73% of B2B buyers actively avoid suppliers that send irrelevant outreach, according to Gartner’s 2025 sales research.
At the same time, AI makes it easier and cheaper than ever to contact thousands of potential customers. AI business development representatives (AI BDRs) can research prospects, generate personalized emails, manage sequences, and respond to inquiries with limited human involvement.
The technology is impressive. But the ability to generate more sales activity doesn’t necessarily mean that activity is valuable.
AI can also be used to identify better-fit prospects, understand their businesses, create awareness before the first sales conversation, and give salespeople more time to build relationships. In the long run, this may be the most effective way to harness the power of AI for B2B sales and marketing.
B2B Buyers Want Independence, but Still Value Human Expertise
B2B buyers don’t need salespeople to provide basic product information anymore. They can compare suppliers, review technical specifications, investigate customer experiences, and use AI to evaluate their options without ever interacting with a person.
But, according to Gartner’s May 2026 research, 69% of surveyed B2B buyers preferred to validate AI-generated information with human sales representatives. This is happening while buyers increasingly use AI and digital channels for independent research. At the same time, an earlier Gartner survey found that 61% preferred an overall sales-representative-free buying experience.
It’s an interesting juxtaposition. Buyers don’t necessarily want more interactions with salespeople. But they want access to expertise and a real person when those interactions can help them make decisions.
A salesperson who simply repeats information available on the company’s website won’t be well appreciated. Someone who understands the buyer’s circumstances, can answer difficult questions, and can explain how a solution would work however, is a valuable resource.
Make expertise available when buyers need it
Companies should make independent research straightforward. Service pages, case studies, technical documentation, comparison guides, and educational content can answer questions without requiring a sales conversation.
When a prospect needs more detailed guidance, reaching a knowledgeable person should be just as easy. Automation can handle scheduling, lead routing, and routine inquiries. It shouldn’t create unnecessary barriers between interested buyers and the people qualified to help them.
The objective isn’t to maximize human interaction. It’s to make human interaction worthwhile.
Build Awareness Before the First Sales Conversation
For many B2B purchases, buyers evaluate suppliers long before salespeople get involved.
The 2025 6sense B2B Buyer Experience Report, based on nearly 4,000 buyers, found that 95% of winning suppliers were already on buyers’ initial shortlists. Buyers had also typically established a preferred supplier before contacting sales. That supplier ultimately won 77% of the time.
The research suggests that familiarity and credibility established before direct sales engagement deserve substantial attention.
A company that first becomes visible when its salesperson sends a cold email may already be competing against suppliers the buyer knows.
Use account-based marketing to develop familiarity
Account-based marketing (ABM) offers a practical way to reach companies that closely match an ideal customer profile before they enter an active purchasing process.
Consider a business selling specialized software to manufacturers. Rather than advertising broadly to manufacturing executives, the company could select 50 high-potential accounts, research the people involved in purchasing decisions, and develop messaging around the operational challenges those businesses face.
A coordinated program might include:
- Targeted advertising: LinkedIn campaigns addressing challenges relevant to the selected accounts.
- Useful content: Articles, case studies, and guides demonstrating experience with similar problems.
- Expert visibility: LinkedIn posts and industry contributions from company executives and specialists.
- Individual outreach: Emails referencing a legitimate business challenge or relevant development.
- Direct conversations: Calls from salespeople who understand the account and have a credible reason to connect.
The channels reinforce one another without requiring every prospect to encounter every message. This doesn’t guarantee that a prospect will remember an advertisement or answer a cold call. But it does create a coordinated approach to building awareness and providing information before direct sales engagement.
Use AI for Better Prospect Research, Not Just More Cold Emails
AI BDRs can substantially increase outbound activity without proportionately increasing staff costs. But greater outreach capacity should not be confused with better prospecting.
Gartner’s finding that 73% of buyers avoid irrelevant supplier outreach provides a strong reason to prioritize targeting and message quality.
Suppose a company sells software that consolidates reporting across multiple manufacturing facilities.
AI could help identify organizations that:
- Operate several production facilities.
- Have announced expansions or acquisitions.
- Are hiring for operational improvement roles.
- Use technologies compatible with the software.
- Face regulatory or reporting requirements the solution addresses.
These characteristics provide a starting point for identifying potential customers.
AI can organize public information, summarize company developments, and prepare account briefs. Salespeople can then validate the findings, identify decision-makers, and determine whether there’s a credible reason for outreach.
Rather than automatically contacting 10,000 manufacturing executives, the process might produce 100 carefully researched companies worth pursuing.
Make Genuine Expertise Discoverable Through Search, AI, and Content
Traditional search engines have long helped B2B buyers investigate suppliers independently. AI is becoming another important research channel.
The 2025 6sense report found widespread use of large language models during B2B purchasing, particularly for comparing suppliers and synthesizing information.
