High-ticket sales in the age of AI! | The Impact Sales Podcast

0:16 Welcome to the Impact Sales Podcast. I'm your host, Joe Beck. We have a great episode in store for you today. So for anybody who's wondering how are they going to continue to do business and operate selling high ticket products and services in the age of AI, this is the episode for you today. We're going to talk all about AI and how it relates to high tickets selling and more importantly, how you can navigate through it if you're not tech savvy, if you're not an AI person, if you're concerned about what AI may be doing to your sales effort or the competitive factors going on in the market, make sure that you stay tuned for this whole episode.

0:57 We're going to talk a lot about AI. We're going to talk a lot about high ticket selling and how you leverage it using AI, but also the importance of staying on point with the things that we know work and not getting distracted by the technology, and even more importantly, not getting lost or set behind because of the technology. A lot of times something new hits the market and people kind of lose a step in their game, and we want to make sure that doesn't happen for anybody here that follows the Impact Sales Podcast, So stay tuned, we'll be right back. Hi. This is Joe Beck, founder of The Sales Activist. Are you a coach or an entrepreneur who's struggling to create significant sales momentum in your business?

1:42 How would you like to triple your sales results? That's right, triple your sales results in six months or less, guaranteed, all without spending a single extra dollar on advertising. Well, if you would, I'd love to show you how. For well over thirty four years, and after ten of thousands of live sales interactions and hundreds of millions of dollars of closed sales transactions for companies that I've worked with, and four, I've developed a proprietary sales system, the ISM System, and this system can show you exactly how easy it is to generate consistent sales momentum in your business. If you'd like to learn more, just text the word sales to the number four oh nine five oh nine seven three five five. That's sales to four oh nine five oh nine seven three five five, and you can schedule a complimentary consultation. We'll talk with you all about what's going on with sales in your business and more importantly, how we can show you how to triple your sales results in six months or less. Guarantee. This is Joe Beck with the Sales Activist. You don't have to settle for average sales results. We'll talk to these there. Welcome back to the Impact Sales Podcast. This is your home Joe Beck, and today we have a really interesting episode.

3:05 This is one that I've been thinking about doing for quite a while just considering everything going on in the marketplace, and it's all around the subject of AI and technology. And it doesn't matter whether you're talking about chat, GPT or any other AI technology that's out there. Today we're going to talk about AI, its impact on high ticket selling, how you can utilize AI. Now, this is not going to be a technical episode. This is going to be an episode theoretically on how you can work within it. And then more importantly, today we're really going to dig into how you can continue down the right path to be successful selling, particularly selling high ticket No matter what's going on with AI in the world, I know from what I hear from a lot of people, many people are concerned about the state of their particular industry or their particular role in selling, and particularly when they're selling high ticket because of the introduction of AI technology. Now there's all kinds of different forms of AI, and today we're really going to talk about the forms that really actively communicate with prospects or in some cases even clients electronically.

4:23 So before we start digging into all of this, I think it's important that you take some time and kind of take a step back from everything that's going on in the world today and listen very closely to what I'm going to share today, because this particular episode will be valuable to you, not only in the case of AI, but also in the case of other things that may happen in your business. And I really think it's important that you reflect upon the message behind this episode. So take some time, grab a notepad, jot down some of the things we're going to share today. I promise you it's going to be valuable for you. And I'm willing to bet that there's going to be people that are listening to this episode. They're going to actually breathe a sigh of relief. They're going to feel, you know, some comfort after hearing this episode. Because I talk to a lot of people, I talk to people in all kinds of industries, selling all kinds of products and services, And there is some angst, some anxiety about AI, about technologies that are all of a sudden communicating with prospects and in some cases clients, and it has some people concerned and nervous. It has them concerned because there's this ongoing dialogue and conversation out there about whose role is going to be replaced by technology? Whose role is going to be replaced by AI or chat, GPT or whatever program or technology they're actually referring to. And there's a lot of people that carry around this anxiety. Will they be replaced?

