want to be very clear and provide the Context, the Role, the Task, and the Output. These are the four most essential elements and if these are done well, you will be able to get the desired result. The order of these can be flexible, so don't stress if you prompt these out of order, AI is smart enough to understand.
Context sets the scene, and provides background information.
Role tells the AI what persona to adopt. Perhaps it is a sales assistant or marketing expert to help you craft content.
Output specifies how you want the information presented. We are talking about a document with paragraphs or graphs, or whatever, the number of words, etc.
Task is the core of what you're asking the AI to do. For instance, create a follow-up email for a prospect.
The clearer and more specific your prompt, the better the AI's response will be. Using these CROT elements helps ensure you're providing all the necessary information for an effective prompt.
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Now let's look at an example of using these elements in a prompt. For this example, we are asking for assistance in creating a proposal for a prospective client:
Prompt: Proposal Creation
Context: I'm a marketing consultant meeting with a potential client next week. They're a small local bakery looking to increase their online presence and attract more customers.
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Role: Act as an experienced digital marketing strategist.
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Task: Create a brief proposal outline for a 3-month digital marketing campaign for this bakery. Include strategies for social media, local SEO, and email marketing.
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Output: Present the proposal outline in a bulleted list format, with 3-4 main sections and 2-3 key points under each section. OR use a similar format that has been used prior, and upload a previous version for AI to mimic
So as you can see, this prompt provides:
- Context about the situation and client
- A specific role for the AI to assume
- A clear task with defined parameters
- A structured output format
Using this structure helps ensure you'll receive a focused and relevant response tailored to your needs. It gives the AI clear guidelines on how to frame its response, increasing the likelihood of getting a useful output that matches your expectations.
AI Fail of the Week
AI fails can be terrifying!
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How to Personalize Cold Outreach, at Scale, with AI
Personalized outreach really matters, especially as you begin the relationship. For one, the more personal and relevant to their job, company and industry, the better chance they actually open it and respond.
We are building a relationship here and this starts the relationship off by demonstrating a genuine interest in the prospect's specific situation.
When you are well-researched, it builds credibility and trust from the first interaction, differentiating you.
From a best practices point, the effort typically requires in-depth research on the prospect and their company. You often must review many different pieces of content including prospect's activities, posts, and professional achievements, which can take hours when done right.
Take this from experience, your results will be better in your initial discussion/outreach when you are prepared with knowledge of specific pain points or desired value needed by your contact, as it speaks to what is happening in real life.
AI comes to the rescue here and can enable you to do this at scale, meaning you can do this for 10's or 100's per day. AI can research and create content (emails) for this use case extremely well. Here is a prompt that can be used with AI to have this done within seconds, not minutes or hours.
The Prompt: Personalized Cold Outreach
As an AI assistant specializing in sales communication and personalization, please help me craft a hyper-personalized [email/LinkedIn message] for a prospective lead. Here's the information and what I need:
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Prospect Information:
Name: [Full Name]
Title: [Job Title]
Company: [Company Name]
Industry: [Industry]
LinkedIn Profile URL: [URL]
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Recent Achievements or News: [List any recent company news, personal achievements, or noteworthy social media activity]
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Mutual Connections or Shared Experiences: [List any mutual connections, shared alma mater, past companies, etc.]
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Prospect's Pain Points or Challenges: [List any known or assumed challenges based on their role/industry]
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Our Relevant Solution: [Brief description of how our product/service addresses their challenges]
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Communication Preferences: [Any known preferences in communication style, length, or tone]
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Outreach Goal: [Specific goal for this outreach, e.g., schedule a call, share a resource]
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Additional Context: [Any other relevant information about the prospect or their company]
Please craft a message that:
Opens with a highly personalized hook related to their recent activity or achievement
Demonstrates deep understanding of their industry and role-specific challenges
Establishes a genuine connection (avoid generic flattery)
Briefly introduce our solution in the context of their specific situation
Includes a clear, low-pressure call-to-action
Maintains a [formal/casual/balanced] tone
Keeps the message concise (aim for [X] sentences)
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Examples of Successful Outreach: [Paste 1-2 examples of outreach messages that have worked well in the past]
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Based on this information, please provide:
A draft of the personalized outreach message
2-3 alternative opening lines
Suggestions for any additional research that could enhance personalization
Ideas for a follow-up message if there's no initial response
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Note: If you need any additional information that isn't publicly available to craft this message effectively, please let me know.
