In Patriots Coach Bill Belichick’s early career, he set himself apart by studying game film for hours on end. This capacity for data analysis led to advanced strategies that made him a generationally successful coach.
Founding engineer and head of growth at Rilla, Will Gao, compares the value of data analysis for winning in sports to sales. Rilla is a conversational artificial intelligence software for analyzing sales conversations; this software then generates insights on salespeople’s performance. They’re focused on home services and have partnerships with ServiceTitan and Nexstar Network.
TONGUE TIED: Top sales performers talk 20% less than the team average. (Courtesy of Rilla)
“It saved me at least two days in my week. We’ve made it a core part of our training process,” said Ryane Sweeney, sales manager of Preferred Home Services.
Gao said Rilla has helped its over 400 customers increase close rates by 40%, save time and increase average ticket size 17%. Rilla came onto the market in January 2022 and is experiencing a fast pace of growth.
For an owner of a home services company using Rilla, Gao cites an example of AI-enabled progress.
“It was taking up maybe 40 hours a month to coach his entire team. Now he can do it all through Rilla, taking 4 hours a month,” Gao says. “Now he can do 80 visits himself a month, and have 1,600 others coached and reviewed by our AI.”
According to a Rilla analysis of the top 500 sales performers in their data set, top reps hit on three major points more than lower performing reps. For one, they talk about financial terms more.
“This can include financing options provided by your company. This can include discounts or promotion rates, or all the above,” Gao says, adding that top performers also tell their company’s story four times as often as average sales performers. “You know, how long you've been around, your company values, why you guys are in business. What's the impact that you guys are having in your local communities?”
AI INSIGHTS: Using proprietary artificial intelligence that scours sales conversations, Rilla is generating valuable, ‘coaching’ insights for contractors. (Courtesy of Rilla)
The third most common trait of top sales performers is their ability to convey certifications and other qualifications that can speak to their company’s quality of work. This includes union and American made labels, the Certified Ventilation Inspector (CVI) certification and more.
“Top reps mention those things 2.4x more than the rest of the team,” Gao concluded.
