How to Use AI For Sales Prospecting – Guide From A Sales Expert

Prospecting has changed, and if you want to stay ahead of the curve, you need to learn to use AI the right way to beat your competition.

Hint – It’s NOT using AI to write personalized outreach messages.

In our opinion, AI shouldn’t be used for writing personalized sales messages, but rather to ensure that your target accounts are precisely in your ICP.

This article will share how we use AI at SalesBread to help us with our lead generation process, as well as other tips and tricks for better results.

(But if you’re interested in working with an agency that gets you 1 lead per day, or would like some lead gen advice, hop on a free 15-minute strategy session with the founder of SalesBread, Jack Reamer.)

The right way to use AI for sales

By far, the best use case for AI prospecting is to ensure that your target accounts match your ideal customer profile.

You could ask AI to do account research for you and ask it certain questions like:

• Do the target accounts that you are after offer a particular service?

• Are your prospects in certain verticals?

• Have they made any recent PR announcements?

You can ask AI all things that even the best B2B lead generation data providers can’t really help you with at scale.

But my suggestion is to start with a somewhat broad list of target accounts and then use AI to visit all those websites, scan for news articles, etc. This will help you double-check that you are starting with the best data that matches your ICP.

Use ChatGPT as a list-building assistant. Here’s how…

There’s a Google Sheets add-on called GPT for Sheets and Docs that integrates OpenAI’s ChatGPT and GPT-3 directly into your documents.

This add-on comes packed with features…

But here’s how we’re really putting it to work:

We’re using it to enrich our prospecting lists.

Take this example:

Let’s say that you would like to go after B2B companies.

You could ask ChatGPT the following:

“Are these companies B2B? Answer with one word: Yes or No.”

Apply that to your spreadsheet, and just like that, you’ve filtered out the 15% of companies that don’t fit your criteria.

You can get really specific with your targeting, for example, let’s say that you are targeting companies that sell to marketing agencies.

If your current database tools can’t provide all that info directly, use them to build an initial list, and then refine it with ChatGPT.

You can ask the chatbot detailed questions about each company’s website and build a highly targeted list of your ideal prospects.

Like we mentioned, ask ChatGPT to label companies as B2B vs. B2C based on website copy.

You can also go deeper and even ask:

• “Is this company SaaS or service-based?”

• “Does this company sell to marketers?”

• “Does this company have an outbound sales team?”

Read more about how to use ChatGPT in this article: How to Use ChatGPT for Sales

Role Filtering – are You talking to the right decision makers?

Just because someone is a “VP of Growth” doesn’t mean they’re your ideal buyer. This is where you can use generative AI to do the following.

You can paste in different job titles and descriptions and ask ChatGPT :

• “Would this role typically oversee [X]?”

• “Is this person likely to manage a sales team?”

• “Is this a decision-maker for [product/solution]?”

By using this method, it will help you to help you to clean up big lists, spot influencers vs. buyers, and avoid wasting time on people who’ll just ghost you because it’s “not their department.”

Use AI for Lead Scoring

AI makes lead scoring way easier.

Instead of just guessing who looks like a good lead based on job title or company size, you can use AI to spot real buying signals.

For example:

Let’s say you’ve got a list of 500 leads from a recent webinar. You want to figure out who’s most likely to become a customer.

You feed that list into a Google Sheet and use a GPT-powered Sheets add-on.

Then you ask:

• “Based on the job title, company size, and website activity, give each lead a score from 1 to 10 for how likely they are to buy our product. Higher scores mean better fit and more interest.”

AI then analyzes the info in your sheet, and maybe it notices that VPs at 100+ person B2B companies who visited your pricing page are converting more often than others.

So it gives them 9s and 10s.

On the flip side, interns from small B2C startups who only opened one email might get a 3 or 4.

This will then help your sales team know who to contact first.

You can also ask:

• “Which leads match this customer profile: B2B SaaS, sells to marketers, mid-market?”

• “Which ones showed high intent based on website behavior?”

AI looks at all that behavior, compares it to past deals you’ve closed, and helps you figure out which leads are actually worth your time.

You can even use tools like ChatGPT to go through your list and sort leads based on how well they match your ideal customer profile or how interested they seem.

So instead of wasting time chasing cold leads, you focus on the ones that are most likely to say yes.

