Sales Coach

The Sales Coach role allows inbound agents to simulate customer personas in sales style conversations. This role is used for both internal sales training and as an external tool agencies can offer to their clients. Configure the Sales Coach to reflect a realistic buyer profile, complete with tone, objections, and purchase behavior.

Details

A Sales Coach is a specialized role for Inbound Agents that simulates a potential customer during a sales conversation. It is not a sales rep — it’s the voice on the other end of the call, portraying different buyer profiles to help you train, test, or demonstrate sales interactions.

The AI behaves like a real customer by:

• Responding to persuasion techniques
• Displaying varied interest levels and buying styles
• Asking realistic product-related questions
• Raising common objections
• Reacting to different sales tactics

This tool is ideal for:

• Training new reps in controlled simulations
• Stress-testing sales scripts and objection handling
• Demonstrating call performance to stakeholders or clients
• Offering sales coaching services to other businesses via AVA

All configuration fields define the simulated customer — not the company, product, or sales rep. The more realistic the persona, the more effective the training.

Configuring the Sales Coach Role

1. Selecting the Sales Coach Role

• If you’re setting up your first Agent in AVA, you’ll be prompted to create an Outbound Project or an Inbound Agent.

Otherwise, from the Home screen:

• Click “Add New Agent” in the Active Agents section.
• Choose the deployment method:
  • Tied to a phone number
  • Deployed to the web
  • Both

Then, configure the following:

• Agent Role - Choose Sales Coach.
• Agent Name - Give your Agent a name to reflect the simulated customer (e.g., “Skeptical Prospect” or “Premium Buyer”).
• Language & Ethnicity - Select a voice and tone that fits the persona being simulated.
• Phone Number - Choose an available number (Inbound Agents must have unique numbers).
• Voice Selection - Pick from various voice options with preview functionality.

Primary Goal

• Train and evaluate live reps with dynamic, AI-generated sales simulations.
• Use for internal coaching, onboarding, or QA.
• Provide as a premium sales training service for clients, especially agencies serving businesses that rely on cold calls or discovery calls.
• Enable reps (or client reps) to practice handling objections, qualifying leads, and improving delivery in real time.
• Refine messaging or outbound tactics by simulating diverse buyer types with different decision styles and sensitivities.

2. Defining the Sales Coach’s Behavior

Once the Sales Coach role is selected, you will be prompted to train the Agent with context about the simulated customer. Below are the customizable input fields available:

• Customer Name – Simulated name of the customer.
• Customer Age – Age range for the simulated customer.
• Interest Level – Choose from:
  • Moderately interested - information gathering
  • Slightly interested - just browsing
  • Highly interested - price sensitive
• Service Type – The type of service the simulated customer is inquiring about.
• Business Name – The business your live sales rep is representing.
• Personality Traits – Select one:
  • Friendly but cautious
  • Direct and Time Conscious
  • Indecisive but enthusiastic
• Persona Background – A short description of the simulated customer’s situation or lifestyle.
• Profession – Job or role of the simulated customer.
• Lead Source – Choose from:
  • Social Media advertisement
  • Google search
  • Friend/family recommendation
  • Drive by/walk by
  • Corporate wellness program
  • Local community event
  • Current member referral
• Interaction Type – Type of call being simulated:
  • Outbound call
  • Inbound call
  • Sales pitch
  • Objection handling
• Interaction Setting – Context of the call:
  • Introductory call
  • Lead nurture call
  • Sales closure call
  • Service upgrade call
• Difficulty Level – How complex the simulated conversation should be:
  • Easy
  • Medium
  • Hard
• Initial Attitude – Tone of the simulated customer at the start of the call:
  • Enthusiastic and eager
  • Cautiously optimistic
  • Neutral but willing
  • Slightly skeptical
  • Reserved and needs convincing
• Solution Receptiveness – Willingness of the simulated customer to hear about the offer:
  • Highly receptive
  • Open minded but needs validation
  • Cautious but willing
  • Skeptical but convincible
  • Resistant but listening
• Price Sensitivity – How price affects their decision-making:
  • Very price sensitive
  • Moderately price conscious
  • Value-focused
  • Budget driven
  • Premium-oriented
• Decision Style – How the simulated customer makes purchasing decisions:
  • Quick and decisive
  • Methodical and researching
  • Emotional and intuitive
  • Collaborative and consulting
• Communication Style – Preferred communication tone of the simulated customer:
  • Direct and to-the-point
  • Detailed and thorough
  • Casual and conversational
  • Formal and professional

We recommend not overthinking the instructions. Train your agent the way you would brief a roleplay partner — not with a rigid script, but with traits, context, and likely reactions to simulate.

Remember, this is Generative AI. The more flexible and realistic the persona you provide, the better the simulation.

Example Configuration

Persona Background

• Sam recently started a new job and is looking to improve their fitness, but is unsure about what program would best fit their schedule and goals.

Interaction Setting

• Lead nurture call

Price Sensitivity

• Value-focused

Communication Style

• Casual and conversational

3. Assigning Actions to the Sales Coach AI

Just like the Receptionist Agent, a Sales Coach can take real-time actions depending on the flow of the conversation.

Click “Manage Actions” to set up:

1. Calendar Booking:
   • Enable the AI to accept meeting offers and simulate scheduling into your calendar.
2. CRM or Lead Form Submission:
   • Log the simulated call outcome like a real prospect.
3. Follow-Up Notifications:
   • Automatically send a summary to a sales manager or trainer with:
     • Lead profile
     • Conversation summary
     • Transcript
     • Call recording (if enabled)

Editing an Existing Sales Coach AI

1. From the Home screen, locate the Agent under Active Agents.
2. Click on the Agent (or the 3-dot menu) to open the editor.
3. Update persona inputs like Communication Style or Price Sensitivity.
4. Adjust action behaviors or integration settings.
5. Use “Save & Test” to run simulations and refine the training setup.

Notes & Considerations

• This role is for Inbound Agents only.
• The Agent simulates a customer, not a company rep.
• Use Test mode to train and certify human reps or validate outbound scripts.
• You can set up multiple versions of this role to simulate different customer types.

FAQs & Troubleshooting

General Questions

Can I use the Sales Coach role for both inbound and outbound calls?

• The Sales Coach is only available as an Inbound Agent, but it simulates outbound-style customer calls to train your team.

What does this role actually do during a call?

• It acts like a potential customer — responding based on your inputs, asking questions, showing interest or hesitation, and behaving like a real prospect.

Can I simulate difficult or skeptical customers?

• Absolutely. Use fields like Initial Attitude, Difficulty Level, and Objection Type to model different behaviors.

Troubleshooting

The agent is too agreeable and easy to close

• Make sure your persona includes a realistic Difficulty Level and Objection Triggers.

It’s not reacting well to price conversations

• Try refining Price Sensitivity and providing more context in the Persona Background.

The simulation isn’t realistic enough

• Add more depth to Communication Style, Decision Style, and include nuanced objections or goals.

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