6 Best AI Sales Tools to Boost Your Revenue

Artificial intelligence (AI) sales tools use AI’s extensive capabilities to support sales experts in their day-to-day operations, from lead generation to closing deals. Many of the leading AI sales platforms include tools like chatbots, virtual sales assistants, predictive lead-scoring systems, sales analytics, and virtual meeting applications to help businesses with a wide range of tasks throughout the sales process.

I evaluated a range of AI sales tools to see how they compare against key features, pricing, ease of use, and support. Here are my picks for the best AI sales tools and solutions:

Zoho CRM: Best for Predicting Sales Outcomes

Pipedrive: Best for Managing and Tracking Sales Activities

Salesforce: Best for Predictive Lead Scoring

HubSpot CRM: Best for Engaging with Customers

ActiveCampaign: Best for Multichannel Marketing Automation

Apollo AI: Best for Prospect Identification and Lead Generation

Top AI Sales Software Comparison

The table below compares the best AI sales software at a glance to help you find the most effective option for your business.

Best ForAI-Driven ProspectingEmail AutomationVideo IntegrationFree VersionStarting PriceZoho CRMPredicting sales outcomeYesYesNoYes$14 per user, per monthPipedriveManaging and tracking sales activitiesYesYesNoNo$14 per user, per monthSalesforcePredictive lead scoringYesYesYesNo$25 per user, per monthHubSpot CRMEngaging with customersYesYesNoYesStarts at $15 per monthActive CampaignMultichannel marketing automationYesYesYesNoStarts at $15 per monthApollo AIProspect identification and lead generationYesNoNoYes$49 per user, per month

Note: All per-user prices are with a one-year commitment.

I picked Zoho CRM as the best AI sales tool, ranking first in cost and customization. Continue reading to learn more about each AI sales tool’s use case, pricing, and key features, or skip ahead to see my scoring methodology.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
ToggleZoho CRM: Best for Predicting Sales OutcomesPipedrive: Best for Managing and Tracking Sales ActivitiesSalesforce: Best for Predictive Lead ScoringHubSpot CRM: Best for Engaging with CustomersActiveCampaign: Best for Multichannel Marketing AutomationApollo AI:  Best for Prospect Identification and Lead Generation4 Key Features of AI Sales ToolsHow I Evaluated AI Social Media ToolsFrequently Asked Questions (FAQs)Bottom Line: AI Sales Tools

Zoho CRM: Best for Predicting Sales Outcomes

Overall Rating: 4.4/5

AI Core Features: 4.3/5

Cost: 4.4/5

Ease of Use: 4.3/5

Customization: 4.7/5

Integrations: 4.8/5

Customer Support: 3.7/5

Zoho CRM is a leading AI-powered sales solution known for its cost-effective plans, advanced features, and extensive customizations. Zoho’s embedded AI sales assistant, Zia, enables customer-facing teams to drive meaningful engagement and address issues more effectively. Zia is an AI-charged assistant that provides intelligent assistance and automates tasks in Zoho applications. Zia can be found in a variety of Zoho products, including Zoho CRM, Zoho Analytics, Zoho Desk, and Zoho SalesIQ.

Product Design

Zoho CRM’s Zia AI can understand and interpret user queries, extract information, generate insights, and assist in decision-making processes. It’s designed to improve productivity and enhance user experience by offering personalized recommendations, analytics, and predictive insights based on the data available within Zoho applications.

Why I Picked Zoho CRM

Zoho CRM’s Zia AI stands out for its ability to analyze data and provide insights and recommendations. It can examine trends and patterns in data, identify correlations, and generate sales forecasts using various mathematical models. This predictive function is one of the most significant aspects of today’s AI. Zia AI’s strong capability to predict sales outcomes and provide actionable insights sets it apart from many other AI tools in the market. Zoho Zia’s seamless integration across various Zoho applications ensures a comprehensive and cohesive user experience.