AI search visibility isn’t simply about appearing in a list of recommended suppliers. Buyers also need to find reliable information about a company’s experience, capabilities, and approach.
Publish information that helps buyers evaluate your company
A company providing industrial automation services should make it straightforward to determine:
- Which industries and technologies it specializes in.
- What types of projects it handles.
- Whether it has completed similar work.
- How implementation typically proceeds.
- What distinguishes its approach from alternatives.
Detailed service pages, case studies, practical guides, and clear descriptions of relevant expertise provide useful starting points.
These resources can support traditional SEO, AI-assisted research, and direct sales conversations. No particular approach guarantees inclusion in AI-generated answers. The objective is to make expertise accessible, credible, and easy to verify.
Automate Sales Administration and Reinvest the Time in Relationships
Salespeople spend substantial time researching accounts, preparing meetings, updating CRM records, organizing information, and managing follow-ups. AI can assist with many of these activities.
Gartner’s May 2026 research found that AI tools saved sellers an average of 4.8 hours per week. However, 72% of sales organizations reported low reinvestment of those savings into high-value sales activities.
Organizations achieving meaningful AI time savings and reinvesting them into high-impact activities were more likely to exceed customer growth and lead-to-opportunity conversion goals.
These results are associations, not proof that reinvestment alone produced the improvement. They nevertheless highlight why reducing administrative work should be part of a broader sales strategy.
Automate the work around the relationship
Here are some simple ways AI can help automate sales admin work:
- Account research: Summarize company information and identify relevant developments.
- Meeting preparation: Organize account history and outstanding questions.
- CRM maintenance: Draft updates from verified conversations.
- Meeting notes: Prepare summaries and action items.
- Proposals: Assemble requirements and supporting materials.
- Follow-ups: Track commitments and prepare relevant information.
Recovered capacity can then be directed toward researching important accounts, having discovery conversations, consulting with buyers, and resolving concerns that affect purchasing decisions.
The goal is to give your people more time to build relationships and use their expertise while letting AI handle the organization behind-the-scenes.
The Future of B2B Sales May Look a Lot Like Its Past
Traditional relationship-based selling involved researching companies, identifying the right people, understanding their problems, developing familiarity, and earning trust over time. It also required considerable manual work.
Modern technology can remove much of that effort without removing the relationships themselves.
AI can help identify promising accounts, research business challenges, prepare salespeople for conversations, capture expertise, and maintain customer information.
Marketing technology can introduce companies to relevant audiences before those audiences actively evaluate suppliers. Search engines and AI tools can make expertise available when buyers want to investigate independently.
The opportunity isn’t necessarily to automate every possible interaction. It’s to make the interactions that matter more informed, relevant, and useful.
Frequently Asked Questions About AI in B2B Sales and Marketing
How can AI improve B2B sales without replacing salespeople?
AI can support prospect research, account prioritization, meeting preparation, CRM maintenance, proposal development, and follow-up coordination. These applications reduce administrative work and give salespeople more time to understand customers, provide expert guidance, and develop qualified opportunities.
Is AI-generated cold outreach effective for B2B companies?
AI can reduce the cost of outbound prospecting, but increased message volume doesn’t guarantee better results. Gartner’s 2025 research found that 73% of surveyed B2B buyers actively avoid irrelevant supplier outreach. Relevance, targeting, and opportunity quality matter regardless of whether messages are written by AI or humans.
How does account-based marketing support relationship-based selling?
Account-based marketing coordinates research, advertising, content, and sales outreach around selected companies. It helps organizations build awareness, reach relevant stakeholders, and provide useful information before direct sales conversations. Research from 6sense indicates that supplier preferences frequently form before buyers contact sales.
Do B2B buyers still want to speak with salespeople?
Yes, particularly when expert guidance helps them evaluate a solution. Gartner’s 2026 research found that 69% of surveyed buyers preferred to validate AI-generated insights with sales representatives. Buyers may prefer independent research while still valuing human expertise for complex decisions.
How can B2B companies improve their visibility in AI search?
Publish clear service descriptions, detailed answers to buyer questions, case studies, practical guides, and content grounded in subject-matter expertise. Maintain accessible website content and accurate company information across credible sources. These practices support discoverability but cannot guarantee AI-generated recommendations.
Should B2B companies use AI BDRs?
AI BDRs may be useful for standardized prospecting and qualification processes. For complex or high-value sales, AI-assisted research paired with human-led outreach is another approach worth evaluating. Compare qualified opportunities, conversion rates, costs, and customer experience rather than outreach volume alone.
Which B2B sales activities are best suited to AI automation?
Account research, scheduling, meeting transcription, CRM administration, reporting, proposal preparation, and follow-up reminders are strong candidates. Discovery conversations, complex consultations, strategic negotiations, and customer relationships often benefit from direct human involvement.
