Everyone is probably sick of hearing about ChatGPT. It's been on everyone's social feed for months, and I can't count the number of meetings derailed by overconfident users who want to share how they've become an "expert at ChatGPT." It's frustrating.
I recognize the irony that I'm about to share how I've gotten value out of ChatGPT in the revenue operations arena but hear me out. I'd ask that you view this article as a challenge to start experimenting with the tool and improving upon what I've learned thus far. It's time to get creative in the name of productivity.
We don't need to worry about open AI replacing swathes of human workers (yet). It can't create material that has never been seen before and is not always accurate. It's regurgitating what's online already. But it is excellent at summarizing information, editing, and expanding on an outline. If AI is used with plenty of human interaction and we expect to fact-check and apply context before relying on what it produces, it saves time.
The most compelling reason to begin experimenting now is that we know the professionals who are already experimenting with ways that generative language artificial intelligence can help them do their jobs faster and will have a competitive edge.
I've used ChatGPT extensively over the last several months, trying to figure out what it is and isn't good at in a marketing and analytics context. First, I'll leave you with some of my key learnings, and then we'll ask ChatGPT to brainstorm some additional ideas – one of my favorite use cases for ChatGPT!
If you have a question about handling a scenario, which processes to revamp, or a technology hurdle, ChatGPT is less reliable than turning to peers. The RevOps Co-Op is full of people with extensive experience and who can adapt what they've experienced to the nuances we see in today's market.
In other words, don't use it to solve a major problem unless you're just looking for a brainstorming pal that may be completely wrong.
It is a time-saving tool to streamline tasks like documentation, analytics summaries, and quarterly retrospectives.
It's vital to remember that ChatGPT gets better with repetition and feedback. It's also best to provide it as much context as possible. For example, at the end of the quarter, you may need to provide key insights to different business leaders. You'll need to give it a few metrics with a running history (so, let's say, five quarters of bookings and pipeline and lead volume) and then explain who your audience is. Something along the lines of:
"I need to summarize the following information for a VP of Sales in B2B SaaS experiencing his second down quarter. I need ideas for where to research what went wrong and what we could do next."
If you throw a bunch of numbers at ChatGPT without context, you won't get much value back. I also suggest explaining what you're trying and asking it what it needs. When I've done this, my results are far better.
Below are a few use cases I've tried with success. Expect to edit and augment the results and save at least half the time you regularly spend on the task.
Even those who type quickly can often save time by speaking those thoughts instead. For example, when I want to save time creating documentation, I outline bullet points I want to cover, record myself on Zoom, then transcribe it with OtterAI. I then put the text into ChatGPT and ask it to write the type of documentation I need.
As I mentioned above, the more specific you are, the better. Remember to share who the audience is, their skill level in the arena you're discussing, and how detailed you want to be.
I meander even with an outline. Sometimes those tangents are things I remember that need to be included in my write-up, and sometimes they need to be trimmed. I ask ChatGPT to eliminate extra text and develop a streamlined list of topics, and then I ask it to take all of the text provided above and write the content I'm after.
Technical documentation can be very time-consuming, and I've shaved up to two-thirds of the time I usually spend writing out all the details.
I've looked at the same metrics across several types of SaaS companies over the years, and I'm confident that I can spot an issue and know what to research. However, I like putting results into OpenAI and seeing what it comes up with. Sometimes it finds a few nuggets I missed. Occasionally it misses some critical observations. But it has always shaved time off the time I usually spend writing an email.
It's easy to miss the obvious when I spend too much time staring at the same information. Putting the data through another tool adds confidence that I have caught everything business-critical. In addition, I appreciate its ability to edit my communication, and I can ask it to make the language more neutral or catered to a specific audience (What can I say, sometimes I get a little too feisty when I spot problems).
I also like asking OpenAI what could cause a particular problem and what I should research to get extra "brain" storming power.
It's so rare to have downtime in revenue operations. Sometimes I get so busy fulfilling items that people asked for that I forget to do some basic maintenance work. Asking ChatGPT for a list of common issues in a particular technology stack, projects commonly undertaken at specific developmental stages, or compelling reasons to get more headcount that will persuade upper management are all things I like to do periodically. Especially that last one.
I've mentioned providing ChatGPT with your target audience a few times, but it's for a great reason. People are emotional decision-makers, and the more I climb the corporate ladder, the more I'm reminded that how people FEEL about something is more important than data. So if I can structure an argument or problem statement to strike a chord with my audience, I will likely have a solution approved.
I can use ChatGPT to suggest a format for an executive summary highlighting a problem our business is having. I'll also tell it I have a solution in mind that I want the vice president of sales to sign off on. Saving me time and energy isn't enough of a motivator (sadly) to have an executive green light a project, so ChatGPT should suggest what the executive will care most about when solving this particular problem.
It's important to spend time with your audience and understand them, but people rarely tell you what will convince them to make a decision. Using OpenAI might help you frame your argument more compellingly to the person who ultimately signs off on the project.
The Prompt:
What is a list of things a revenue operations professional in B2B tech could accomplish with ChatGPT?
The Result:
As a revenue operations professional in the B2B tech industry, there are several tasks and activities you could accomplish with ChatGPT. Here's a list of things you can do:
It's important to note that while ChatGPT can provide valuable support, it should be used as a tool alongside human expertise and judgment. Regular monitoring and refinement of the AI's responses are necessary to ensure accuracy and maintain a high-quality customer experience.
Our Parting Thought
While we believe ChatGPT is a little over-confident about its abilities to deliver, we suggest you think of ways you can take some information and turn it into a complete product with ChatGPT and your own ability to apply expertise and business context. A task that normally takes three hours to complete may be cut into a single hour, and that’s nothing to sneeze at.
