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May 18, 2022

Gartner CSO & Sales Leader Conference 2022: Day 2 Highlights

We are bringing you news and highlights from the Gartner CSO & Sales Leader Conference, taking place virtually today and tomorrow. Below is a collection of the key announcements and insights coming out of the conference, and here's what you missed on Day 1.

On Day 2 from the conference, we are highlighting how chief revenue officers can solve the CRM data problem, the rise of machine customers, how B2B digital commerce can improve sales performance, and the sales disruptions coming through 2025. Be sure to check this page throughout the day for updates.

Key Announcements

CROs: It's Time to Solve the CRM Data Problem

Presented by Dan Gottlieb, Senior Director Analyst, Gartner

In a world where automation and AI/ML will increasingly be leaned on to make decisions, sales leaders need to improve the confidence and faith in the data feeding their models. In his session, Dan Gottlieb, Senior Director Analyst at Gartner, explained how to make data capture and collection more compatible with the needs for prescriptive and predictive analytics, including different ways technology vendors can help.

Key Takeaways

  • “Sales leaders take a look at their pipeline and forecast and realize they have low CRM data quality.”
  • “The average cost of data quality comes in at around $12.9M every year, and that number is expected to rise.”
  • There are three main trends to address when looking to improve CRM value for sellers: Improvements in employee UX, AI data capture for sales, Innovative sales tech vendors
  • In a Gartner study of over 4,000 employees, our experts found that high-quality user experience translates to 1.9x improvement in effectiveness, 1.5x in productivity, 1.8x intent to stay, 1.5x discretionary effort.
  • “It is worth the time and the money to think differently about improving seller UX and asking AI for help.

When Machines Become Customers: Prepare for Earth’s Ultimate Emerging Market

Presented by Don Scheibenreif, Distinguished VP Analyst, Gartner

Gartner predicts that billions of machines, both physical and virtual, will act, look, and feel like customers. In his session, Don Scheibenreif, Distinguished VP Analyst at Gartner, explored why this is happening, how it is showing up today, and how sales leaders can help their organizations take advantage of this final frontier of emerging customers.

Key Takeaways

  • “There are more machines on the planet with the potential to act as customers than human beings on the planet.”
  • “The evolution of machine customers will happen in three main phases: 1) The Bound Phase, 2) The Adaptable Phase, and 3) The Autonomous Phase.”
  • “CEOs and CIOs expect anywhere from 25-49% of revenue will come through machine customers with an average of 22% by 2030.”
  • “Within the next 8 years, spending that machine customers initiate without involving a human will reach almost $19 trillion.”
  • “Sales leaders can prepare for machine customers by exploring market opportunities, deepening partnerships across the organization and ensuring all information relevant to machine customers is accessible.”

Use B2B Digital Commerce to Improve Sales Performance

Presented by Sandy Shen, VP Analyst, Gartner

Many B2B organizations began launching digital commerce during the pandemic when traditional sales channels were being disrupted. In her session, Sandy Shen, VP Analyst at Gartner, explored how to launch B2B commerce platforms that support rather than compete with your existing channels.

Key Takeaways

  • “Customer self-service is more often seen in B2C commerce, but it is also increasing in B2B buying because more buyers now prefer a rep-free experience
  • Gartner predicts that by 2024, 15% of B2B organizations will use digital commerce platforms to support both customers and sales reps in all sales activities. 
  • “There are three things organizations can do to get the most out of digital commerce
  • Align all sales channels: Use a combination of go-to-market (GTM) approaches for digital commerce based on profitability, volume and effectiveness. 
  • Get buy-in from sales teams: Show benefits of digital commerce and position sales reps as catalysts in the buying journey. 
  • Adjust the sales compensations and KPIs: Focus on accounts and profitability.”

The Seven Sales Tech Disruptions You Might Not See Coming Through 2025

Presented by Craig Rosenberg, Distinguished VP Analyst, Gartner

Sales tech is proliferating: 8 in 10 sales leaders believe the effective use of technology is important for meeting revenue targets. In his session, Craig Rosenberg, Distinguished VP Analyst at Gartner, explored the sales tech disruptions sales leaders need to prioritize, what it means for their organizations, and how to prepare accordingly.

Key Takeaways

  • Multiexperience: Apply new channel-less thinking to deliver a unified CX in a world with an increasing array of digital touchpoints and interaction modalities
  • Generative AI: Technology that can generate artifacts that previously relied on humans, delivering results without the biases of human experiences.
  • Augmented reality/virtual reality: B2B buying and selling is going digital, prompting sales organizations to find new ways to engage. 
  • Emotional AI: Systems such as sentiment analysis in emails or audio based speech analytics that analyze, process and respond to emotions. By 2025, AI identification of emotions will influence 30% of the messaging a buyer receives, disrupting empathic ability, engagement, buyer insights and sales enablement. 
  • Digital Twin of the Customer: A dynamic virtual representation of a customer developed from physical and digital interactions. This will be used to emulate and predict their behavior, disrupting everything from scenario planning to messaging effectiveness.
  • Digital humans: AI-driven humans that engage with customers and internally, and create a new type of seller. By 2026, half of B2B buyers will interact with a digital human in the buying cycle.
  • Machine buying: A non-human economic actor that obtains goods and services in exchange for payments, and creates a new type of buyer.

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