5:57 Will they not be competitive because they're not using AI? Will AI somehow trip them up or upset their business model, their business flow, the acquisition of new clients. So today we want to unpack a lot of that, and we want to spend some time making sure that people understand really at its core what's most important. Now, let's first start with talking about what AI really is and what it does. And no matter what your degree of technical understanding, I promise you I have like a third grade level understanding of tech. So we're going to keep this very very simple, but as it relates to technology, and it relates to AI, particularly in this situation. Remember what it is.

6:45 Remember that it's just a tool. Okay, it's not something that will technically replace somebody who is selling high ticket or providing a higher level service that requires a lot of personal touch or personal connection. Now, it could replace some of the interim steps, it could replace some of the prospect contact, some of the prospect nurturing. But let's call it what it really is. It's a tool. Now, this tool, as powerful as it is, is no different than any other tool. It can provide tremendous value, save you time, save you energy, save you frustration. And that is, of course, if you utilize it correctly. But like any other tool, if you don't utilize it correctly, which a lot of people are out there doing right now. Okay, it's happening. You're starting to see little cracks in what people are doing. Not that a lot of it's not good, but sometimes when things don't work correctly, it can have the exact opposite effect of what you're trying to get. Meaning, maybe you're trying to save time, maybe you're trying to be more efficient in what you do. Maybe you're trying to focus on other areas of your business and you have AI or some technology operating, some automation that's operating to support your business. Now, this is not anti technology in any way, but there is a point, especially when you're talking about high ticket products and services, there's this

8:17 crossover point where no technology will effectively ever be able to compete with human interaction and true live understanding of what the prospect or client is trying to accomplish. And just like any other tool, it may save you time up front, it may allow you to be more efficient. It could create confusion challenges if you're not utilizing it correctly. It could actually create the opposite of what you're trying to accomplish. It could create a disconnect between you and your prospects because maybe it just is not coming off the right way. Maybe it's not speaking in your voice. Now, I know AI is amazing and it can start to speak like you. It can start to do things that you probably would do or say. But the fact is, what will the cost be for it to figure that out?

9:08 How long will it take? So I want you to just keep in mind the core element of what you need to be successful in selling high ticket is much much more than just the prospecting method that you utilize to nurture prospects. So AI could be a piece of it, It could be one tool in your arsenal, but the rubber hits the road. Your success really takes off when you truly engage with people. So I want you to understand the difference here, especially when you are selling a high ticket product or service or offering. If you're selling something that's tens of thousands of dollars or thousands of dollars, the odds are very high that it is not something that is going to be sold via text or via electronic communication. Even the most robust landing page still probably will not get people willing to spend significant amounts of money until they interact with somebody. Now, I know some people will, some people will will PLoP that credit card down and they'll they'll get anything off of the right landing page. But I'm talking on average the majority of situations, especially if you're a coach, an entrepreneur, a consultant, whatever it is that you do, if you're selling that high ticket product or service, you're probably going to need to engage with people. Now, AI and technology can do a lot towards nurturing that and speaking to more people faster, engaging more people, which is great, But at some point

10:39 there's this convergent point, this line that that tool has to stop and it has to hand that prospect over to you or somebody on your team or somebody that's working for you. And it's at that exact moment that technology is not quite where it needs to be yet, meaning there is that human factor. There continues to be that human factor, the responsiveness to what people are literally sharing with you, if you're face to face, it's judging, engaging their reaction, it's understanding the meaning the power behind what they're saying. In the sales Activists foundational program Impact Sales Mastery, we talk about utilizing impact driven questions, things that really make the prospect think, things that make the prospect share with you what's most important to them. And these are not the types of things that are easily done using an AI. They are things that are done face to face or even on the phone, where they know that that human is having an interaction with them.