You might need more powerful tools to figure out intent, such as ZoomInfo Intent.

Use AI tools to analyze prospects’ personalities

There is a tool called Crystal Knows that some sales teams are using to analyze LinkedIn profiles and give personality insights on prospects that you would like to target.

I was quite skeptical about how an AI tool could figure out your personality based on your LinkedIn profile, but interestingly, some Reddit Users said it’s pretty accurate.

Sales teams use this to write personalized sales outreach messages that will stand out to prospects. So, for example, if a prospect seems to be more direct or bold, they might prefer messages at are also direct.

This is what some users had to say:

Below is an example of a Crystal Knows personality assessment:

But be cautious… Why?

Because of the Barnum effect.

What is this?

Well, basically, the Barnum effect is a psychological phenomenon where people believe that personality descriptions, often vague and generalized, apply specifically to them, even though those descriptions could apply to just about anyone.

P.T. Barnum used this trick to convince people that he was a real mind reader, and he would say things like: “You’ve had a really hard month.” Or, “You’ve really had someone on your mind that you have been meaning to talk to.”

We call it specific generalizations. The statement is specific but applies to the general population as well.

The advice from the Crystal Knows AI tool could apply to a lot of people.

Prospects appreciate transparent messages, and people generally value being respected. So, remember to send outreach messages that you would like to receive.

You can also use AI scheduling tools for automation

You can also use AI-powered scheduling tools to automate meeting booking and save time.

Tools like Calendly, Motion, or Reclaim use AI to suggest optimal meeting times based on everyone’s availability, time zones, and workload.

Some even prioritize tasks or automatically reschedule low-priority meetings to protect your focus time.

When integrated with your CRM or outbound tools, they can automatically trigger calendar invites once a prospect shows interest, making your sales workflow smoother and more efficient.

Should You Use AI for A/B Testing, Subject Lines, and Copy?

If you’re reading a few articles on this topic, you’re going to come across some companies that say that you should use AI for AB testing, to spin up new subject lines, email copy, and analyze performance.

But you should not use AI for this.

Here’s why…

The beauty of using AI for prospecting is that it can create dynamic content for each prospect separately. That is by definition not an AB test.

Remember… What’s an AB test?

An AB test is sending out an A version and a B version of marketing assets. Which could be a landing page, an email, or a LinkedIn post, and then deciding which variation will perform better.

However, when you use AI to personalize each and every message to your prospect, that is no longer an AB test. That’s more like an A, B, C, D, etc test.

This is because every variation is different.

And again… If you’re asking if you should send out only 2 variations, though, once again, no.

Because of the beauty of AI, it can tailor messages for people, but what that means is that the test results won’t be significantly valid. You can’t get more apples and oranges than that.

So, do not use AI to run your AB tests because it’s not an AB test. It should be unique for every prospect, and it’s not something where you can look at 350 different versions of a message and determine a winner.

That’s ridiculous. You use AI to create specialized versions for every single prospect.

Let’s remember what an AB test is and know that AI has limitations.

The Best AI tools to use

Honestly, thanks to AI APIs, at SalesBread, we have been building a lot of internal tools that take prompts, do research, and output exactly what we need them to do.

I’m not going to tell you that one tool is better than another, but we have been using Claude and ChatGPT in tandem, with good results.

We’ve noticed that Claude tends to outperform on research, but ChatGPT is a little bit more helpful when it comes to more complex tasks.

But I recommend building your own APIs because it allows you to fine-tune your custom approach.

And if this sounds daunting, just ask AI to build a script you can use to help automate your sales research.

What are the challenges of using AI for sales prospecting?

Don’t use it for writing and personalization in your sales outreach messages

In our experience, AI still falls short when it comes to writing effective sales messages.

There are plenty of AI tools out there that claim to generate personalized outreach, but we remain cautious.

At SalesBread, all our outreach is written by real sales reps and personalization experts, because we’ve found that humans still do it better.

If you do use AI to help with writing, make sure to edit the message so it sounds natural and human.

Also, double-check any personalized details to ensure they’re accurate… AI can get things wrong, and mistakes in personalization can hurt your credibility fast.

AI can still get info wrong

Always double-check the information that AI spits out. The reason is that it can still get things wrong.

Even ChatGPT says it can make mistakes.

What’s the future of AI for lead generation?

