Where do you see the future of sales heading?
I see 2 different places that sales is headed:
Do more with less. Brute force (hiring more) used to be the answer to growing sales. Now the strategy is to load up the top reps, keep them busy, and get the best from them before we even think of hiring someone else. Sales efficiency is key from a profitability standard which is where the market is right now.
AI. Not saying the robots are coming for our jobs just yet, but with technology now that automates so many manual processes, is it so far fetched that in the next 5 years technology can tell us who to sell to, how to contact them, and write the email itself? What about AI images that talk and you don't realize that they are not actual people? Does it feel so futuristic to believe AI can dial or Zoom someone, respond based on what is said, overcome objections, negotiate pricing, and automatically send out order forms?
There will always be a place for sales in some industries, especially emerging technologies where everything is new.