11:46 There's true, true engagement. So for everybody who's worried and I'm talking to the ten people that reached out to me. This week, I'm talking to the dozens, if not hundreds of people that I've heard for over the last six months. You know, AI is a great tool. Will it replace you as a high ticket salesperson? Probably not? Probably not. Now, I will tell you that elite sales professionals, elite entrepreneurs, people that are experts in their field, are figuring out how to use AI to complement what they do, to ramp things up at a faster pace, to reach out to more people, to handle some of the the initial interactions, to collect data, to to share relevant basic information with people.

12:39 And that's the ideal place for that. It actually is. That is a tool that's really made for that particular activity. But what it's not doing yet is replacing the actual belly to belly sales interaction in most cases, and it probably won't. Now. I know the technology will advance, and I know that it will probably be able to say everything that you're able to say. But let's take a step back, and this is where I want you to recognize that AI and technology you know, can be a metaphor for any other thing as it relates to things that impact your business. And I want you to really listen to this loud and clear, because I care about your success. I want you to make the most out of every opportunity that you have. It really boils down to you and your prospect. You and your prospect, how you communicated with them, nurture them, how you got to that point where it's you too with them, talking with them, interacting with them, sitting with them, meeting with them on zoom, whatever it is that you're doing. All those things you know are a factor, but it really takes place. You know, the gold is in that direct interaction, that face to face or you know, person to person interaction that is very personal. Now I share that because whether it's AI or whether it's any other thing that may make you worry about your business, your ability to close high ticket,

14:14 your ability to compete in your marketplace. AI is one tool and one factor. You could erase the word AI and plug in many other things, but the answer is still the same. Whatever those things are, everything that you need to master, everything that you need to really be good at, needs to happen between you and your prospect. Now you can replace one tool with the next, figure out a new prospecting method, a new advertising methodology. You know, whatever, a new technology that does this does that. Just think about where we were twenty five years ago, long before social media and things like that. Right, think that where we were it was direct communication, print communication. It was nowhere near as personable. But guess what technology changes. Social media comes out. You now all of a sudden have this new tool. And ultimately it's how you use those tools that make the difference. But when it comes to you interacting with your prospect that's going to be where your opportunities for success are going to be made or broken.

15:32 It's going to come down to that. So as it relates to AI, that the age of AI and everything that it's doing, absolutely embrace AI. Get it to work for you, included as a tool in your arsenal. Allow it to do things that will save you time and energy and money, and things that will potentially expedite your progress, things that make things happen faster. But most important, only leverage it as a tool in a way that frees you up to spend more time with your prospects, spend more time interacting with people. I'll tell you why a lot of people are afraid of AI. They're afraid of change naturally. They're afraid of how it may change what they're doing. They're afraid of not being able to keep up. Now, in a world where you're competing with somebody who is very much like you and maybe has the same skills that you do, and can offer the same product or service and result for your prospects that you do, if you're not utilizing AI and they are utilizing AI, you will be at a disadvantage. Now, that does not mean that you'll be out of business. It just means that they're utilizing better tools, more efficient tools, and they're getting things done faster. It's probably freeing them up to spend more time with their prospects. So for everybody who's worried about AI and the impact that it may have on

17:04 their particular sales effort, keep these things in mind. Whether it's AI or any other tool, it's one tool in your arsenal. It's not the only tool, but your most valuable weapons, the most valuable things that you have to offer people are the things that happen directly between your prospect and you. See, one of the things that's really really important to understand is the psychology behind higher ticket selling. When you're selling a higher ticket product or service or offering. Ultimately, you need to solve bigger problems. You need to have a bigger impact, and for you, the way that sale is really made is when you explore and uncover that impact.

