Introduction
The world of business-to-business (B2B) sales is changing fast because of artificial intelligence (AI). One big change is happening with subject matter experts (SMEs) – the people who know everything about a product or service. Generative AI tools like ChatGPT, Claude, and others are creating new ways for these experts to work. These tools can write content, answer questions, and help make sales better. This article looks at how generative AI is changing what SMEs do in B2B sales cycles and what it means for businesses today.
What is Generative AI?
Generative AI is a type of artificial intelligence that can create new content like text, images, code, and more. It works by learning patterns from lots of existing information. Then it can make new things that seem like they were made by humans. The most famous examples are large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and others. These tools have gotten really good at understanding and creating human-like text.
Traditional Roles of Subject Matter Experts in B2B Sales
Before we talk about changes, let’s understand what SMEs usually do in B2B sales:
- Provide deep technical knowledge during sales meetings
- Create detailed content about products and solutions
- Answer complex questions from potential customers
- Help sales teams understand technical details
- Support proposals and presentations with expert information
- Help solve customer problems with specialized knowledge
- Train sales teams on technical aspects of products
In complex sales cycles, especially for things like software, manufacturing equipment, or specialized services, these experts are very important. They help turn technical features into business benefits that customers can understand.
How Generative AI is Transforming SME Roles
Knowledge Amplification and Distribution
Generative AI is making SME knowledge available to more people. Instead of waiting for an expert to be free, sales teams can use AI tools that have been trained with expert knowledge. This means the valuable information from one expert can help many salespeople at once.
For example, a manufacturing company might have only three product engineers who really understand their new machine. With AI, their knowledge can be turned into an assistant that any salesperson can use to answer customer questions right away. This makes specialized knowledge easier to share across the whole company.
Content Creation and Customization
Creating content takes a lot of time for SMEs. They write white papers, technical guides, product sheets, and other materials. Generative AI can now help with this work by:
- Drafting first versions of technical documents
- Creating different versions of content for different industries
- Updating existing materials with new information
- Making technical information easier to understand for non-experts
- Creating personalized responses to customer questions
This gives SMEs more time for high-value work instead of writing basic content. For example, instead of writing five different versions of a product guide, an expert can create one detailed version and use AI to adapt it for different types of customers.
Real-time Support During Sales Conversations
In the past, if a salesperson got a difficult technical question during a meeting, they might have to say “I’ll get back to you” and check with an SME later. Now, with AI tools on their phones or computers, they can get expert-level answers right away.
Some companies are creating special AI assistants that focus just on their products and services. These assistants can join sales calls to provide information, suggest answers, and even create follow-up materials based on the conversation. This means SMEs don’t need to join every sales call but can still share their knowledge.
Training and Enabling Sales Teams
Teaching sales teams about complex products has always been challenging. SMEs spend many hours training salespeople, but people often forget details or need refreshers. Generative AI is changing this by:
- Creating interactive training that adjusts to each person’s knowledge
- Providing on-demand answers when salespeople forget something
- Simulating customer conversations so salespeople can practice
- Giving feedback on how salespeople explain technical topics
- Creating easy-to-understand explanations of complex features
This helps sales teams learn more effectively and reduces how often they need to ask SMEs the same questions over and over.
Proposal and Documentation Creation
Writing sales proposals and technical documentation is time-consuming. SMEs often need to review these documents to make sure the technical details are correct. Generative AI can:
- Create first drafts of proposals based on customer needs
- Add the right technical specifications to documents
- Make sure all information matches company standards
- Update proposals quickly when requirements change
- Create customized documentation for each customer
This speeds up the process and lets SMEs focus on reviewing only the most important parts instead of writing everything from scratch.
Benefits of AI-Enhanced SME Functions
Increased Efficiency and Productivity
When AI handles routine questions and basic content creation, SMEs can focus on more valuable work. This means they can:
- Spend more time on innovation and product development
- Focus on the most complex customer problems
- Support more strategic sales opportunities
- Develop new expertise in emerging areas
- Work on improving products based on customer feedback
For example, in a software company, product experts can spend less time explaining basic features and more time developing new ones or helping with complex customer implementations.
Better Scalability of Expertise
Every company has limited experts. This creates bottlenecks when their knowledge is needed in many places at once. AI helps solve this problem by making expert knowledge available to everyone at any time. This means:
- Sales teams in different time zones can get answers without waiting
- Multiple salespeople can use expert information at the same time
- New employees can access expert knowledge during onboarding
- Companies can grow without having to hire as many new experts
- Knowledge becomes a company asset rather than being held by individuals
This is especially important for global companies or fast-growing businesses that need to spread knowledge quickly.
More Consistent Communications
When multiple SMEs support sales teams, they might give slightly different answers to the same questions. This can confuse customers. AI systems provide consistent information because they’re trained on approved company material. This leads to:
- More accurate technical information in all customer communications
- Consistent messaging about products and capabilities
- Fewer contradictions or mixed messages
- Better alignment between marketing, sales, and technical teams
- Higher quality customer experiences
Enhanced Customer Experience
Customers in B2B sales want quick, accurate answers to their questions. When sales teams can provide expert-level information immediately, it creates a better experience. Benefits include:
- Faster responses to technical questions
- More detailed and personalized information
- Better solutions to customer problems
- Less waiting for experts to be available
- Smoother sales process with fewer delays
Companies that can provide expert knowledge quickly often win against competitors who make customers wait for answers.
