by Art Waskey | Feb 26, 2026 | Art of Sales Weekly, Featured
The Early Movers
AI never ceases to amaze me. I’ve just read another article about the rapid changes it’s bringing. AI feels like a gold rush, transforming industries and even making its way into Super Bowl ads! AI appears to be broadening beyond the handful of giants that have led the way so far.
In a client memo from my financial adviser this week, Mark Asaro discusses the impact of AI on profit and productivity. He states that the early winners have been the Magnificent 7, comparing them to the first miners in the California Gold Rush. As happened during the gold rush, the number of AI winners is broadening, and companies are beginning to see huge profits (Client Memo: 2026 Outlook – Preparing Portfolios Without Overreacting, Mark J. Asaro, Noble Wealth Management).
Transforming B2B Sales
Right now, the most essential AI tool for B2B success is data input. Salespeople must transfer every customer interaction to the supplier’s ERP system immediately after each interaction.This enables AI agents to provide responses to the customer in under 10 minutes.
Digital-first B2B buyers now expect seamless experiences. As Millennial and Gen Z professionals dominate purchasing decisions, they expect interactions mirroring their consumer habits. According to BCG research, three forms of agentic selling have already begun displacing traditional B2B approaches. Combining human strengths with AI to make sales faster, more intelligent, and data-driven. (BCG, How AI Agents Will Transform B2B Sales, October 14, 2025)
The Road Ahead
As I prepare to present my training session on 10 AI-Enabled Tools for Sales Success (see impactspeakingdynamics.com), I realize we remain in the very early stages of the AI transformation. However, as Mr. Asaro points out in his memo, there is an unprecedented amount of capital expenditures being committed to the US AI trade. He relates that those dollars now exceed the amount invested in the Apollo Project, the Interstate Highway System, and the Manhattan Project combined. Profit taking from this transformation will continue as successful companies are identified.
For sales professionals, the question is no longer whether to adopt AI tools, but how quickly we can integrate them into our workflows. Lastly, don’t miss out on the opportunities presented by this gold rush. Those who embrace this shift will define the next era of B2B commerce. Those who avoid taking risks will fall behind in an increasingly automated marketplace.
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by Art Waskey | Feb 10, 2026 | Art of Sales Weekly, Featured
In today’s accelerated B2B environment, response speed has become a critical competitive differentiator. According to Harvard Business Review, companies that contacted potential customers within an hour of receiving a query were nearly seven times as likely to qualify for the lead compared to those who waited even an hour later. While this research is over a decade old, the principle has only intensified. Response times measured in hours may already be too slow. You need to leverage speed and AI to win business in a 14-day sales cycle.
Why speed matters more than ever
Today’s customers expect salespeople to possess comprehensive product knowledge about solutions they’ve already researched independently. Also, they expect demonstrations of practical applications relevant to their specific use cases. However, the ability to respond quickly with relevant information creates a significant competitive advantage. This includes case studies, ROI calculations, and technical specifications.
Sales organizations must implement systems enabling rapid, informed responses. This includes readily accessible product information, pre-configured demonstration environments, and streamlined approval processes for pricing and proposals. When buyers are making decisions in 14 days or less, every hour of delay represents a lost opportunity.
Harnessing AI for competitive advantage
Artificial intelligence is revolutionizing the sales cycle. It streamlines routine work, surfaces actionable insights, and empowers more informed decisions. According to McKinsey, sales teams using AI have seen productivity increases of 10-15% and improved ability to prioritize high-value opportunities (theb2bmarketer.pro/mckinsey-maps-gen-ais-next-frontier-in-b2b-sales/).
AI applications are transforming sales. Predictive lead scoring helps teams focus on prospects most likely to convert. Conversational chatbots can handle initial inquiries and qualification. Moreover, natural language processing tools can analyze customer communications to detect buying signals and sentiment. AI-driven sales forecasting provides more accurate pipeline projections, enabling better resource allocation and strategic planning.
Speed ahead with AI
The acceleration of B2B sales cycles represents both challenge and opportunity. Success requires embracing digital transformation. Therefore, success depends on investing in AI and automation, developing deep personalization, and cultivating sales teams that earn trust with digitally native buyers.
