How to avoid phone phobia, Modern selling and how sellers can use AI with Gavin Kowalski - episode 3

This episode of Funnel Vision features Richard Bounds interviewing Gavin Kowalski, founder of Method Engine, a sales training and coaching company. Gavin, with a strong background in sales leadership at companies like O2 and CenturyLink, shares his journey and the motivations behind starting his own business two years ago. He highlights the comprehensive sales training he received early in his career at O2, which he describes as foundational and superior to what many businesses offer today. His core focus is on cloud and cloud service providers (AWS, Azure) but also extends to telco and contact center spaces, emphasizing a 'salesperson first' approach, grounded in practical, in-the-trenches experience rather than just textbook theory.

Kowalski identifies the top challenges his clients face: generating more top-of-funnel leads in an increasingly noisy market, and a growing 'phone phobia' among reps who prefer text-based communication. He notes that while digital outreach is easy to scale, it's hard to master, requiring strong copywriting and intelligence. He attributes 'phone phobia' partly to a generational shift towards text-based communication and a fear of rejection, but also points out that direct phone calls can still provide a significant advantage. He shares an anecdote about a sales team that prioritizes phone and in-person meetings, achieving remarkable success by standing out from competitors.

Regarding AI's impact on sales, Gavin uses the analogy of large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT being 'enthusiastic teenagers' – they can find information but need good instructions. He stresses the importance of 'prompt engineering' and iterative refinement to get usable, differentiated content from AI. While he hasn't seen 'impressive' AI-first solutions directly leading to sales, he personally leverages AI to record calls, summarize notes, and draft proposals and statements of work, saving significant time. He emphasizes that AI frees up time for sellers to focus on more customer-facing activities. Looking to the future, he anticipates a shift towards a 'full sales cycle' model where account executives handle more prospecting and ongoing revenue management, with AI automating routine tasks. He believes successful sellers will be those who are 'professionally persistent,' consistently showing up and leveraging all available tools, including AI, to understand customer needs and drive long-term success.