Will AI Replace Us

Will AI Replace us?


This is the question that everyone has in the back of their minds.  In some ways, we can all be replaced.  AI is getting better every day.  In this video, Brian Buckalew from the Simply Sell Podcast discusses who in sales and procurement is at risk of being replaced by AI and what you can do "Out Human the AI Machine".

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:19

Good afternoon, everybody. I have been on the fence about doing this podcast that I'm fixing to go ahead and do for you guys. Yes, I'm from the South. I use still use that word fixing, so it comes out occasionally. So I've been thinking about AI recently. And in the back of everybody's mind right now is will AI replace us? It's in everybody's mind. When I think about AI, there's a saying that's out there that I learned a number of years ago that says if you're not growing, you're dying. And I couldn't think of a better way to commute, you know, compare how humans and AI, if we're not growing, AI is gonna kill us. So with regard to that, I think about sales and also think about procurement. If you're in sales and you just communicate on email with no real human interaction to provide value, AI will replace you. In fact, it's kind of already doing it now. How many times do you get do you see these ads that say, oh, AI can go ahead and do you know a thousand emails for you and bring in all these leads for you? You know, they're already looking to replace certain salespeople. So if you cannot talk on the phone and have a relationship, you're in trouble. If you are an order taker, can someone just quote things? Well, AI is gonna replace you because an AI can replace people that just quote. So AI will do the quoting for people. If you are in supply chain, yes, you people, or procurement, and don't develop relationships with your suppliers, you are in trouble. Basically, when you source something and just get three quotes and put it in a spreadsheet, I hate to tell you, AI will replace you. If you're not striving to get better at your job, any job, whatever it may be, AI will replace you. Why? Because AI is improving every day quickly. The labor market has been on the side of the employee for a number of years now. Don't think your employer is not looking at AI to flip that leverage the other way. In sales, AI is a super helpful tool, but if you rely on it to write your prospecting emails, it will stab you in the back. Why? Because people are getting smarter about AI. They will know if what they are getting is an email from a robot or a real person. The person receiving the email may put your brilliant AI-generated email in an AI detector and determine you did not compose the email. If someone determines your email is AI generated, basically it just came from a robot, you have already lost credibility in the game of engagement, which by the way is the number one obstacle for salespeople. Now, I'm gonna go way out there and say this that I think AI could replace half of the sales teams that are out there right now. Now, I have probably scared the crap out of you right now with how AI is going to replace you. Are you scared? You should be. Well, now that I've spent the first few minutes telling you about what AI can replace, what can it not replace? Human interaction. Don't treat the person on the other end, clients or suppliers, as just a number. Develop that relationship because if you don't, AI is gonna replace you. AI cannot replace the human element. So be human, talk to people, be empathetic with the person on the other side of the desk. If they're having a problem, show the empathy with the passion of trying to help them. Solve problems with creativity. They may provide great artwork. AI, I'm talking about, may provide great artwork. I kind of use them too, but they cannot solve all of the problems that are out there. Be anticipatory, be three steps of your client at all times. Don't let AI replace you from that perspective. That's one thing AI may not be able to be as anticipatory as a human who completely understands their client or their supplier. Be accessible. Don't hide behind your emails. Don't hide behind meetings and voicemail. Be accessible when you're needed because if not, AI will be. AI is not hiding behind voicemail, they're not hiding behind emails, and they're not in eight meeting eight meetings a day. They're constantly available, answering questions all day long. Be passionate about what you want to accomplish. Write that thank you note. AI lacks human passion for now. AI cannot write a human-generated thank you note. Be genuine. Genuineness attracts people to want to work with you and not a robot. Lastly, you can use AI to your advantage. We all hear it. Let it do the mundane things that tie up your time and prevent you and allow you to be human. So use the AI to allow you to be human. If you have ideas for a creative email, use AI to help you develop it in your own words, not the robot's words. Just a few words that you could interject into the email changes it from a robot to a person, especially if it's genuine. Here's a to-do list that I'm taking immediate action on right now. I'm gonna contact three clients by phone and not email. I'm gonna ask them a question about their business that AI cannot think of. I'm gonna send them a handwritten thank you note just to say thank you for someone that's done something nice for me. Solve a problem for a client before the client can think of it as a problem. I'll leave you with this bottom line AI will replace the people who forgot to be human. I hope you enjoyed the podcast. It is a little edgy, but fate favors the bold, and I'm putting myself out there. Thank you.