17:54 We talk a lot about that with the sales activists. How do you uncover impact? What is impact? What does that look like? Well, saving somebody money dollars and cents, for example, is valuable to them. What they do with the money is impact. What they may do with the money you save them, what other things it does for them, their life, their family, their children, their employees, that's impact. Now, what elite sales professionals know, and this is whether it's originally landed by AI or whether they found that person, they met them one on one, It doesn't really make a difference. What elite sales pros know is that the better they are at questioning that, better they are at uncovering impact and getting their prospects to talk about these things what really means most to them all those things, the more likely that their sale will happen. It had nothing to do with AI. Now, could AI at some point potentially replace somebody all the way through the sales process. Yeah, of course, especially in your smaller sales transactions. It's happening now.

19:06 I mean, there are people who have entirely AI driven sales efforts. It's automations AIS. Everything is electronic. Nobody is speaking live with another person. It's a smaller transaction, so it's something they're able to kind of move through it electronically. But when you talk about higher ticket sales, and you talk about bigger decisions with bigger impact, impacting a larger amount of people's lives or in a bigger way, the human factor will always play a role, and the people that are better at human interaction will always stand out. And I want to I want to give you just an example of something I don't and for everybody listening, I don't know your ages, right, So I'm just gonna I'm gonna make a blanket disclaimer. Years ago, before electronic ca communication, people had a much more in many ways, a much more comprehensive and thorough way of communicating. Right.

20:10 People would write a letter, they didn't shorten things in letters, they didn't have slang, they didn't have emojis and and you know, acronyms and things like that. It was long form, more detailed, more comprehensive, and all of a sudden, electronic communication comes in and people are communicating differently. They're they're sending emojis, and they're they're texting acronyms, and all of a sudden, the communication level, or more more correctly, the communication skill level has changed. People have forgotten how to communicate.

20:51 And it's funny if you go and you hang around somebody who's much younger, who's really grown up in more of the current electronic age, with greater technologies and social media and texting and SMS communication of all types, you know, you'd be amazed how often their communication levels aren't as developed as somebody who grew up before those things. Because the fact is, you know, if you have a skill and you're good at it, and you hone it and you perfect it over years in time, you typically stick with it. Now, you may change it a little bit, but you probably stick with it. If you grew up in an age where that skill wasn't prioritized, and you use technology to do a lot of the work, what do you think happens with that skill? Is that skill developed or sharpened? No, that skill is probably flat or unfulfilled or dull, mainly because lack of use. Well, AI, as amazing as it is, has the potential to one day degrade people's sales skills. And I say that as a sales professional, as a sales coach, as somebody who's generated a lot of sales results in my life, I know that tools like that sometimes can take people's skills away.

22:11 Not that people are all of a sudden not capable of selling, but because people tend to rely on technology, they rely on things. Now, I will tell you, yes, I'm a guy of a certain age. I've been around a long time, you know, in sales, and many people may call me old school, but I like to think I keep one foot in those old skill ways and one foot in the modern age with what's going on around me, and I stay up on all those things. What I've recognized in people utilizing AI, and it's just a natural human element, a human trait. When you think you have something that's happening without your attention, where do you think your attention goes somewhere else, It gets hold to the side, it gets distracted, pulled into another area of focus. AI will be another one of those things.

23:08 So I predict that AI will harm some people, not because they're intending it to harm them, but because they're going to rely on it too much. They're going to rely on it too much. Some of these people may forget how to nurture, may forget how to build rapport, may forget how to properly prepare and position somebody for an appointment, a proposal, whatever it is. Why because AI may be doing a lot of that work. So my message for everybody listening today, and this is really really important.

23:48 Utilize AI as the tool, but remember who operates the tool, and don't take anything away from that person. Meaning, you are in charge of your own destiny. You are in charge of your own results, no matter what tool you use, no matter who you speak to, you ultimately are the one in charge of your results. And if you allow AI or anything else to impede your success because you rely on it more than what you should, or maybe you short change parts of the process because you're now using this AI technology in it and you think that it can replace or eliminate certain steps of the process.

