How AI is transforming sourcing at Aaida Trading Services

AI won’t replace salespeople. But salespeople who use AI will replace those who don’t. When I was at Bittsave, selling blockchain wallet solutions, I used to spend hours researching prospects, personalizing decks, and writing follow-up emails. Now? AI can do 70% of that if you know how to use it right. Here’s how I see AI reshaping modern sales 👇 🤖 1. Prospecting: Tools like Clay, Apollo, or ChatGPT can find, filter, and summarize leads in minutes. No more manual scraping. 🧠 2. Personalization: AI helps tailor outreach emails or decks to match the buyer’s tone, interests, or role. The key is using it for insight, not spam. 📊 3. Sales Enablement: Reps can auto-generate discovery questions, objection handling scripts, or deal summaries after calls. 🎯 4. Forecasting: Predictive AI is now helping teams know who’s ready to buy before they even say so. 💡 But here’s the catch: AI can amplify your sales game but it can’t replace your empathy. The best salespeople will use AI to listen better, move faster, and solve deeper pain points. 📌 Takeaway: Don’t fear AI. Train it to be your intern while you stay the strategist. 💬 What’s one AI tool that’s changed the way you sell or work? Drop it below 👇

Maybe AI isn’t as powerful as we think because there’s one job it still can’t do. I’ve seen people claim AI can do everything write, design, code, analyze, even sell. But from what I’ve seen in business, that’s not true. AI can help salespeople, but it can’t do their job. Because sales isn’t just about sending messages or analyzing data it’s about people, emotions, and trust. Here’s what I’ve learned 👇 1️⃣ Trust and emotion drive sales. People don’t buy from logic alone; they buy from people they trust. AI can mimic empathy, but it can’t feel it. 2️⃣ Sales is about context. Every customer is different. A human can sense hesitation, read tone, and adjust in real time. AI can’t do that. 3️⃣ Relationships go beyond transactions. The best salespeople build loyalty — not just deals. AI can’t replace genuine connection. 4️⃣ Negotiation requires judgment. Great salespeople know when to push, pause, or walk away. That comes from intuition, not algorithms. AI can make a salesperson smarter and faster, but it will never replace the human spark that closes deals. Maybe the real future isn’t AI replacing salespeople, but salespeople powered by AI and that’s where the magic happens.

In emerging markets, AI is a utility, not a novelty. And its most powerful role is often invisible, quietly driving search, e-commerce, finance, and customer service. Executive Takeaways:  ●  Integration over experimentation. Millions have tested ChatGPT, but far fewer rely on it daily. Real impact comes when AI becomes embedded in workflows, not just sampled. ●  Follow high-growth markets. Brazil and India demonstrate how AI adoption accelerates when it solves inefficiencies, offering a preview of where mature economies are headed. ●  Prioritize invisible AI. Consumers don’t seek “AI experiences.” They seek frictionless ones. The brands that succeed will be those where AI simply makes life easier, faster, smarter. Winning with AI means making it indispensable, not visible. 

Will AI ever replace the human in sales? Or is this just another cycle of hype? Let’s break it down: → AI can process millions of data points. → Humans can sense a prospect’s hesitation in one sentence. → AI never forgets a follow up. → Humans never forget a broken promise. → AI can personalize with keywords. → Humans personalize with stories and empathy. Here’s the irony: Everyone is racing to automate. But the more we automate, the more valuable genuine human connection becomes. What if the future isn’t about choosing sides? What if it’s about combining: ↳ AI for speed, scale, and structure. ↳ People for trust, nuance, and negotiation. Every CEO, CIO, and investor I meet wants growth without chaos. But the real question is: Are we brave enough to let tech do the heavy lifting while we double down on the things only humans can do? Think about your last great sales experience. Was it the tech? Or was it the trust? Curious to hear: If you had to pick one for closing deals AI or human what’s your answer?

