AI-Powered Seller

What happens when a seasoned CRO decides to stop “exploring” AI and actually master it? We sit down with Colin Van Excel to chart the path from a single prompt that wrote a price increase letter to a full, AI-first sales operating system. The story is practical, candid, and packed with takeaways you can use today, whether you lead a revenue org or carry a quota.We start with the real barriers holding teams back: fuzzy sales processes, inconsistent stage criteria, and sellers buried in admin. Colin explains how he rebuilt around the buyer’s journey, then layered AI to enforce consistency and speed. Think call transcripts auto-summarized into Salesforce, hot points captured and resurfaced before the next meeting, and follow-up emails drafted with context and tone in minutes. The result? More time with customers, less time wrestling with notes, and a measurable lift in deal velocity.Colin also breaks down why certification matters and how structured learning accelerates impact. He walks through a six-week arc: sharpening prompts, using variables, building workflows in Make, and presenting a working automation to graduate. The big unlock is meta-learning—using AI to learn AI. When he got stuck, he fed the system context and constraints and received working code and steps to finish the job. That shift turns leaders from passive consumers into confident builders.We don’t sugarcoat the stakes. Leaders who stay hands-off risk being underemployed by 2028. The advantage goes to those who learn the tools, define clear processes, and deploy automations that free sellers to sell. If you’re ready to replace “pay your dues” busywork with AI agents that actually move revenue, this conversation is your playbook. Subscribe, share with a colleague who needs the push, and leave a review with the first workflow you want to automate—we’ll tackle the best ones on a future show.

Kara Burd, Head of Marketing at Skaled, joins Jake Dunlap to revisit AI predictions for sales by examining real outcomes. They reveal that sales reps adopted AI tools faster than leadership could figure out policies. Surprisingly, AI didn't replace jobs but widened productivity gaps among performers. Co-pilots turned out to be distracting, while personalization became essential for effective outreach. The duo also discusses why many top reps hesitated to embrace AI, relying on tried-and-true methods instead. Tune in for practical insights on integrating AI into sales strategies!

David Maloof, Founder of Pre-Sales Advisory Group and a veteran in pre-sales leadership, dives into the transformative role of AI in the sales process. He explains how AI enhances pre-sales with tailored demos and proactive discovery strategies, shifting the focus from traditional prospecting. The conversation highlights the need for SEs to cultivate curiosity and adaptability to meet modern buyer expectations, emphasizing that AI is not a replacement for great sellers but a tool for those willing to evolve.

In 2026, AI will transform sales from a tool to a digital teammate, streamlining workflows and logging activities. Personalization won't cut it anymore; nuanced human touches will be essential. Real-time coaching will emerge, providing on-the-spot guidance during calls. Signal-based selling, leveraging multiple signals for targeted outreach, will become the norm. Lastly, AI fluency will be a baseline requirement, reshaping hiring and promotions in sales teams.

AI Bubble or Breakout: Are you building real, needle-moving workflows with AI, or collecting “bubble” use cases that create overlap and extra change management?In this episode of AI Powered Seller, Jake Dunlap explains why the “AI bubble” is not AI itself, but the noise on top of it, including duplicate tools, overlapping features, and organizations investing without clear ownership. He breaks down how GTM leaders and frontline sellers can evaluate AI the right way: start with the revenue bottleneck, then choose technology that solves it. Innovative SellerYou’ll also get Jake’s tactical seller playbook for adopting GenAI in a sustainable way:Identify your three most painful tasksRefine AI outputs so they sound like youBuild a simple ongoing roadmap so you don’t try to solve everything at onceCheck Out: JourneyAI (free trial): https://meetjourney.ai/Jake Dunlap – https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakedunlap/Skaled - https://skaled.com/If you got value from this episode, share it with a teammate in Sales, RevOps, Enablement, or Marketing, and make sure you’re subscribed so you don’t miss the next drop.