Challenges and Considerations
Ensuring Accuracy and Quality
AI systems sometimes make mistakes or provide incorrect information. This is especially risky in technical fields. Companies need to:
- Carefully review AI-generated content for accuracy
- Create systems to check technical information
- Update AI tools regularly with new product information
- Establish clear processes for when AI should escalate to human experts
- Monitor AI outputs to catch and fix common errors
Human experts still need to verify important information, especially for complex technical details or legal commitments.
Maintaining the Human Touch
Technical sales still need human connections. Customers want to know they’re working with real people who understand their needs. Companies should:
- Use AI to support humans, not replace them
- Keep SMEs involved in important customer relationships
- Combine AI efficiency with human empathy and understanding
- Be transparent about when AI is being used
- Focus on building trust through authentic interactions
The best approach is using AI for routine tasks while keeping humans involved in relationship building and complex problem-solving.
Knowledge Management and Updates
AI systems need current information to be useful. As products change, the AI needs to learn the new details. This requires:
- Regular updates to AI training materials
- Systems for SMEs to review and correct AI outputs
- Processes for flagging outdated information
- Version control for product knowledge
- Clear ownership of who maintains the AI knowledge base
Companies that don’t keep their AI systems updated will find them becoming less useful over time.
SME Adaptation and Skill Development
The changing role of SMEs means they need new skills. Instead of just knowing their technical area, they now need to:
- Understand how AI works and its limitations
- Learn to work alongside AI tools effectively
- Develop skills in training and improving AI systems
- Focus more on complex problem-solving that AI can’t handle
- Become better at explaining complex concepts simply
Companies should help their experts learn these new skills through training and gradual role changes.
The Future Role of SMEs in AI-Enhanced Sales
From Information Providers to AI Trainers
In the future, one important job for SMEs will be training AI systems with their knowledge. This means:
- Creating high-quality content that AI can learn from
- Reviewing AI outputs to improve accuracy
- Helping design AI systems that capture their expertise
- Deciding which tasks AI should handle and which need humans
- Creating processes for handling exceptions and complex cases
The most valuable experts will be those who can effectively share their knowledge with both humans and AI systems.
Strategic Advisors Rather Than Technical Resources
As AI handles more routine technical questions, SMEs can focus on being strategic advisors. They can:
- Help sales teams understand the business impact of technical solutions
- Work on the most complex or innovative customer opportunities
- Develop deeper expertise in specialized areas
- Focus on future product developments and market trends
- Build relationships with key customer stakeholders
This shift moves SMEs from being reactive resources to proactive strategic partners.
Collaboration Between Humans and AI
The most effective approach will be collaboration between human experts and AI systems. Each has different strengths:
- AI is good at remembering details, processing large amounts of information, and working 24/7
- Humans are better at creative thinking, building relationships, understanding emotions, and handling unexpected situations
Smart companies will create workflows where humans and AI work together, with each handling the tasks they do best.
Implementation Strategies for B2B Organizations
Start with Well-Defined Use Cases
Companies should begin their AI journey with clear, specific goals. Good starting points include:
- Creating a knowledge base for common technical questions
- Developing AI assistants for proposal writing
- Building tools to help customize technical content
- Creating systems to recommend solutions based on customer needs
- Developing training materials for sales teams
Starting small allows companies to learn what works best for their specific situation.
Involve SMEs in the AI Development Process
SMEs should help create and improve AI tools from the beginning. This means:
- Including them in planning discussions
- Having them review AI-generated content
- Getting their input on how to organize technical knowledge
- Using their expertise to identify potential problems
- Making them partners in the AI implementation, not just sources of information
When experts feel ownership of AI tools, they’re more likely to support their successful use.
Create Clear Guidelines for AI Use
Companies need clear rules about when to use AI and when to involve human experts. These should cover:
- Types of questions AI can answer independently
- Situations that always require human review
- How to handle sensitive or high-risk information
- Processes for escalating from AI to human experts
- Quality control measures for AI-generated content
These guidelines help everyone understand the right way to use AI tools.
Measure Impact and Continuously Improve
Companies should track how AI affects their sales process by measuring:
- Time saved by SMEs
- Speed of response to customer questions
- Accuracy of AI-generated content
- Sales team confidence and knowledge levels
- Customer satisfaction with technical information
- Conversion rates and sales cycle length
This data helps improve the system over time and shows the value of the investment.
Conclusion
Generative AI is changing how subject matter experts work in B2B sales, but it’s not replacing them. Instead, it’s changing their focus from routine tasks to higher-value activities. AI tools can spread expert knowledge more widely, create better content faster, and support sales teams in real time. This gives SMEs more time for innovation, strategic thinking, and solving complex problems.
Companies that use AI effectively will have more efficient sales processes, better customer experiences, and more strategic use of their experts’ time. The future of B2B sales will involve close collaboration between human experts and AI systems, with each doing what they do best.
For organizations looking to stay competitive, now is the time to start exploring how generative AI can enhance the valuable knowledge of subject matter experts. Those who adapt quickly will gain advantages in efficiency, scalability, and customer satisfaction in their B2B sales cycles.