We tried letting AI build our outbound strategy and It failed badly. Would’ve saved me tons of time if it worked. But every strategy AI suggested was average and Boring. The kind of stuff your competitors are already doing. And that’s the problem. If everyone’s AI is saying the same things, you’d all sound the same and your prospects won’t be able to tell what makes you unique. AI lacks something you can’t prompt engineer around. It doesn’t understand your buyers the way you do. It doesn’t know what actually makes them say yes. Strategy is more than logic. It’s intuition and knowing what will resonate before you test it. AI can’t do that. Not yet. So here’s what we do instead. Humans build the strategy. We figure out what matters to your prospects, what angle will work, what offer makes sense. That’s me and actual experts working with our clients. Then AI scales it. AI keeps it consistent across 700,000 emails a month. AI personalizes within the strategy we built. But the strategy itself remains human. And honestly, that’s why our campaigns don’t sound like everyone else’s and also why we get replies when other AI tools get ignored. If you’re letting AI write your strategy, you’re getting average results. Your prospects have seen it all before. If you want to stand out, you need humans thinking through what actually works. Then use AI to execute at scale. Strategy first. Then scale. P.S. - That’s from paintball. Even there, you need a plan before you start shooting. AI would’ve gotten destroyed.

Unpopular opinion... Here's the thing most companies miss: AI isn't their main problem. Their biggest problem? Connection. Your sales platform knows everything about your customers. Your inventory tool? Fully aware of what's sitting in the warehouse. Finance system has all the numbers locked down. The issue? These systems exist in silos. When AI tries to make a decision, it's fumbling around in the dark because nothing talks to anything else. This is why AI disappoints so many businesses. The technology itself is compelling, but without a complete view of the organization, it can't deliver on that promise. Intelligence needs context to be real. If your systems, data, and workflows remain disconnected, your AI will never truly grasp how your business operates. At best, it's making educated guesses. The next breakthrough in AI won't be about bigger models or fancier algorithms. It's going to happen when we finally achieve connected intelligence, when data flows freely, systems communicate seamlessly, and agents collaborate in real time. That's the moment AI transforms from just another tool into an actual teammate.

AI will help bad procurement teams make bad decisions faster. Stop worrying about "becoming a conductor." Start questioning whether the AI tool you're being sold is actually solving a problem or just creating risk, dependency, and uplift excuses. "Will I still be needed?" Wrong question. The question is: "Am I going to let vendors define my value, or am I going to defend what I know?" You have a voice in this. Use it. This is not the time to settle for convenience, Procurement. Truly consider what you are opening yourself and your team up to. Are we buying AI because it solves a real problem, or because a vendor convinced us we'll be left behind if we don't? Poorly run companies are using AI as cover for cost cuts they wanted to make anyway. This isn't about AI replacing jobs. This is about margin pressure and stock performance. Don't fall for it. When monopolistic suppliers talk about "investing in AI" while cutting thousands of jobs, they're really saying... "We're doing more with less and hoping you don't notice the service decline." Watch your vendor performance closely. Document everything. You won't get replaced by AI. You'll get replaced by someone who refused to settle for convenience.

Everyone's panicking about AI stealing jobs. Here's what we're actually seeing at Zonder: → Our voice AI systems are creating employment opportunities, not destroying them → One client's lead reactivation system helped 58 people find jobs → Another saved 6 full-time positions while generating $200k annual savings The reality: Well-implemented AI doesn't replace humans - it amplifies their capabilities. Working with local businesses and enterprises, we've learned that successful AI deployment follows a pattern: ✅ Start with specific, high-value tasks (not broad automation) ✅ Focus on augmenting existing workflows rather than replacing them ✅ Measure impact in business outcomes, not just cost savings The businesses thriving with AI aren't the ones trying to cut headcount. They're the ones using AI to handle routine tasks so their teams can focus on relationship building, complex problem-solving, and strategic growth. Result: Better customer service, increased revenue, and often the need to hire more people to handle the growth. What's your experience been with AI in your business - job creator or job threat?

When we hear the term Agentic AI, I think most of us picture someone like Agent Smith from The Matrix chasing us down while our jobs disappear in slow motion. I get it. Even with all the potential I see in AI, there is still a voice in the back of my head that asks when it might replace me. Those fears are normal. But in procurement, I do not believe they are rational. So instead of worrying about how to hold on to our jobs despite AI, I would think about how to do our jobs with AI. AI is not here to replace us. It is here to release us. There are better uses for procurement talent than chasing approvals or saving pennies off stationery purchases. Let AI handle the routine. And let procurement focus on the strategic work, where even small gains can save millions. AI agents are enablers. They take on the transactional workload so we can create value at scale. Change is never easy. But you will not be replaced by AI. You will be replaced by someone who knows how to use it. Are you using AI agents in your work in procurement or supply chain? I’d love for you tell me about it. #Procurement #SupplyChain #CIPS