Sales professionals are always on the lookout for new ways to engage with prospects and close more deals. CRMs were once a shiny new tool to store customer data. Today, they can provide real-time analytics, track customer behavior, and even automate sales processes. Next came sales enablement technology (ever heard of Winmo?). Now, with the advent of artificial intelligence and natural language processing, sales pros have access to another exciting (yet often intimidating) new tool in their outreach strategy – ChatGPT.
ChatGPT is a large language model trained by OpenAI, based on the GPT-3.5 architecture. What that means is, the software can understand natural language and respond to queries in a human-like manner. While creepy to the uninitiated, this technology can automate and enhance much of the sales process, from lead generation to follow-up communications. Here are three ways sales professionals can leverage ChatGPT in their outreach strategy:
ChatGPT can answer questions and provide information about products or services. By integrating ChatGPT into their website or social media platforms, sales pros can capture visitor information and start a conversation with potential leads. For example, ChatGPT can answer common questions like “What services do you offer?” or “Can you tell me more about your pricing?” This builds trust and credibility from the jump and sales pros sales can tailor their messaging and improve their chances of closing a deal.
ChatGPT can help schedule appointments by offering available time slots and confirming details. The tool can also integrate as a website’s chatbot to assist potential customers. It answers product/service questions, provides information about availability, and schedules introductory calls. By automating this process, sales professionals can focus on tasks that aren’t automated like communication, forecasting strategy, and content creation. Post demo, use ChatGPT to follow up with potential customers — use it to send reminder emails or summarize additional information to help close the deal.
Through natural language processing, ChatGPT can understand the context of previous conversations to offer relevant information or insights. Similar to intent insights, the tool can analyze a prospect’s behavior and interests to offer personalized recommendations. ChatGPT suggests products or services that are most likely to resonate with them. Additionally, it can provide prospects with relevant content that addresses their pain points or interests like your company’s case studies, blog posts, or whitepapers that speak directly to them.
One of the biggest cons of ChatGPT or any other AI chatbot is that it’s not an authoritative source of information. At the time of writing (April 2023), the technology still relies on content from the internet. We all know the internet is filled with misinformation, so taking its answers at face value is always a mistake. You must be able to understand what you want ChatGPT to do and also interrogate its results to use it effectively. The fact that it depends on data is a drawback. If there is little or no data available, it will not respond.
Despite its ability to understand natural language and respond accordingly, ChatGPT has some limitations, including the inability to understand nuances of conversation, which can result in misunderstandings or insufficient outcomes. In some customer service settings, AI chatbots aren’t appropriate if emotional support is needed.
