{"id":1087,"date":"2024-06-17T14:10:47","date_gmt":"2024-06-17T14:10:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.salesforce.com\/?p=1087"},"modified":"2024-06-17T14:11:39","modified_gmt":"2024-06-17T14:11:39","slug":"ai-innovation-sales-productivity-sme","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.salesforce.com\/eu\/blog\/ai-innovation-sales-productivity-sme\/","title":{"rendered":"How AI Innovation Can Boost Productivity and Sales for Your SME"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Productivity, innovation, and sales propel small businesses to greater heights. When productivity lags, small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs) can struggle to maximise their potential. And in a rapidly changing world where competition is fierce and sales reps face increased\u202fcustomer expectations<\/a>, anything less than \u2018exceptional\u2019 isn’t good enough. Indeed, according to a Salesforce report<\/a>, 65% of customers globally expect companies to remember previous purchases, be aware of seasonal needs, and understand their unique buying preferences. Yet, unfortunately, over 60% say that today\u2019s companies treat them as a number rather than an individual.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But how can SMEs boost productivity to achieve their goals? And how can productivity lead to better service and improved sales? With Artificial Intelligence (AI). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

While AI isn\u2019t a new technology, its growth has gained considerable momentum in the last twelve months. SMEs are starting to recognise the opportunities available from adopting it. In fact, 71% of SME marketing teams<\/a> globally have a fully defined AI strategy. With unified data strategies<\/a> and advancing CRM systems<\/a>, the foundation is being laid to further explore the potential of deploying AI into SME business operations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s look at how exactly AI innovation increases productivity and helps SMEs improve their sales and\u202fprovide better customer experiences<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Discover the tools for success with a CRM for Small Business<\/span><\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

Find, gain, and keep customers with solutions for sales, marketing, and customer service – all tailored for small businesses just like yours.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\tWatch Demo<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t
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How can SMEs equip sales and service reps with AI tools to foster innovation?<\/strong><\/b><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

For SMEs, innovation has always been an essential consideration. After all, small businesses have to make the most out of limited resources. And finding creative solutions to problems is where innovation truly begins. Just ask the makers of Play-Doh<\/a>, which was initially developed as a wallpaper cleaner. Or the Slinky,<\/a> which was created to stabilise nautical devices. Or even Slack<\/a>, developed as a simple internal messaging tool for a games company (and acquired by Salesforce in 2021). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nowadays, innovation is supercharged by AI, which serves you and your teams as a virtual assistant, a content creator, or even a lightning-fast analyst, dramatically boosting productivity levels. With its widespread availability, we\u2019re living in a time when AI is open to all \u2014 any business can enable its sales and service reps to be innovators. In fact, according to a Salesforce report<\/a>, 53% of SME sales worldwide are expected to be using AI by the end of 2024.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s already a plethora of prebuilt apps and\u202fcloud-based platforms<\/a>\u202fdirected at sales reps and service agents. Selecting the right one depends on your unique business challenges or the specific needs of your customers. But once you\u2019ve got the tools you need, and they\u2019re combined with your existing infrastructure and data, you give yourself and your employees the power to discover creative solutions and \u200cunlock new levels of productivity.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Small Business Trends Report<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

Read insights from small businesses worldwide on driving impact with data, CRM, and AI.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\tDiscover More<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t
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Get the team together<\/b><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Innovation starts with collaboration. And now AI can be leveraged by all teams, technical and non-technical, across all industries: AI innovation is everyone\u2019s business. For SMEs, this means it\u2019s time to bring the team together and see what it can achieve with AI. Here are five ways you can create a more innovative workplace with your new technology investments: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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  1. Reimagine legacy IT systems:<\/strong>\u00a0Cloud-based AI platforms connect teams, provide new insights, and build capabilities for content creation. By modernising your IT to include AI, you help drive creativity, collaboration, and productivity. If your company still relies on outdated IT infrastructure, consider upgrading to\u00a0Sales Cloud<\/a>\u00a0or\u00a0Service Cloud<\/a>\u00a0platforms.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. Create a cross-trained workforce:<\/strong>\u00a0It\u2019s never been easier to upskill the workforce. Rather than dedicating entire days to developing new skills, employees can start using intuitive AI tools right away, enhancing their abilities as they go. With reskilling and education platforms such as\u00a0Trailhead<\/a>, you can create a culture of continuous learning to ensure your employees stay ahead of the AI curve.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. Generate trusted prompts: <\/strong>Trust is critical to AI innovation. 68% of customers<\/a> worldwide say advances in AI make it more important for companies to be trustworthy. With Salesforce Prompt Builder<\/a>, you can leverage AI-infused actions built into the flow of your work. This creates accurate, relevant prompts grounded in your own data, but also protects it with zero data retention for a trusted AI solution.\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  4. Have a \u2018hack\u2019 day:<\/strong> If you\u2019re familiar with running a SWOT analysis<\/a>, you know how productive it can be to bring different small business departments<\/a> together. By gathering employees from various teams, you can tap their collective brainpower to identify productivity gaps<\/a> and develop AI-powered solutions. Each department faces unique challenges, so why not have a day dedicated to hacking these issues and brainstorming solutions together?\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  5. Leverage AI chatbots:<\/strong> By integrating AI-powered chatbots directly into your CRM<\/a>, you can provide personalised, intelligent responses to customer (and employee) challenges. Speed up issue resolution and help your teams do more by utilising AI-generated answers and automating routine tasks.\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    AI innovation doesn\u2019t require a massive budget<\/b><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    Unfortunately, many of today\u2019s businesses don\u2019t believe they can meet their innovation goals, even while realising how important innovation is.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    A McKinsey report<\/a> reveals that globally:<\/p>\n\n\n\n