Visit Zoho CRM

Pros and Cons

ProsConsFeature-rich CRM platformSteep learning curveReal-time detection of anomalies in sales trends and activitiesExtensive customizations and integrations can be overwhelming to newbies

Pricing

Zoho CRM offers five subscription plans and a 15-day free trial:

Free Plan: Up to three users

Standard: $14 per user, per month, billed annually; $20 per user, billed monthly

Professional: $23 per user, per month, billed annually; $35 per user, billed monthly

Enterprise: $40 per user, per month, billed annually; $50 per user, billed monthly

Ultimate: $52 per user, per month, billed annually; $65 per user, billed monthly

Features

AI prediction builder

Deal-winning prediction tool

Anomaly detection

Competitor alerts

Sentiment analysis

Pipedrive: Best for Managing and Tracking Sales Activities

Overall Rating: 4.1/5

AI Core Features: 4/5

Cost: 3.2/5

Ease of Use: 5/5

Customization: 4.3/5

Integrations: 3.9/5

Customer Support: 4.4/5

Pipedrive is an intuitive sales-centric CRM with visual sales pipelines and advanced tracking tools to monitor the sales process. Pipedrive’s AI sales assistant is an automated sales expert, helping sales teams analyze past sales performance, provide recommendations, and improve sales to boost revenue. This wide array of integrated tracking and sales assistance tools lets Pipedrive function as an AI-based sales managing and tracking system.

Product Design

Pipedrive features a user-friendly platform, visual sales pipelines, and a drag-and-drop interface that helps you manage contact data and track deals. It has recently upgraded its interface with more customization options, allowing you to edit your navigation sidebar, choose the default landing page, and switch keyboard shortcuts. You can also stay updated with your deals’ progress and easily view notifications in one place through the sales assistant feed. Pipedrive’s centralized dashboard allows you to collaborate with your team in real-time and see which deals were lost, when to schedule a pitch call, or what are the next best actions to win a deal.

Why I Picked Pipedrive

Pipedrive’s AI sales assistant provides insights and suggestions based on your sales activities. It helps you identify which deals need attention and suggests the next steps to take, optimizing your sales process. Pipedrive scales to various levels, which means it can be a fit for a small business or a large enterprise. It supports growing teams and increasing deal volumes without compromising on performance.

Small to medium businesses looking for cheap AI-powered sales tools may also find Pipedrive affordable compared to competitors like ActiveCampaign and HubSpot. Pipedrive has five paid plans with various features and pricing options to suit different sizes of businesses.

Visit Pipedrive

Pros and Cons

ProsConsFlush with advanced sales tools across all plansNo free forever planIntuitive drag-and-drop deal pipelinesPhone support is only available to Power and Enterprise users

Pricing

Pipedrive offers six pricing plans:

Free: 14 days

Essential: $14 per user, per month, billed annually; $24 per user, billed monthly

Advanced: $34 per user, per month, billed annually; $44 per user, billed monthly

Professional: $49 per user, per month, billed annually; $64 per user, billed monthly

Power: $64 per user, per month, billed annually; $79 per user, billed monthly

Enterprise: $99 per user, per month, billed annually; $129 per user, billed monthly

Features

Visual sales pipelines

Email and communication tracking

Lead generation chatbot

Web visitor tracking

Email analytics and reporting

Salesforce: Best for Predictive Lead Scoring

Overall Rating: 4.1/5

AI Core Features: 4/5

Cost: 2.9/5

Ease of Use: 4.3/5

Customization: 4.5/5

Integrations: 5/5

Customer Support: 4/5

Salesforce Sales Cloud is a sales-forward CRM popular among traditional sales teams with longer and more complex sales cycles. Predictive analytics is at the core of Salesforce Sales AI, which uses machine learning algorithms to analyze historical data to identify patterns and trends.

Salesforce Sales Cloud’s AI solution delivers autonomous, generative, and predictive capabilities built directly into the CRM. One prominent application of this capability is predictive lead scoring, where the system evaluates the likelihood of a lead converting into a sale based on various factors such as past interactions, demographics, and buying signals. This enables sales reps to prioritize their efforts on leads with the highest potential, increasing their efficiency and closing rates.

Product Design

Salesforce Sales Cloud boasts a rich feature set and extensive customization, ideal for larger teams with complex sales cycles or enterprises looking to scale. However, its high level of customization and advanced features might be overwhelming to new users requiring an initial learning curve. Implementation can also be a tedious process that requires strict attention to detail, as any mistake can cause errors once the platform is up and running. While setup can be a cumbersome process, the platform’s flexibility offers a lot of benefits and simple navigation once you’ve mastered it.

