Software has changed how companies run day to day. Over the past several years, sales software has gone deeper, chasing every bit of efficiency it can find between a lead and a closed deal.
That push turned leads into an assembly line. And somewhere in that process, sales reps lost control of how they actually sell.
The best reps are pushing back. Too many sales leaders bet on automation in the wrong spot: how reps talk to prospects. Sales is still a numbers game, but every canned email, scripted voicemail, and mass InMail blast burns a little brand equity you don't get back.
Sales leaders caused this. That's on us.
We handed young reps powerful tools with zero guidance on how to use them well. The personal side of selling disappeared the day we let anyone email 500 people with one click and called it a strategy. Fixing that is our job.
Automation doesn't belong in the conversation itself. Prospects and customers expect a real, human exchange there. It does belong in the background work. A prospect who asks for a contract or proposal wants it fast, and they know it'll start from a template. Deliver it quickly and personalized, and you'll impress even a skeptical buyer.
Automate the admin: scheduling, CRM logging, even prepping research before a big meeting. That's where it earns its keep.
Sales leaders need to know exactly how their team talks to prospects, and push for messages that feel personal, not mass-produced. Prospects need to feel like you actually care about solving their problem. Blast them with generic automated emails, and you've told them they're just a number.
Sales is still a numbers game. But the prospect on the other end isn't just a number. Figure out where automation actually helps your team, because that answer is different for every sales floor. We built this with good intentions. But somewhere along the way we cut out the one thing that makes sales work: the relationship.