We think that eventually, when it comes to sales prospecting, there will be these AI agents that will be doing all of our sales outreach for us.

This might include all of our cold calling, video prospecting, LinkedIn, and cold email outreach.

We see this moving towards an AI sales force that companies will eventually use.

But interesting to note that many data scientists and AI consultants that I speak to have pointed out that LLMs are potentially approaching a plateau and that the future of sales AI is a little bit uncertain; for example, how fast are the AI agents going to be able to step in and take over the BDR role.

Things have progressed pretty quickly so far, but we will have to wait and see.

Research different prompts

There are so many use cases, but we suggest researching as many prompts as possible. It’s helpful to list out your ICP must-haves and then turn each “must-have” into a prompt.

So, for example, if they “must have” been in the news because of a new expansion or acquisition recently, you can turn that into a prompt. Be as detailed as possible.

You could say:

“For {{company}} visit these news APIs {{list}}, or query these news sources {{list}}. Scan headlines over the last 6 months and check to see that they are expanding. If not, list them here; If yes, extract details such as A, B, and C.”

Feed these “must-haves” into your entire script of potential target accounts.

Frequently asked questions about using AI for sales prospecting

What Are the Benefits of Using AI for Sales Prospecting?

One of the biggest perks of AI adoption is the ability to streamline your prospecting process.

AI can act like a smart sales assistant; it can handle repetitive selling tasks, sort through data, and help you spot priority leads faster.

Instead of combing through LinkedIn or messy spreadsheets manually, artificial intelligence can quickly identify qualified leads by comparing profiles to your ideal customer profile.

That means you can spend less time guessing and more time building customer relationships.

AI tools help improve sales performance by giving salespeople the insights they need to create better sales content, craft a stronger sales strategy, and close more successful conversions.

What Should You Consider When Choosing an AI Tool for Sales Prospecting?

Not every AI tool works for every business or enterprise. Think about how the tool integrates with your CRM, your sales process, and your current tech stack.

Make sure it fits your sales teams’ workflows and day-to-day needs.

Some sales prospecting tools focus on full sales automation, while others offer AI-driven suggestions for humans to act on.

Decide if you want a fully automated virtual assistant or an AI that supports human-led sales calls and interactions.

How Does AI Analyze Data to Help Identify Sales Opportunities?

AI tools can analyze your customer data, previous campaigns, and historical sales efforts to find potential opportunities.

Through predictive analytics, these tools can help you forecast which leads are likely to convert and when.

AI doesn’t just guess, it learns. Using powered lead scoring, it keeps adjusting your strategies based on what’s working.

That means your sales leaders can set smarter sales targets based on real performance, not just guesswork.

Are There Ethical Considerations with AI in Sales Prospecting?

Yes.

Always make sure your use of customer data follows ethical and legal standards. Also, AI isn’t perfect. If you’re using it to write messaging or enrich lead profiles, double-check it before sending anything out.

Human Oversight Still Matters

Even the best AI can’t replace real human judgment. Think of AI as a sales assistant, not a closer.

Your sales professionals still need to step in, build trust, and have real conversations with potential customers.

Embrace the Future of AI in B2B Sales Prospecting

Sales prospecting is evolving fast, and the potential of AI to transform how we find and connect with buyers is only just beginning to unfold.

With the rise of artificial intelligence tools and machine learning, sales teams now have access to powerful insights that were unthinkable just a few years ago.

Whether you’re using LinkedIn Sales Navigator to build a starting list or tapping into predictive prospecting to find opportunities, the combination of human strategy and AI precision is shaping the next era of B2B sales.

Tools like ChatGPT can help you qualify promising prospects, score leads based on behavior, and even refine your prospecting emails to better match the right tone and intent.

By using sales data and staying on top of emerging AI trends, your team can move past the outdated spray-and-pray methods and focus on generating quality leads who are actually worth your time.

This shift toward smart, data-driven sales engagement doesn’t just shorten the sales cycle, but helps your reps to build more trust and close more deals.

The future belongs to teams that know how to work with AI, not against it.

It’s a fine balancing act of using AI as a smart assistant and still using humans to check and refine tactics.

So, whether you’re just testing the waters or already integrating AI into your sales strategy, one thing’s clear:

Those who embrace these tools thoughtfully and strategically will be the first to capture tomorrow’s best customers.