AI: the Death of the SDR?
There’s so much speculation going around right now about artificial intelligence and the effects it might have on a whole range of industries. In particular, now that Google CEO Sundar Pichai recently revealed the AI Google Assistant’s ability to make whole phone calls on behalf of users, many have been suggesting that jobs involving cold calling are as good as dead.
Is it true?
Not Really.
People have been making such dire predictions for years.
An Extremetech.com article from 2011 on the subject of IBM’s Watson AI asked whether the technology would replace cold calling sales reps and telemarketers. Even they had to admit that this was not the technology’s purpose, though:
“IBM makes it clear that Watson, at least in its current incarnation, is only designed to augment and assist humans…”
They suggest that it could do more and replace human labor in the field entirely. They do touch on some important points; new technologies have always been disruptive to industry, there’s no denying that.
The thing is that the disruption has historically always been in the direction of increased production, more jobs, and greater wealth.
Seeing Into the Future
There are important reasons why sales will always be a space where human beings retain the upper hand over our robot overlords.
However powerful AI simulations become, they don’t truly have feelings, nor can they therefore empathize.
Sales is a profession that depends greatly on feelings. Some would say that’s exactly why cold calling should be replaced by AI, but they ignore the fact that feelings are what make us human.
A good salesperson is able to understand how a problem makes their prospect feel, and help them see how the solution they offer will resolve that problem and make them feel better, more secure, more comfortable, less stressed, etc.
AI can help that process by pulling up helpful data, but at the end of the day, humans are better when it comes to feeling the right direction to take a conversation.
A Sales Revolution
AI might reduce the number of people who work by calling prospects on the phone all day, it’s true. It might also increase the number by reducing menial tasks associated with it, making the job easier. It will definitely allow reps to respond faster to anything off the usual script, either way.
The takeaway from the news is that predictions of doom are usually wrong, or at least poorly timed. Sales jobs aren’t going to disappear. The industry is changing, but it’s far from dead.
BoomDemand sales development representatives are experts at making phone calls that bring prospective customers to your doorstep. AI will only make them stronger! Contact us today to get a dedicated SDR team working on your customer acquisition strategy now!