In conclusion, organizations recognizing these shifts gain speed. By proactively adapting their sales models, they have significant competitive advantages. They can capture opportunities that slower-moving competitors miss. Consequently, those clinging to traditional approaches risk obsolescence in a marketplace rewarding speed, relevance, and digital sophistication. The question isn’t whether your organization will face faster decision-makers. Lastly, the question is whether you’re prepared to meet them where they are, with the speed and insight they demand.
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by Art Waskey | Feb 4, 2026 | Art of Sales Weekly, Featured
This article on Monthly Sales Assessment is the last in my series on the AI-Enabled Sales Process. The Monthly Sales Assessment is a joint manager-salesperson meeting that reviews 10 key metrics across Outcomes and Territory Management. I consider it to be the foundation of sales success.
This critical monthly discipline ensures that everyone has a clear understanding of sales expectations. It ensures accountability, uncovers real issues beneath surface problems, and integrates all AI-enabled sales tools into one cohesive system. Consistent execution of monthly assessments directly correlates to sustained revenue and margin growth.
The Purpose
The purpose of the Monthly Assessment is to uncover root problems. As Gino Wickman writes in Traction: Get a Grip on Your Business, the goal of an assessment is to “clearly identify the real issue, because the stated problem is rarely the real one.” An assessment cuts through surface-level reporting to uncover the real drivers—or obstacles—to sales success. By reviewing specific metrics monthly, patterns emerge that reveal whether problems stem from activity levels, conversion rates, or strategic focus.
Two Critical Components
As shown in the illustration of a typical industrial gas distributor above, the Monthly Assessment has two critical components — Outcomes and Territory Management.
- Outcomes measure results that directly impact revenue (these values are only illustrations, not observed implications). New Business ($4,000/month target) and Penetration ($1,000/month) track your ability to grow the business. Cylinders placed (20/month), Contracts (2/month), and Customer 360 Files (1/month) measure execution of key sales activities that protect and expand your customer base.
- Territory Management tracks the activities that feed your pipeline. Prospective calls (20/month), Funnel Prospects ($340,000 total value), Top 5 Calls (6/month), and Key Accounts (50/month) ensure consistent prospecting and relationship maintenance. Sales (8% growth) and Margin (10% improvement) provide the ultimate scorecard.
Integration of AI-enabled tools
Notice how this assessment integrates all the AI-enabled tools covered in this series. These tools include call reporting, calendar planning, Customer 360 meetings, dashboards, and the Reflect & Direct framework. Also, making an assessment by integrating all these elements creates a system of analysis where each component reinforces the others.
The Cost of Inconsistency
I have found that clients who get distracted and fail to demonstrate consistent monthly meetings are less successful. Moreover, these companies often find that until they get back on track with assessments, their revenue and margin growth are inconsistent. The Monthly Sales Assessment is the discipline that separates high-performing sales organizations from those that plateau.
Build your Foundation
To build a strong foundation for sales success, schedule Monthly Assessments at the same time each month. Be sure that management and the sales team complete the form together, and that both parties sign off on it. Lastly, this simple discipline, maintained consistently, creates the traction your sales organization needs to achieve predictable, sustainable growth.
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by Art Waskey | Jan 28, 2026 | Art of Sales Weekly, Featured
Throughout this AI-Enabled Sales Management series, we’ve examined AI tools that help maintain analytical focus on key performance indicators (KPIs). These tools help ensure alignment between representatives and management. Additionally, a critical component of this alignment is the monthly Travel Day—a non-negotiable requirement for effective sales leadership. Outside sales representatives (OSRs) must know exactly what their sales managers expect from travel days.
The requirement
Every sales manager should spend at least one day a month in the field with each OSR. When a manager cannot devote one day a month to an OSR, I have found that success becomes unlikely. Moreover, a manager’s time spent with a rep is essential for building trust, providing coaching, and understanding the real-world challenges each rep faces.
The Four Essential Components
There are four essential components to the Travel Day requirement.