Why I Picked Salesforce

Salesforce Sales Cloud works in tandem with the AI-powered Einstein 1 solution, which combines data, application development, and CRM into a unified platform. This enables sales professionals and other team members to quickly create automation and select the best AI model for their needs. The platform’s AI-powered lead scoring feature uses data science and machine learning to discover your patterns of lead conversion, enabling Einstein to predict which of your current leads to prioritize.

By providing sales teams with predictive analytics, opportunity insights, and next best action recommendations, Sales AI empowers them to optimize their sales strategies and maximize revenue opportunities.

Visit Salesforce

Pros and Cons

ProsConsRobust predictive analytics capabilitiesCan be expensive for smaller businessesExtensive customization and integrationsSteep learning curve

Pricing

Salesforce Sales Cloud offers six pricing tiers:

Free: 30 days

Starter Suite: $25 per user, per month, billed annually

Pro Suite: $100 per user, per month, billed annually

Enterprise: $165 per user, per month, billed annually

Unlimited: $330 per user, per month, billed annually

Einstein 1 Sales: $500 per user, per month, billed annually

Features

Lead, account, contact, and opportunity management

Forecast management

Predictive AI capabilities

Lead and opportunity scoring

Einstein activity capture

HubSpot CRM: Best for Engaging with Customers

Overall Rating: 4/5

AI Core Features: 4.3/5

Cost: 2.7/5

Ease of Use: 4.7/5

Customization: 4.2/5

Integrations: 4.3/5

Customer Support: 4.4/5

When OpenAI’s ChatGPT combines with HubSpot CRM, the product of that union is ChatSpot, a conversational AI tool that uses natural language processing to understand and respond to user queries. ChatSpot leverages the capabilities of OpenAI’s database, ChatGPT, and Dall-E to enhance businesses’ sales and marketing efforts using HubSpot’s CRM software. For instance, you can use ChatSpot to search your database based on specific criteria such as revenue, size, or location, allowing you to easily get a high-level view of your most relevant leads.

Aside from CRM queries, you can also use this tool to create blog post titles, LinkedIn articles, buyer personas, email subject lines, or sales emails. Its Dall-E integration also generates images for websites, social media, or other channels. ChatSpot can help with prospecting tasks like retrieving data about company age, size, industry, location, website domain, and competitors.

Product Design

Hubspot CRM (HubSpot Sales Hub) is known for its user-friendly interface, enabling users without CRM knowledge and experience to understand the platform’s design and capabilities. Its clean and modern interface is easy to navigate and easily customizable based on your sales team’s needs, with its drag-and-drop interface and a wide range of free templates. Meanwhile, ChatSpot offers a centralized prospecting workspace so you can gather your prospects in one place and manage interactions with them more easily. Users needing additional support in implementing a CRM or setting up ChatSpot can access HubSpot’s extensive online resources, knowledge base, free courses, and active user community.

Why I Picked HubSpot CRM

HubSpot CRM stands out for its robust free-for-life platform and user-friendly interface that allows you to engage with your customers more effectively. It offers free sales tools and integrates with the free versions in HubSpot’s ecosystem to support activities for marketing, support, content management, and more. Its ChatSpot tool also excels as an AI sales tool particularly for businesses already using HubSpot’s CRM platform. Its ability to retrieve detailed information about potential leads and competitors helps sales teams in prospecting and targeting efforts, letting them focus on the most relevant leads.

Visit HubSpot

Pros and Cons

ProsConsChatSpot can add a new contact to a list within HubSpot CRMAdvanced functionalities require users to create a HubSpot accountRobust report and survey generation toolsPricing can get expensive quickly 

Pricing

HubSpot CRM offers free access to ChatSpot for all users and four pricing plans:

Free Plan: Up to 2,500 users

Sales Hub Starter: Starts at $15 per user, per month

Sales Hub Professional: Starts at $90 per user, per month

Sales Hub Enterprise: Starts at $150 per user, per month

Features

Free sales and marketing tools

Generates written content and images

Analyzes website SEO

Summarizes content

Generates reports and surveys

ActiveCampaign: Best for Multichannel Marketing Automation

Overall Rating: 3.9/5

AI Core Features: 4/5

Cost: 2.2/5

Ease of Use: 4.7/5

Customization: 4.2/5

Integrations: 4.5/5

Customer Support: 5/5

ActiveCampaign combines email marketing, marketing automation, and CRM functionality. It helps sales teams nurture and convert leads effectively by providing insights, automating tasks, and delivering personalized communications. ActiveCampaign offers features such as email segmentation, lead scoring, predictive sending, and behavioral analytics, allowing sales teams to personalize interactions and deliver dynamic content to leads.