24:29 That's one that really gets me going. I had somebody talk to me earlier this week and they said, well, I don't need to do that anymore. My AI does this in this and they were wondering why their close rate had dropped. And you know, it's a prime example. It's an event driven company. This company drives people two events where they propose and show people their products and their services. And what they had done previously is each person that was a tending one of their events would speak to one of their team members before the event. Well, they decided that they're going to have AI just send messages and prepare people and it was all driven by AI and there was no personal interaction. And what they were surprised by was there was this detachment of people.

25:18 And this is a company that sells high ticket by the way, this company sells five figure packages and beyond the fact, they even have a six figure package for their prospects. And they weren't talking to people before they came to these events. And as a result, they noticed that their attendee interaction was less. Why people hadn't even spoken to a human being up until that point of being in that room. They noticed that when they did schedule follow up meetings with people about these products or services. Number One, they scheduled fewer meetings. Why they were relying on the AI to nurture all the way up until the point there was no relif relationship built. It wasn't personal, it wasn't one person and a prospect talking. And the big one, and this is the one I want you to underline, because this could be AI, it could be any other thing that you do to change your process.

26:16 The big one was they didn't close as much. They closed twenty five percent less business with the AI technology doing all the intro, the preparation, all that other stuff. The funny thing was, and when we had this conversation, I said to them, you know, for next week's run, let's change this. For next week's run, turn the AI off, go back to the old system. Let's see what it does. Like for like now, I haven't heard all the numbers, but like for like, they've already increased their attendance significantly over the previous week. They've already gotten feedback from people about scheduling appointments. Now I don't know exact exactly what their closing rate will be, but I'll tell you right now, they already have more people scheduled for meetings than they did in the previous week. So when you look at that, you realize that that technology, while it was efficient and it saved their team time and energy, the interaction wasn't there and it is taking them longer to build that rapport because up until that point, nobody had spoken to those people at that previous event. So my message is simple, for everybody here that's selling high ticket, there is no substitute for you getting to know your prospect, interacting with your prospect, exploring impact, and most importantly, figuring out exactly what it can do to change their life. If you

27:49 figure out things that are impactful for them and you explore what those things are, you know, what would you do with the money, How would that impact your life? What would your family life look like? How would your employees benefit like? When you start really exploring that person to person, not technology to person, person to person. When you start interacting that way with people, there's a number of things that are going on a couple of dynamics. The first, when you start interacting that way and you start asking questions that other people aren't asking, maybe they're using an AI or maybe they're using some other process or technology. When you start asking those questions that are deeply rooted in how things impact people. You're creating a lot of emotion, You're creating a lot of feelings, things that are meaningful to that person. You're exploring those feelings with that person. You're talking about them with them. Now, I know some people get a little nervous about that, like they don't want to engage people that way. But you're going to find that the elite sales professionals that are out there, doesn't matter what they sell, they know they've got to do that. They've got to explore emotion, what it means, how it impacts somebody. But when somebody does that, something very important is happening. And I talk about this a lot, and I know I've shared this on the Impact Sales podcast many times. When you're asking people those questions, you are earning the right to be their trusted advisor. Why you're asking them things nobody else asked.

29:20 You're digging into what means the most to them. Nobody else would do it that way. You're finding out what's most important to them. They're sharing with you priorities, things that mean the most. It's not just what they say, it's the emotion behind what they say that makes the difference. You are absorbing all of that and as a result, they know how much you care. And when that is part of your sales interaction and you're caring deeply, sincerely about the well being of your prospects and clients, making it all about them, you are that much further ahead towards successfully your objective of working with them. They value you.