In this episode, Jake is joined by revenue leader Chris Casula for a highly tactical conversation on how AI is transforming pipeline management, forecasting accuracy, and GTM productivity.Chris shares hard-won insights from managing enterprise and transactional sales teams, and breaks down why forecasting has historically been the “bane of sales” — and why it’s not the reps’ fault.You’ll also hear real examples of how AI surfaces buying signals, identifies bottlenecks in the sales process, improves win rates, and enables managers to coach more effectively.In this episode, we cover: • Why traditional forecasting models fail • Which AI signals improve top-of-funnel accuracy • How to identify hidden deal risks with AI • Why deal reviews are the first workflow leaders should automate • A new way to think about pipeline coverage • The mindset shift every sales leader must make in 2025 • What predictable revenue will actually look like by 2026If you’re a frontline rep, manager, or revenue leader looking to drive predictable revenue and adopt AI the right way, this episode will give you one clear takeaway you can act on today.

In Part 2 of our AI in Sales series, Jake Dunlap breaks down how top sellers are moving from basic AI assistance to fully automated workflows that run before, during, and after their workday. This episode shows how modern reps are scaling their daily workflow using automation that handles research, meeting prep, intent analysis, follow-ups, and CRM updates—freeing them to focus on higher-value conversations.Jake also explores what AI-enabled leadership looks like today, and how managers can use automation to surface coaching opportunities, review call quality, and improve overall team performance without hours of manual analysis.What you’ll learn: • How AI can complete account research, intent scoring, and meeting prep automatically • How follow-ups, summaries, and CRM activity can be fully automated • How top sellers optimize outbound using real-time performance insights • Practical examples of digital teammates that improve deal execution • How modern leaders use AI to scale coaching and increase visibilityLinks from the episode: 👉 JourneyAI: https://meetjourney.ai/👉 Performance Pulse: https://www.revoptics.co/services/sales-reporting👉 Superhuman: https://superhuman.com👉 AI Sales Training & Certifications for GTM Teams: https://skaled.com/services/ai-sales-training/Connect with Us: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakedunlap/https://www.linkedin.com/company/skaled/ https://skaled.com/

Ryan Staley, Founder and CEO of Whale Boss, shares how AI can transform sales roles into more efficient units. He emphasizes the shift from viewing AI as a simple tool to treating it as a digital teammate that can handle multi-step tasks. Ryan explains the importance of creating tailored AI assistants like deal strategy and account research. He also addresses common barriers to AI adoption and strategies to present AI effectively to drive engagement. Finally, he urges leaders to retrain teams urgently to stay competitive in this evolving landscape.

🔥 Why Most AI Deployments Fail (And How Real Sellers Win With It) 🤖Is AI actually helping sales teams — or just creating more noise? Why are so many companies struggling to get ROI from their AI investments? The brutal truth: it's often caused by broken processes, bad expectations, and outdated leadership. 😬In this episode, Jake is joined by Ryan Cahill, a veteran GTM architect and operator who has helped scale revenue teams across SaaS. Ryan breaks down exactly why AI fails in most organizations — and what high-performing teams do differently to turn AI into a true competitive advantage.He reveals the tactical playbook that top teams use to improve outbound, accelerate deal cycles, and make reps instantly smarter using AI.🔥 What you'll learn in this episode (Don't miss the real truth behind AI!):✨ The Core Problem: Why companies expect AI to be a magic wand — and why that mindset guarantees failure.🧠 The Setup Mistake: The missing pre-work every team skips that destroys ROI before AI ever launches.⚙️ Human-in-the-Loop: How elite teams combine rep judgment + AI to outperform both humans and automation alone.📈 Outbound Breakthroughs: Why AI now outperforms template-based SDR outreach — and how reps can stay relevant.🔍 Instant Expertise: How reps can now learn any industry in 10 minutes and run world-class discovery.🏆 The GTM Advantage: How AI lets leaders analyze their business, pivot faster, and double down on what actually works.This isn’t about more tools — it’s about better strategy, better execution, and smarter humans using AI the right way.👉 Tune in and learn how to become a modern, AI-powered, outcome-driven seller!

Explore how AI is revolutionizing the daily workflow of sales professionals. Discover tools like RepGPT and Journey that streamline research and automate tedious tasks. Learn to craft personalized outreach through advanced automation techniques. From pre-call prep to targeted follow-ups, hear how AI enhances productivity while promoting meaningful conversations. Dive into the shifts that separate traditional sellers from AI-savvy peers and get practical tips for transforming your sales day for better results.