ActiveCampaign enables businesses to automate their communication across email, social media, SMS, and more, increasing customer engagement and conversions. This ability to combine these many functions in one solution makes ActiveCampaign well-suited for multichannel automation, a functionality highly important for today’s sales teams.

Product Design

ActiveCampaign has a user-friendly and clean interface that offers built-in tools for email marketing and automation in one place, making it easier to run highly targeted campaigns. The platform’s marketing dashboard is the first thing you land on when logging into your account, providing a clear and organized view of your important metrics. You can also easily navigate through the platform if you want to create automations, as the options are conveniently located on the left menu. A modal window will appear so you can set up your workflows.

Why I Picked ActiveCampaign

ActiveCampaign positions itself as an omnichannel marketing platform, enabling you to reach audiences across multiple channels. Businesses can run highly effective and targeted promotions using templates and segmentation, which triggers personalized email campaigns. The platform also comes with built-in A/B testing tools, so teams can compare their marketing campaigns’ performance and identify which appeals to more leads and customers. ActiveCampaign also uses machine learning and algorithms to deliver personalized automation, allowing you to provide highly customized messages that resonate with each individual.

Visit ActiveCampaign

Pros and Cons

ProsConsRobust marketing automationsLite plan offers few integrationsAccess to more than 150 email templatesLimited custom reporting

Pricing

ActiveCampaign offers four pricing plans:

Free: 14 days 

Starter: Starts at $15 per month, billed annually

Plus: Starts at $49 per month, billed annually

Pro: Starts at $79 per month, billed annually

Enterprise: Starts at $145 per month, billed anually

Features

Personalized marketing campaigns

Built-in A/B testing tools

Robust automation and customer insights

Omnichannel marketing automation

Scalable marketing campaigns

Apollo AI:  Best for Prospect Identification and Lead Generation

Overall Rating: 3.6/5

AI Core Features: 4.1/5

Cost: 2.7/5

Ease of Use: 5/5

Customization: 3.7/5

Integrations: 4/5

Customer Support: 1.8/5

Apollo is a sales intelligence software with a B2B database of more than 275 million leads. It allows you to drill down into specific criteria using 65 data attributes to find the most relevant prospects for your business. Its AI-powered engine helps identify ideal prospects, tracks and analyzes their online behavior, and generates highly targeted business leads.

Product Design

Apollo AI’s interface is designed for seamless sales automation and lead generation. Its intuitive layout provides access to essential features and options to organize and filter your leads.  The platform is easy to use, with its top navigation bar giving you access to the core functions and its sidebar menu featuring secondary settings. Apollo AI’s assistant tool is also powered by OpenAI’s GPT model and built on Apollo’s database of 275 million contacts. It lets you create hyper-personalized emails and automate follow-ups based on prospect behavior.

Why I Picked Apollo AI

Despite a lower pricing rating, Apollo AI’s feature set and usability make it valuable for sales professionals seeking a data-driven approach to lead generation and prospect engagement. Apollo.io offers multi-channel support, allowing sales teams to connect with their prospects across many channels, such as email, phone, and social media. You can also track and monitor your engagement rates, including email opens, response, and call connect rates.

Visit Apollo AI

Pros and Cons

ProsConsScoring engine that lets you prioritize high-quality leadsOccasional data inaccuracies or outdated informationAdvanced search and filtering optionsInitial learning curve

Pricing

Apollo AI offers four pricing plans:

Free: 14 days for unlimited email credits

Basic: $49 per user, per month, billed annually; $59 per user, billed monthly

Professional: $79 per user, per month, billed annually; $99 per user, billed monthly

Organization: $119 per user, per month, billed annually; $149 per user, billed monthly

Features

B2B contact database with over 210 million contacts

Robust lead scoring capability

Inbound optimization

Sales engagement tools

Email open and click tracking

4 Key Features of AI Sales Tools

When selecting the right AI sales tools for your team and business, look for essential tools that will help you manage your leads, automate sales processes, and run targeted campaigns.

