Mastering the AI Market: Unleashing Your Winning Sales Strategy!
The Sales Strategy: Conquering the AI Market
What happens when technology evolves faster than your sales process can adapt? The last fifteen years, startups focused on building software around very well understood processes. We had built an assembly line for software sales, SDR to AE to customer success manager. We calculated ratios between these three total cost of sales and drove the factory to ever improved yields. AI is upending all of that.
The underlying workflows are changing so quickly, software buyers no longer know what the ideal processes are, much less which is the best software to buy. Model capabilities have evolved at 10x improvements every two years. Users are grappling to understand how to take advantage of these advances while boards are pressing teams to adopt AI.
A combination of all these factors has led to a reinvention of customer success: the forward deployed engineer (FDE). FDEs are the new customer success managers, the new solutions architects. They spend their time working with customers, understanding business challenges, and using technology to solve them—selling usage and outcomes.
The Emergence of Forward Deployed Engineers
In a software sales environment where buyers seek education, the underlying technology is advancing very quickly and there’s no stability. It’s no surprise that this role has become critical. OpenAI has offered consulting services as well as Anthropic for custom enterprise deployments. Anthropic builds specialized enterprise implementation teams, while Sierra employs agent engineers.
Palantir created this model. Their core insight—success comes from delivering outcomes on some software platform—is now the standard for mid-market and enterprise software. The costs simply don’t justify themselves below price points of $100,000 or less per contract. Staffing a FDE costing $200k for a $10k contract—the math doesn’t work.
Redefining Sales and Marketing
These forward-deployed engineers take the core platforms of AI and then mold them and tune them to work, defining new ways of building sales and marketing. Marketing and engineering teams, for example, agent managers, will adapt alongside this evolution. The ability for customer success managers of the future to code on new platforms to deliver success on a basic platform is real. This will be a requisite for these teams in an age where customer expectations of delivering value are shorter than ever.
Future Possibilities
The incorporation of FDEs into organizational structures may lead to several remarkable transformations:
- Enhanced Customer Relationships: An FDE’s close engagement can lead to personalized experiences, fostering loyalty.
- Rapid Iteration and Flexibility: Businesses will quickly adapt their offerings based on real-time feedback and analytics.
- Higher Adoption Rates: Customized implementations by FDEs could lead to faster adoption of AI solutions among clients.
- Innovative Solutions: FDEs can identify unique business challenges and deliver tailored technological solutions.
Benefits and ROI
Implementing FDEs can yield significant returns on investment. Consider the following hypotheticals:
- For every FDE hired, once they begin yielding results through improved customer support and outcomes, the average return on investment may reach 300% within the first year due to elevated customer retention and satisfaction rates.
- The deployment of forward-deployed engineers could contribute to a 20% increase in upsell opportunities in existing accounts.
- FTP collaborations can reduce the onboarding time by 50%, decreasing operational costs significantly.
Actions for Implementation
Businesses can take steps to harness the benefits of FDEs effectively:
- Invest in Training: Equip your customer success teams with the necessary skills to adapt to the FDE model.
- Adopt Agile Practices: Encourage iterative approaches in product development and customer engagement.
- Cultivate a Culture of Collaboration: Foster cross-departmental collaboration between technology, sales, and customer success teams.
Conclusion
The evolution of sales strategies in the AI market through the implementation of forward-deployed engineers signifies a monumental shift. As technology continues to advance, businesses must adapt to the changing landscape to maximize their opportunities for success. Don’t hesitate to leverage these insights to redefine the way you connect with your customers.
Schedule a consultation with our team today to explore how your organization can effectively implement FDEs and elevate your sales strategy in an ever-evolving AI landscape.