- Monthly Review (30 Minutes) – Begin each Travel Day with a focused review of AI-enabled KPIs, including In-the-Funnel prospects, Dashboard metrics, and Sales Results. This review is an efficient and valuable way to set the tone for the day’s activities.
- Calls by Appointment – The OSR schedules appointments with both key accounts and prospects. Key account calls should address issue resolution, penetration opportunities, or significant account changes. For prospect appointments, the OSR must demonstrate knowledge of decision-makers, including their DISC profile type. Dominance (D), Influence (I), Steadiness (S), and Conscientiousness (C). This demonstrates preparation and strategic thinking.
- Call Reviews – Following each appointment, review the OSR’s performance using the AI agentic call report framework. The representative should provide evidence of their position in the sales cycle. Is it in building trust, establishing need, interacting with decision-makers, addressing investment concerns, or proving product value? Immediate feedback like this accelerates skill development.
- Set Next Appointment – Before concluding each meeting, schedule the next Travel Day. This commitment ensures continuity and accountability, preventing the all-too-common excuse that field time “just didn’t happen this month.”
Travel Days Matter
Travel Days transform the manager-representative relationship from one of supervision to one of collaboration. Also, managers gain firsthand understanding of market conditions, customer challenges, and competitive pressures. Representatives receive real-time coaching, validation of their approach, and support in navigating complex sales situations.
In my 50+ years of sales management experience, I’ve consistently observed that organizations with disciplined Travel Day practices outperform those that treat field time as optional. Also, AI tools make preparation for Travel Days more efficient, but do not replace the human connection, observation, and coaching that only face-to-face interaction provides.
Lastly, make monthly Travel Days non-negotiable in your sales organization—your team’s success depends on it.
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by Art Waskey | Jan 22, 2026 | Art of Sales Weekly, Featured
In my career in sales management, I witnessed too many outside sales reps (OSR) get distracted and lose some top account opportunities. Today, AI can help with the challenge of defining your Top 5 Prospects. AI-Enabled Management can identify the best and most probable prospective closures.
Understanding the customer
A firm understanding of the customer is essential to focused sales momentum. After reading Stephen Covey’s The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People in the mid-90s, his principle of “First things first” had an impact on how I viewed prospecting. To enhance the closure rate of my team, I developed a list of 5 factors that should be part of the monthly sales manager’s OSR reviews.
Elements of the Top 5 Review
For each Top 5 prospect, consider these factors:
- Type: Identify the opportunity. Firstly, not all prospective opportunities are new accounts. Overall sales and margin growth may come from expanding wallet share in an existing account or closing a new account entirely. Clearly identifying the opportunity type ensures you apply the right strategy to each account from the start.
- Goal: What is the specific, measurable goal you would like to achieve? Whether pursuing a new account or deeper penetration in an existing one, it is paramount to stay focused on the single most important directive to secure success. Moreover, developing a singular goal with your customer helps avoid confusion and diluted effort.
- Value: Quantify the opportunity. AI tools can determine the potential sales and gross margin for new prospective opportunities. For existing accounts, AI can analyze your current wallet share and identify the highest-value product or service expansion opportunities. Also, without understanding the financial impact of your actions, you cannot properly prioritize your efforts.
- Competitor: To build an effective strategy, you must know which competitor currently has the business. In addition, if there is a significant weakness or gap in your competitor’s offering, there is no urgent incentive for the customer to change. Intelligence drives strategy.
- Current Next Step: Every strategic plan must be broken down into small, achievable next steps with clear ownership. Too often, the OSR and customer become discouraged by trying to accomplish too much too soon. Define one concrete action that moves the opportunity forward.
- Date: Each next step requires a completion date to maintain momentum. When initiating a prospective project, avoid listing a closure date unless only one action item remains. Realistic timelines build credibility and prevent pipeline fantasy.
The Top 5
The Top 5 Prospect list framework succeeds because it imposes disciplined prioritization on the chaotic reality of sales pipelines. In conclusion, require your OSRs to define opportunity type, singular goals, quantified value, competitive landscape, actionable next steps, and accountability dates. Lastly, this methodology separates real opportunities from wishful thinking and keeps you focused on what matters most.
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