Many companies are jumping on full of euphoria into AI in sales - and are frustrated a few months later. The problem: They want too much too quickly. A pilot project solves this dilemma: You test new solutions on a small scale before you fully roll them out.
AI is becoming increasingly important in sales. More and more companies are using various applications and successfully integrating them. At the same time, pressure is growing in the B2B sector: Customers expect personalized interactions and quick responses. Pilot projects help you to assess the feasibility of new projects and identify risks at an early stage.
The German SMEs provides ideal conditions for AI in sales: strong customer orientation, rich data and structured processes. Although pilot projects start small, they provide meaningful results for later scaling. Learn how to plan and implement pilot sales projects and benefit from their benefits.
What is a pilot project in sales?
A pilot project in sales is the final test phase before you fully implement a new product, service, or process. You carry out a time-limited live operation with a selected user group, in which real processes run. These systematic tests help you to check acceptance, profitability and market potential under real conditions.
Definition and delimitation
A pilot project in sales goes far beyond a simple test. You work with real customers to validate your offer under real conditions. The decisive difference: Your solution has already reached a higher level of maturity and is used to make final adjustments before the full rollout.
You let real customers try out your solution so that it works flawlessly when launched later on. Instead of theoretical considerations, the focus is on practical results - which is why you will carry out pilot projects in various phases with a selected customer segment.
Difference from proof of concept
The terms pilot project and proof of concept (PoC) are often confused. However, the differences are significant:
A proof of concept mainly validates the basic feasibility and utility value of an idea. It is limited in scope, focuses on critical functions and typically lasts 2-8 weeks.
A pilot project is testing the complete solution under real conditions with a selected user group over 3-12 months. The level of maturity is significantly higher than that of a PoC, prototype or MVP.
This delineation is of practical relevance. A Forrester analysis from 2024 shows: 42% of failed marketing implementations are caused by unclear distinctions between these concepts and false expectations.
Why pilot projects are particularly valuable in B2B sales
B2B sales benefit in particular from pilot projects, as more complex sales cycles and higher investments are typical. They are essential for high-quality sales opportunities with major customers that justify significant investments.
A B2B pilot project offers you specific benefits:
- You test the applicability of your solution in the specific business context of real customers
- As first-time buyers, your customers are willing to take risks - but expect special support in return
- You collect valuable feedback and recognize which features actually provide benefits
Sales assistants such as Bliro are ideal for pilot projects in sales. Such AI-powered solutions are tested in defined areas before rolling them out company-wide. For example, a sales team can first work with the AI Assistant in a region or with a specific customer segment and validate its added value.
The following applies to AI pilot projects in new customer sales: With the right structure, you will achieve visible effects within a few weeks. A successful pilot project is clearly defined, can be implemented quickly and offers direct benefits in day-to-day sales.
Benefits of pilot projects for sales
Pilot projects bring measurable benefits to sales teams. Many companies underestimate these targeted test runs. A well-planned pilot project often makes the difference between successful rollout and costly mistakes.
Minimize risks before major rollout
Pilot projects help you identify and assess potential risks early on before you make major investments. This reduces expensive bad investments and enables the gradual introduction of new solutions. Project management uses pilot projects to reduce the risks of failure - the idea is first tested on a small scale.
Example: You want to introduce an AI-based sales assistant like Bliro. Start with a small team. This allows you to identify potential integration challenges without impacting your entire sales team.
Quick insights due to limited scope
The limited scope is the biggest advantage of a pilot project. This focus enables production-wide decisions based on real data. Participants gain valuable insights and deepen their understanding of the new solution.
Acceptance within the team through early involvement
Early employee involvement is crucial for successful technology deployments. Pilot projects provide the ideal framework. Focus groups and feedback sessions give employees space for concerns and wishes. Selected team members take on leadership roles and share experiences with colleagues.
Users are directly involved in method adaptations - instead of receiving innovations “from above”. This demonstrably increases the acceptance of new solutions. Convinced pilot users speed up adoption by colleagues. This creates a solid basis for the subsequent company-wide rollout.
Cost efficiency compared to full implementation
Expenses of a pilot project are significantly lower than when fully implemented. Nevertheless, they provide valuable information about the success and scalability of a solution. These insights make it easier to plan the final project and enable more accurate budget and investment estimates.
The Boston Consulting Group identified several successful pilot phases in its “Scaling International Operations” study: strategic pilot selection and clear governance structures. Remarkable: 83% of successful pilot projects started with a defined governance model, while only 31% of failed projects had such structures.
McKinsey (2023) shows: 72% of medium-sized companies are not sufficiently adapting governance structures when transitioning from pilot projects to scaling - with serious consequences for expansion speed and quality. This underlines that not only plan the pilot project yourself, but also carefully plan the transition to full implementation.