30:03 You're a trusted advisor. Now, whether they do or don't ever work with you, I'm going to tell you that's a win. That is a win because one day they will work with you, or one day they'll refer business to you. But you're not only doing that, which is a lot different than an AI driven process. You're creating something that allows you a connection that you can't get from technology. A person to person interaction, a person to person engagement. A connection being made can make all the difference in the world. It can help you win business, it can help you get referral business, it can help you avoid losing business because of that connection, and it can even get you back in the door if and or when you ever lose that business. And it's these things that technology and AI and all these things can never replace. Now, I am not in any way saying that you should not look to include AI in your business, I'm telling you you probably should, but keep in mind where it should be in your business and where it has no place, where it doesn't belong, where the negatives far outweigh the positives, And that area of your business, ladies and gentlemen, is where you directly interact on a personal level with your prospects. If you're selling high ticket

31:35 and you're not doing that, you have a hard road ahead of you, no doubt about it. But if you are, if you're selling high ticket and you're developing those relationships and dealing person to person on an emotional level with people, you are well on your way to success. AI or any other tool is just that a tool. Utilize it when it's appropriate, Utilize it where it can help you save you time, save you energy, save you money, and most importantly, utilize it where you can readjust your schedule and give you more time to directly interact with people on a personal level. So I know this is a lot of stuff. You went through it pretty quick. Okay, this is actually the real Joe Beck, not the AI Joe Beck, So we went through it pretty quick, though, I'm going to tell you, don't get worked up and concerned about AI. It's not going to replace you, especially if you're selling high ticket. But be conscious of the fact that other people are utilizing it, and you should as well. To do some of the repetitive things, the early things, some of the initial nurturing, data gathering, sharing of information. But when it comes to the actual interaction, when you're belly to belly with a prospect, it's you and them, the real you and the real them. That's how you make success happen. That's how you close high ticket.

32:58 It doesn't matter what your business is, it doesn't matter what your product or service is. If that's the way you're going to operate, you're going to always be successful. Now keep all this in mind as it relates to AI or any other thing that may impede your success. The next great thing, the next great technology, the next great social media platform, whatever it is, you can replace AI. Erase it, put that new thing in that little blank in that sentence, and the answer will still be the same. It doesn't replace you. Personally interacting with your prospects, getting to know them, building a relationship, creating emotion, finding out what means most of them, and then helping them achieve it.

33:42 That's what earns you the trusted advisor status that you desperately need. That's what earns you the new business their respect. That's what helps you be successful. It's not the technology, it's not the tool, it's not whatever you place in that line in the sentence. It's that particular piece of this sale process. So for everybody who's worried about it, take a deep breath, get a little sire relief in knowing that AI is not going to replace you. What may happen is somebody who's better at using AI than you are, who is really good at doing the things that I just describe person to person. They may be a little bit more efficient than you, and that can create a challenge. But I will tell you firsthand, if you're using AI and you're focusing on the person to person things that you need to be doing in your business, you're going to be wildly successful. Well, I appreciate you sticking with me for this whole episode. I encourage you go back listen to it again. I promise you there's little things that I covered that you really want to make sure you have absorbed. AI is no different than anything else. Use it as a tool get the value that you need, but don't lose sight of what's most important.

34:52 This is Joe Beck with The Sales Activist. We like to wrap up every episode with a simple line, sell better and impact the world. We'll talk to you soon. Hi, this is Joe Beck, founder of This Sales Activist. Are you a entrepreneur or coach who's struggling to create dynamic sales success in your business? Does your sales pipeline look like got Barren Wasteland? Well, how would you like to triple your sales results? That's right, triple your sales results in six months or less, guaranteed, all without spending a single extra dollar on advertising. Well, if you'd like to, I'd like to help. Well, over thirty four years and after tens of thousands of live sales interactions and helping thousands of coaches and entrepreneurs, I've developed a proprietary sales system, the ISM Sales System, and this system can show you how you can triple your sales results in six months or less, guaranteed, all without spending a single extra dollar.

35:53 For more details, just text the word sales to the number four oh nine five O nine seven three three five five. That's sales to four oh nine five O nine seven three five five. And you can schedule a complimentary consultation to talk about sales in your business. This is Joe Beck with the Sales Activist. You don't have to settle for average sales results. We'll talk to you Sam