Last week, I wrote about how ChatGPT can improve radio sales. As I looked into this further, I saw it is only the beginning of massive changes hitting in as little as two years. ChatGPT is here now, but more tools are coming. Leading research company Gartner has identified seven technological advances that will change sales forever. Here is how they could change RADIO sales forever:
- Multimodality: The use of technology will allow us to log our sales activities without manually entering data into our CRM. For example, we could input data from our phone or chatbot with our dreaded CRM. No more keyboarding! We still have to prospect, call, and close, but it will save you time and energy. That means you have time to make more sales! In 7 years, we won’t be manually entering anything.
- Generative AI: This technology can help produce content for you, like images, videos, emails, and presentations, making your job easier. Gartner says 30% of all outbound messages by large companies will be machine-driven in 2 years. Your sales assistant will likely be replaced.
- A mix of augmented and virtual realities: Sales meetings, client presentations, new software training, and sales training will change FAST. We will use VR to give a virtual station tour, pitch an on-site promotion, or do corporate training. It will be more engaging and interactive. AR will be used for clients to quickly see how different schedules or scripts/spots will look, and they can customize it asap. Think more remote work, and 80% of all interactions will be in digital channels in 2 years!
- Emotion AI: This is critical, enabling us to analyze, process, and respond to our clients’ emotions, particularly in a virtual environment. By next year, half of all the online ads we see will be influenced by emotion AI. Reading faces and emails and then determining which ad will work for a given buyer is coming.
- Digital Client Twins: This technology will allow us to test proposals on a client and predict behavior. You may need to use digital twin-enabling software and services to improve sales messaging, sales processes, and marketing campaigns. This software will be a $150 billion business in 7 years, up from $9 billion now. Salesforce stock buy anyone?
- Digital Humans: The use of digital humans will change who sells and how they sell. DH will do what we don’t want to do like nurture leads along, orphan sell or contact stale leads. In 3 years, 50% of B2B buyers will be interacting with a DH in the buy cycle! You may need to adapt your sales approach to incorporate digital humans.
- Machine Customers: As machines become more tangible in the buyer mix, we must plan for the following enablement issues. Machines are logical, reliable, and valuable. How we approach them may be with another machine! CEO’s think 20% of all their revenue will come from machine customers in 7 years. Programmatic buying and selling will probably only increase.
We can become leaders in the radio advertising space. Buying and selling radio ads is here to stay for the foreseeable future, but how we do it is evolving quickly.
Jeff Caves is a sales columnist for BSM working in radio and digital sales for Cumulus Media in Dallas, Texas and Boise, Idaho. He is credited with helping launch, build, and develop Sports Radio The Ticket in Boise, into the market’s top sports radio station. During his 26 year stay at KTIK, Caves hosted drive time, programmed the station, and excelled as a top seller. You can reach him by email at jeffcaves54@gmail.com or find him on LinkedIn.