Pro Tips for Prompting Success:
1. Be specific - vague prompts get vague results
2. Break complex tasks into smaller prompts
3. Store your best prompts for reuse
4. Include examples when possible
5. Donβt be afraid to iterate and refine
AI Tool of the Week:
Perplexity AI Assistant by Anthropic
Claude has become my go to for writing, pretty much any long form text I use it. Emails, ebooks, articles, etc. It just seems to do the best from all the AI assistants I have tested.
The Unsung Hero of Sales - Meeting Follow-up FTW!
The unsung hero of sales is the follow-up. Why does follow-up matter? It's not just busy work, trust me. It's your secret weapon for building relationships and keeping the sales momentum going. It clarifies any fuzzy points from your meeting and, here's the kicker, it seriously boosts your conversion rates...while making you stand out from the crowd.
So, what goes into a killer follow-up? Start with a thank you note - it really matters! Then hit 'em with a concise meeting summary. Don't forget the action items - show them you're on the ball. Throw in some extra resources to really wow them, outline the next steps, and always, always reinforce the value you're bringing to the table.
Speed is your friend here - get the follow-up sent within 24 hours. Make it personal - nobody likes a copy-paste job. Keep it clear and concise - your prospect's time is valuable. Add some extra value with insights or resources they didn't ask for but will love. And always include a clear call to action. Don't leave them wondering, 'Okay, now what?'
I know what you're thinking - ' I'm already swamped!' Well, I'm going to show you an AI prompt that's going to make all of this a breeze.
Prompt: Meeting Follow-up:
As an AI sales communication expert, please help me craft an effective follow-up message based on the following information:
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Role: Sales Representative for [Your Company Name]
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Context: I've just completed a [type of meeting, e.g., discovery call, product demo] with [Client Name(s)] from [Client Company]. This [is/is not] our first interaction. The prospect is in the [stage of buyer's journey, e.g., awareness, consideration, decision] stage.
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Task: Create a personalized and compelling follow-up email that summarizes key points, provides value, and moves the sales process forward.
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Output: Provide a structured email draft that includes:
A personalized greeting
Meeting Summary
Key takeaways
Value-add content or insights
Clear next steps or call-to-action
Professional closing
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Meeting Details:
Date and Time: [Insert meeting date and time]
Duration: [Insert duration]
Main Topics Discussed: [List main topics]
Key Pain Points Identified: [List pain points]
Prospect's Objectives: [List objectives]
Questions or Concerns Raised: [List questions/concerns]
Competitive Considerations: [Mention any competitors discussed]
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Additional Context: [Include any other relevant information about the client, their industry, or specific circumstances that might influence the tone or content of the follow-up]
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Attachments or Resources to Include: [List any documents, links, or resources you want to include in the follow-up]
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Next Steps Discussed in Meeting: [List any specific next steps or action items agreed upon during the meeting]
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Company's Unique Selling Propositions: [Brief reminder of your company's USPs relevant to this prospect]
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Ideal Outcome of This Follow-Up: [What action do you want the prospect to take after reading this email?]
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Tone Preference: [e.g., Professional, friendly, consultative, urgent]
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Previous Successful Follow-Up Example: [If available, paste a previous follow-up email that was particularly effective]
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Based on this information, please draft a follow-up email that:
- Demonstrates active listening and understanding of the prospect's needs
- Reinforces the value proposition of our solution
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[Include Product Value Context]
- Addresses any concerns or questions raised during the meeting
- Provides additional insights or resources relevant to their challenges
- Clearly outlines the next steps in the sales process
- Encourages continued engagement and dialogue
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Please also suggest:
- A compelling subject line for the email
- Any potential personalization elements based on the information provided
- Recommendations for the timing of the follow-up and any subsequent communications
What You Learned Today:
- How AI actually "thinks" and Why It Matters
- The Four-Part Formula for Perfect Prompts
- The Cold Email Outreach Prompt
- Meeting Follow-up Prompt
Don't let AI leave you in the dust. Supercharge your sales skills now!
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Explore More:
- AI Sales Starter Kit (Coming soon)
- AI Sales Accelerator (Coming soon)
- AI Sales Revolution (Coming soon)
That is all of this week but keep pushing forward
See you next week,
Steve