AI Coaching Simulator
Pooja Junnuri
Interaction Designer
UX Researcher
UX Designer
Adobe Analytics
Dovetail
Figma
ACTO
ACTO, a B2B software company, the sales training process was becoming a bottleneck. With a growing team of 150+ sales reps and only 15 coaches ratio, manual coaching was proving inefficient and inconsistent.
Key issues:
Coaches spent an average of 15 hours per week on one-on-one training
New reps waited up to 2 weeks for their first coaching session
Inconsistent feedback led to varying levels of performance across the team
Research
We conducted a mixed-method research approach:
Quantitative data:
Analyzed 6 months of sales performance data
Surveyed 45 sales reps and all 5 coaches
Qualitative data:
Conducted in-depth interviews with 10 sales reps and 3 coaches
Observed 5 live coaching sessions
Key findings:
78% of reps felt they needed more frequent feedback
Coaches reported spending 60% of their time on repetitive training scenarios
Top-performing reps practiced their pitches 3x more than average performers
Fig: Feature Task Flow
User Personas
We created two primary personas
a) Sarah the Sales Rep
2 years of experience
Struggles with objection handling
Wants more immediate feedback on her performance
Fig: User Persona for Sales Representative
b) Mike the Sales Coach
10+ years of sales experience
Overwhelmed by the number of reps he needs to train
Wants to focus on high-impact, strategic coachin
Ideation and Design Process:
We used a design thinking approach, starting with a workshop that generated 50+ ideas. We narrowed these down to 3 concepts, which we developed into low-fidelity wireframes.
After internal reviews, we created an interactive prototype using Figma and conducted 3 rounds of usability testing with 5 reps and 2 coaches in each round.
Fig: User Story (Left) User Journey (Right)
Key Features of the AI Coaching Simulator
a) Personalized AI-powered sales scenarios
b) Real-time feedback on tone, pacing, and content
c) Performance analytics dashboard
d) Automated improvement suggestions
Fig: Brainstorming Layouts for conversation experience
Final Design:
v1 Prototype
Key user flows:
Rep logs in and selects a scenario
AI generates a custom sales call simulation
Rep completes the call, receiving real-time feedback
System provides a detailed performance report
Coach reviews the report and adds personalized comments
Usability Testing Results:
We conducted usability testing with 15 sales reps and 4 coaches. Key metrics:
Task completion rate: 92%
System Usability Scale (SUS) score: 84/100
93% of users rated the AI feedback as "extremely helpful"
OUTCOME
Weekly Coaching Hours (Pre vs Post Implementation)
Our AI Coaching Simulator dramatically reduced the time coaches spend on manual training. Before implementation, coaches dedicated an average of 15 hours per week to individual coaching. After just 3 months, this dropped to 5.7 hours - a significant 62% reduction. This time savings allows coaches to focus on more strategic tasks and support a larger number of sales reps.
Rep Confidence Levels
Perhaps one of the most encouraging outcomes was the boost in sales rep confidence. Based on self-reported data, we saw a 35% increase in confidence levels among our sales team. This graph shows the baseline confidence (100%) compared to the new level (135%) after using the AI Coaching Simulator. Higher confidence often translates to better performance and job satisfaction, creating a positive cycle of improvement.
User Feedback:
Sarah (Sales Rep): "The AI simulator has been a game-changer. I can practice difficult scenarios anytime, and the instant feedback helps me improve quickly."
Mike (Sales Coach): "This tool has freed up so much of my time. Now I can focus on strategic coaching rather than repeating the same basic scenarios."
Next steps:
Expand the scenario database to cover more complex sales situations
Implement natural language processing for more nuanced feedback on conversation flow
Enhance the mobile app version for on-the-go practice
Conclusion:
By leveraging thorough research methodologies, cross-functional collaboration, and core design principles, we created a solution that addresses real user needs and business challenges. The AI Coaching Simulator, born from a deep understanding of both sales reps' and managers' pain points, has proven to be a game-changer. It delivers measurable improvements across multiple dimensions of our sales operations, from time efficiency to performance and confidence levels.
