James Frampton, Chief Revenue Officer at SugarCRM: “AI is a game-changer for sales, service and marketing”

Welcome to the first article in our Pipeline series, where we interview technology leaders from the worlds of sales, revenue and CRM. And where better to start than one of the biggest names in this field, Sugar? We’re delighted that James Frampton, Chief Revenue Officer at SugarCRM, could kick things off, and we think he’s identified a number of themes that we’ll keep coming back to.

One is the sheer speed of change. “With technology advancements, today’s sales process is very different from ten years ago,” he told us when we asked about what he’d say to new entrants in the field. “It’s crucial to have technical acumen and be able to embrace new tech-enabled approaches to sales.

New technology such as generative AI, but James says Sugar didn’t rush in. “Instead, we focused on understanding our customers’ needs and the immense value they would derive from GenAI.” And it’s not as if the company wasn’t aware of AI’s benefits, having used it “for years to rate and rank opportunities and leads”.

A third theme? People power. “Technology should be an enabler for users, helping them perform their daily tasks more effectively,” said James. “At Sugar we’re seeing users seek solutions that offer ease-of-use to help them perform their jobs more effectively, deliver better customer service and improve customer retention.”

This is something close to his heart, having witnessed users’ frustrations when faced with software that’s too complex for their needs. His passion, James explains, is to help companies create customers for life. Something that comes through strongly throughout this interview.

Related reading: Five CRM solutions for medium-sized businesses

Can you give an example of a complex problem in sales that you – or your company – have been involved in tackling with technology?

Technology integration and system interoperability are critical to winning in sales today. Recently, SugarCRM worked with a client to consolidate marketing, service, and sales data into a single platform. It was essential to have complete insight, enabling users to access all data across sales, service and marketing in one system. In this customer reference, all stakeholders have noticed improved query and issue resolution in terms of both speed and effectiveness.

Technology should be an enabler for users, helping them perform their daily tasks more effectively. At Sugar we’re seeing users seek solutions that offer ease-of-use to help them perform their jobs more effectively, deliver better customer service and improve customer retention.

The Sugar platform offers an integrated suite of capabilities, including sales automation, revenue intelligence, marketing automation and service automation, with the flexibility and ease-of-use midmarket organisations demand.

What is one sales tool you or your team can’t live without? And why is it so important?

Access to all data on the road via mobile devices and tablets is something sales reps must have to do their job while in the field. Not only does mobile CRM helps sales reps efficiently route different customer visits but it also makes suggestions to make the most out of every customer interaction. Plus, everything is automated through Outlook and Gmail, so all information is contained in one place. 

Mobile technology enables salespeople to be effective on the move with access to foundational knowledge or information, insights and geo-mapping to manage their time effectively. This has significantly improved efficiency from a sales perspective.

Regarding leadership insights, we can see how different regions perform: sales duration, business stages and other key performance indicators. This allows us to identify best practices in one region and implement them globally.

With today’s advanced sales automation tools, you can press a button and quickly generate a detailed customer catalogue before every customer visit. Something that previously took hours can now be produced in just a few minutes and automatically surfacing relevant information.

Related reading: SugarCRM’s new generative AI features make it easier to spot opportunities and create next steps

What are some examples of AI being used in sales that stand out to you?

Artificial intelligence is a game-changer for sales, service and marketing. Sugar has been focusing on real-world examples that provide value for our customers. This starts with ensuring the utmost information security and protection. It’s crucial to establish a strong focus on data security and ensure that no data is exposed in GenAI for training purposes.

At Sugar, we didn’t succumb to the AI hype. Instead, we focused on understanding our customers’ needs and the immense value they would derive from GenAI. We’ve been using AI for years to rate and rank opportunities and leads. Now, with GenAI, we have features such as account summarisation, opportunity summarisation and case summarisation. These features pull together disparate pieces of data, including emails, to provide comprehensive insights to service reps, sales reps, marketing and leadership. This platform offers a holistic view using different data sources within one platform, unlocking a new level of potential.

With Sugar’s AI, you don’t need to be a data scientist to harness its power. Our platform is designed to be user-friendly, ensuring that everyone can utilise its capabilities with ease.

Thinking of data, can you share some specific examples of it being impactful in driving revenue?

Data is key to provide sales representatives with a more comprehensive understanding of customers and to analyse trends and gaps in buying patterns invaluable to sales reps for up selling and customer retention. 

Today, sales reps can access data from ERP and CRM systems to understand customer purchase history and interactions, and through data analysis, identify sales gaps or opportunities such as upsell, cross-sell or switch-sell based on customer buying behaviours. 

We recently issued a press release regarding Jayco Corporation, the leading RV manufacturer in Australia, where we cited improved sales performance due to the aggregation and surfacing of relevant data. Jayco’s sales teams can see which vehicles are trending nationwide, and view customer histories to see what products customers have been viewing online. Sales reps now enter sales conversations with more knowledge; this has resulted in 7% improvement in win rates.

Related reading: Salesforce Connected Vehicle app promises “more personalised driver experiences” (and more ways to make money from drivers)

In your view, what role can technology play in providing a unified view of offline and online sales? How can it improve both worlds? What challenges can it tackle?

In today’s interconnected world, reliable Wi-Fi isn’t always guaranteed. It’s essential to have offline capability to ensure that you can access all the necessary information, take notes, check on opportunities, and stay updated even without an internet connection. Sugar users rely on this feature to effectively utilise our platform. 

There are also use cases where Sugar partners have developed applications for door-to-door sales using iPads with offline capabilities to collect customer details and specifications, which are then uploaded to their CRM system when they’re back in a Wi-Fi zone. Many companies have transitioned to pure mobility but have overlooked the critical importance of offline mobile capabilities, especially for those who travel frequently.

What advice do you have for those wanting to start a career in sales?

When I talk to those considering a career in sales, my first question is, “Can you handle rejection?” Sales are the only industry where you’re a top performer if you’re successful 60% to 70% of the time.

Sales is an exciting career due to the constant change and innovation. However, to succeed, you need to be committed to lifelong learning and continuous improvement. This means not only seeking development within your company, but also listening to podcasts, reading sales and performance books, and having a thirst for knowledge. If you don’t, you’ll quickly become outdated and irrelevant in the sales world.

With technology advancements, today’s sales process is very different from ten years ago; it’s crucial to have technical acumen and be able to embrace new tech-enabled approaches to sales.

Sales is both art and science — it’s about building relationships. We can use AI to optimise sales processes, reduce administrative tasks and provide valuable insights to salespeople. However, the art of sales, such as building relationships and understanding psychology, remains essential and cannot be replicated by AI.