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As artificial intelligence has become an increasingly powerful technology across several industries, many of us have begun to wonder how they can harness AI’s potential to improve their operations and increase conversions. Entrepreneurs and sales leaders have a powerful AI tool to potentially revolutionize their sales pipeline in 2024: custom GPTs.
While many sales teams have already begun to use the OpenAI generative LLM ChatGPT and other programs for parts of their sales process, such as drafting emails and proposals, custom GPTs related to sales can take this automation to an even deeper level.
ChatGPT can provide a great starting point for business leaders and salespeople to automate their workflow, but custom GPTs allow them to create automations that specifically address the needs and challenges of their day-to-day. In this way, custom GPTs are not a “shortcut” for entrepreneurs and salespeople but a valuable tool they can use to streamline their workload.
Related: OpenAI Now Lets Users Create their Own Version Of ChatGPT
What are custom GPTs?
Introduced in 2023, GPTs are essentially a specially-trained version of ChatGPT that individuals and businesses can customize to their individual needs and goals and require little to no coding. Nevertheless, users have a higher level of control over the output of a custom GPT, as these models’ behavior can be permanently modified through custom instructions during the build and training process and further configured through the advanced settings of the GPT builder.
The most significant difference between a custom GPT and a regular chatbot is that a custom GPT pulls from a personalized data source. For example, a custom GPT can be trained on a business’s data and frequently asked questions, allowing the model to put out more specific responses.
While tools like ChatGPT can be valuable for creating generalized templates and even be made more specific using specialized prompts, custom GPTs offer an unparalleled level of customization that makes them invaluable tools for sales teams. Using a custom GPT, a user need not specify the information to pull from in the prompt — the bot will automatically fall back onto this data.
Related: How to Write a Winning Sales Script with ChatGPT
What are some use cases for custom GPT solutions in sales?
Automated workflow tools like Zapier have even begun to offer the capability to integrate custom GPTs into workflows via their API. By incorporating custom GPTs with Zapier, business leaders can connect their personalized models to other applications like calendar apps, emails, and CRM platforms, allowing them to have a dedicated, personalized AI assistant fitting their needs.
One of the easiest ways to implement custom GPTs into a sales operation is to use the model to draft automated email responses to incoming messages. For example, if your business is running a promotional campaign, you can train your custom GPT to draft responses to replies to your outbound emails. For the knowledge you train the model with, you can upload files including information on the promotion, frequently asked questions, and even a style guide. This ensures that the model will create specific and accurate responses in line with the brand’s identity and messaging.
While you can set up your custom GPTs to do all the work for you and respond to inquiries automatically, many have found that it’s best not to rely on complete AI automation. The human team should still function in a quality assurance capacity in these stages of the sales process, checking elements such as grammar, formatting, and personalization that a model may not be able to get correct on the first try. However, it’s worth noting that having the sales team do a quick read-through on a draft created by a custom GPT will be far more time-efficient than creating everything from scratch.
Businesses can use custom GPTs to create custom chatbots that can be integrated into their website interface. This functionality allows potential customers to ask the chatbot specific questions, which can then be answered using the knowledge base provided to it during the training process. A custom chatbot is a great way for a business to answer its customers’ most frequently asked questions since the GPT will be available to potential customers at virtually any time of the day.
Related: What Does ChatGPT Really Mean For Businesses?
What are the benefits of custom GPTs for sales?
One of the most significant advantages of implementing custom GPTs into your sales operation is that it allows you and your sales team to spend more time on qualified leads. Continuing the email example, if a business sets up a custom GPT to draft responses to requests for more information, this would allow the automation to provide the prospect with the information they need to become a more informed, interested lead primed for conversion.
Furthermore, as with virtually any form of AI automation, custom GPTs are a way for businesses to improve their customer experience. Because the custom GPT can handle simple interactions, potential customers can expect faster responses. When it comes time for the salesperson to become more involved in the process, the customer will receive better service because the sales team can focus exclusively on serving them rather than the earlier part of the sales pipeline.
The great thing about custom GPTs is that — as their name suggests — they can be customized to the unique needs of any business. The variety of use cases that custom GPTs offer entrepreneurs has established them as an incredible tool for the sales process.
From increasing sales teams’ capacity to allowing them to provide superior customer service to qualified leads, the benefits of custom GPTs for sales will be profound and wide-reaching. Now is the time to embrace this new paradigm of AI automation and maximize sales potential.