Contact and Account Management

The best AI sales tools offer robust contact and account management tools to easily manage your database. This feature enables sales reps to maintain a unified repository of customer and account information and allows you to reduce manual data entry through automatic data capture. You can also find the right information from your database through AI-powered search capabilities and advanced filtering options to easily refine your contacts.

Sales Pipelines

This feature combines machine learning and generative AI to streamline your sales process. AI-powered pipelines allow you to visually track your deals from lead generation to conversion and also predict future sales performance based on historical data and current trends. It also incorporates automation capabilities so you can move deals through the pipeline based on specific triggers with minimal or without human intervention.

Workflow Automation

Intelligent sales automation enables sales reps, managers, and teams to reduce manual tasks and focus on strategic interactions. For instance, natural language processing can automatically draft email campaigns or suggest responses to customer queries, which increases productivity. This feature also automatically assigns tasks to the right team members and targets the right audience for promotions, follow-ups, and product recommendations by assigning specific criteria in the workflow.

Lead Management

Artificial intelligence can significantly enhance the lead management process by automating tasks like lead generation, qualification, and nurturing potential customers. Using machine learning algorithms, you can track and assess customers each time they interact with your businesses, allowing you to create an AI scoring model to predict leads most likely to convert. Additionally, you can use conversational AI to nurture your leads and even automatically schedule meetings or set appointments with them at a specific date and time.

How I Evaluated AI Social Media Tools

In reviewing the best AI sales tools, I scored each option against six major criteria for sales teams and businesses looking for a cost-effective platform. Then, I divided each category into weighted subcriteria and assigned an overall score out of five to determine the winner for each category.

Evaluation Criteria

In scoring the intelligent sales tools, I assigned the highest weight to AI core features and cost, followed by ease of use. I also assessed each sales tool’s customization, integrations, and customer support solutions.

Core Features (25 percent): Features hold the most weight in my evaluation process, as this is a key area for businesses to determine which tool might best meet their needs. I considered capabilities like contact management, sales pipelines, workflow automation, lead management, and AI assistant. Criteria Winner: Zoho CRM, HubSpot CRM

Pricing (20 percent): I assessed the cost of the software and its affordability for businesses of different sizes. I considered the cost of the AI sales software, including the availability of a free trial or free version, the affordability of the subscription plans, and billing options. Criteria Winner: Zoho CRM

Ease of Use (15 percent): User-friendliness ensures the sales team can easily adopt the software. I evaluated the software’s interface, navigation, overall intuitiveness, and knowledge base. Criteria Winner: Pipedrive, Apollo AI

Customization (15 percent): Flexible AI sales tools allow you to create personalized sales engagement and marketing strategies. I assessed each platform in terms of custom pipelines, deal stages, reports, workflows, and more. Criteria Winner: Zoho CRM

Integrations (15 percent): Here, I looked into how each solution connects to social media channels and third-party apps. Criteria Winner: Salesforce

User Support (10 percent): Adequate customer support is essential for resolving any issues or answering questions that may arise. I evaluated the software provider’s support channels, such as email, live chat, or phone, and considered their responsiveness and helpfulness. Criteria Winner: ActiveCampaign

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

How Is AI Used for Sales? AI is used in sales to analyze customer data, predict purchasing behaviors, personalize interactions, and automate routine tasks such as lead scoring and email campaigns, enhancing efficiency and increasing revenue. How Do These AI Sales Tools Integrate with Existing Sales Ecosystems? Most AI sales tools integrate with existing sales ecosystems like CRM software, email platforms, marketing tools, and other essential business software. The level of customization varies among tools, but many provide configurable settings that allow you to adjust your workflows, set up personalized automation rules, and incorporate unique data points for more targeted insights. How Can AI Sales Tools Ensure Data Security and Privacy When Handling Customer Information? AI sales tools usually enforce strict security measures to protect data. These tools employ various security strategies such as encryption, access controls, compliance, data ownership, and regular audits.

Bottom Line: AI Sales Tools

Investing in AI sales software is a smart decision for businesses looking to optimize their sales efforts in a competitive marketplace. The AI sales tools we analyzed in this guide help sales reps automate everyday tasks and develop high-quality sales content. These AI tools also provide valuable insights and data to improve sales strategies. By leveraging AI technology, sales teams can save time, streamline processes, and drive more successful sales outcomes.

Read our guide on using AI in sales to learn how enterprises can incorporate emerging AI technologies in their sales and marketing efforts.
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