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Collaborative Article: What are your top 3 ways to effectively leverage AI for business development?

In this collaborative article, experts have shared their top three strategies for effectively harnessing AI to propel business development. Discover how AI automation enhances marketing campaigns, refines lead scoring, offers competitive intelligence, and personalises customer interactions. Dive into the transformative power of AI-driven copywriting, personalised outreach, and targeted prospecting to boost your business development and maximise efficiency. Read what our experts said below.

Gerard Anthony Gerona

Business Broker and Franchise Broker
1. Create marketing campaigns using AI automation for email blasts, website push, SMS and social media platforms
2. To execute the planned strategies and reach out to the intended market
3. Entice the general public to visit your website eventually generating leads

Tabitha Naylor

TabithaNaylor.com Inc.

First up, think of AI as your savvy sidekick in scoring leads. It sifts through data, picking up patterns you might miss, to show you which prospects are most likely to bite. This means you can focus your energy on the leads that really matter, boosting your team’s efficiency and your chances of success.

Then there’s the spy aspect—using AI to keep an eye on your competitors. It’s like having a reconnaissance mission at your fingertips, giving you the lowdown on market movements and what your rivals are up to. With this intel, you can pivot quickly, seize new opportunities, and stay a step ahead.

Lastly, let’s not forget the personal touch. Integrating AI into your CRM isn’t just about automation; it’s about making every interaction count. By anticipating customer needs and personalizing communication, you’re not just selling; you’re building relationships. And in business development, strong relationships are your goldmine.

Tim Meredith

CEO – Fractional Teams

Copywriting that connects with audiences and converts is essential for business development. The dangers of repetitive, plagiarised or even “AI-voiced” copy need to be balanced with the productivity gains of using these platforms. Learning how to write effective AI prompts can be time-consuming, but valuable. If this isn’t possible, platforms like CopyReadyNow can give AI writing a human feel.

If you don’t have time to personalise audio and video-based outreach for each prospect, you can train AI tools to clone your voice and then provide a text script that will contain personalised elements, such as name and company. You’ll then be able to produce personalised output quickly and repeatedly without having to spend time recording an almost identical script hundreds of times.

Researching audiences and prospects takes time, but producing an overview or analysis of your potential buyer can be accelerated by using an AI to scour the web for detailed information and datapoints, to later aid your account targeting strategy. AI can even use this research to automatically create personalised elevator pitches or even full-blown company presentations!

Dave Davies

Director, Sandler

I grew up watching and aspiring to be, Steve Austin (played by Lee Majors) , the “The Six Million Dollar Man “, on TV (see YouTube).

Austin is an Astronaut/Test Pilot who has a major flight accident and is rebuilt with bionic implants which give him superhuman strength, speed and vision.

Now, many people have accused me of being “Artificially Intelligent” for years.

Finally, I have the “bionics” I need to become the “Bionic Seller” and become ultra effective as a Business Developer.

At Hubspot Inbound ’23 it was said that 88% of salespeople believe that personal connections are the most important part of their job. Yet, they spend less than a 1/3 of their building “relationships”.

Some 72% of their available time is spent on “non-selling” activities, and just 28% actually “selling”.

AI is creating a new Sales Formula.

The old sales formula.

More Reps X More Tools X More Activity = More Sales

The new sales formula.

Efficient Reps X Connected Tools X Right Activities (Right Time, Right People) = More Sales

Here are some of the best ways to leverage AI that will show immediate impact and that business development professionals will welcome.

1) Seller Role Simplification: Automating activities that are essential to the function but that salespeople see as “administrative”.

2) Generative Value Messaging: AI can help sellers personalize their communication and craft messaging that’s unique to each specific deal and each specific individual involved in the deal.

3) Prospecting: Treating AI as a partner, as a team-mate, can reduce the burden by deploying autonomous sales development reps (SDRs) that feed leads into the CRM.

4) Closing: AI can use real-time information to provide insights and guide sellers through their opportunities to find ways to close more deals, bigger deals, more often, with the people they choose to do business with.

AI is a bit (read “a lot”) more than just “Chat.gpt”. It is a pervading force in “sales” and is a force for good”.

Tools like Fathom (Meeting Assistant), Humantic AI (Buyer Insights), Chat GPT (Research and Content), Hubspot (Prospecting Sequences), and Auctus IQ (Deal Management) are all powerful tools.

Gartner estimates that by implementing AI tools, effectively, sales leaders can help their sales team save up to 25% of wasted time on “non-selling” activities.

Imagine the impact that would have on you, your business, your prospective clients, and your existing ones.

Get some “bionic” implants and watch your sales skyrocket!

You too can augment your strength, speed, and vision, as a professional seller.

In this insightful collaboration, experts revealed the transformative potential of AI in driving business development forward. From AI-powered marketing automation and personalised customer interactions to competitive intelligence and efficient prospecting, the applications of AI are vast and impactful.

As highlighted by our contributors, AI serves as a strategic ally in optimising workflows, refining messaging, and streamlining sales processes. By leveraging AI tools effectively, business development professionals can enhance efficiency, unlock new opportunities, and cultivate meaningful relationships with prospects.

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About the author: Tilly Little
Digital marketer at Expert Circle

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