4 proven use cases for pilot projects in sales
New technologies offer sales companies concrete opportunities for successful pilot projects. You can test different approaches on a limited basis before you roll them out across your organization. Here are five proven use cases for your pilot projects.
Lead scoring with AI
AI-supported lead scoring is one of the simplest and most effective pilot projects. Artificial intelligence automatically assesses how likely a lead is to close. The basis is on factors such as website visits, interaction frequency and company size.
The figures speak for themselves: Companies with AI-supported lead scoring increase their conversion rates by an average of 35%. At the same time, lead processing is accelerated by up to 70%. A pilot project helps you test this technology in a selected segment and convince your team of the benefits.
Automated offer processes
Preparing offers takes an unnecessary amount of time for many companies. AI automatically creates initial draft offers based on product data, prices and customer information. All that's left for your sales team is to finalize them.
A limited pilot project is perfect for testing the quality and speed of the offers generated before you roll out the system nationwide.
Sales assistants like Bliro in action
Modern AI sales assistants such as Bliro actively support your sales team in their day-to-day business. Bliro analyses conversations, identifies trends and provides valuable insights for well-founded decisions. The Assistant automatically creates call summaries, organizes follow-up sessions, and updates CRM data.
The measurable effects: Up to 22% higher conversion rates, 10% larger deals and 8 hours of time saved per employee per week. Bliro can be seamlessly integrated into existing systems such as Google Meet, Zoom, Microsoft Teams as well as CRM systems such as Salesforce and HubSpot, among others.
Test cross-selling and upselling strategies
AI systems analyze past purchases, usage patterns, and similar customer profiles to identify when customers are open to additional products. This results in specific recommendations for cross-selling and upselling.
The success rate when selling to existing customers is 60-70%, for new customers, only 5-20%. A focused pilot project helps you test different approaches and identify the most effective strategies before rolling them out across the sales team.
How to plan and start a successful pilot project
A pilot project in sales depends on the right planning. A structured approach helps you quickly gather valuable insights and minimize risks.
Define goals using the SMART principle
Start with clear goals for your pilot project. The SMART principle provides a proven framework:
- Specific: Formulate specific, unambiguous statements
- Measurable: Define objective criteria for measuring success
- Attractive: Ensure acceptance by all parties involved
- Realistic: Set feasible goals for your team
- Scheduled: Define a clear time frame
Example: “By using Bliro, we would like to reduce the follow-up time of customer meetings within the next three months by 20%”.
Select pilot customers specifically
Choosing the right pilot customers is decisive for subsequent success. Create a list of criteria with factors such as:
- Representativeness for the entry-level market
- Willingness to provide constructive feedback
- Physical proximity and available test resources
Make sure that your pilot customers adequately represent the target market - this is one of the most common mistakes when selecting customers.
Check the data situation and tools
All necessary data and tools must be available before the start. Data quality is particularly crucial for AI-based projects such as sales assistants. Also check integration with existing systems, such as CRM solutions.
Set resources and time frames
Plans realistic: For technology-based pilot projects, these are typically 4-8 weeks and 6-12 weeks for strategic projects. Reserve around 10-15% of the total project budget for the pilot phase and appoint at least one project manager with 25% capacity.
Involve and train stakeholders
A successful pilot project requires the involvement of all relevant stakeholders right from the start. Identify the following key groups:
- Decision-makers with budget responsibility
- Direct users (e.g. sales representatives)
- Indirect stakeholders (sales, customer service, IT)
- External experts and solution providers
Ensure clear communication of project goals and regular feedback to increase acceptance and avoid subsequent resistance.
5 success factors for pilot projects in sales: What really works
Successful pilot projects in sales follow clear patterns. The analysis of numerous implementations reveals five decisive factors that determine success or failure.
Start small but think scalable
The best approach: Start focused, but consider scaling later. Pilot projects work optimally if you first validate a specific use case, but already take systematization into account. A pilot project with Bliro, for example, should start in a team, but be technically designed in such a way that a company-wide implementation is easily possible.
Clear KPIs to measure success
Sales projects require measurable success indicators. Without clear KPIs the yardstick for success is missing. Define four to seven key figures - ideally differentiated by sales channel, product, team and person. A CRM dashboard enables continuous performance measurement.
Feedback loops with sales teams
Regular communication with the sales team is essential. Actively seek feedback: What works well? Where do problems arise. This not only increases usage, but also employee satisfaction and promotes early acceptance.
Integration with existing systems such as CRM
Flexible integration platforms help to seamlessly connect various systems. The CRM integration connects systems and streamlines processes so that teams can work on the same database. The result: faster processes and better collaboration.
Documenting lessons learned
Document all experiences - from minor mistakes to successful test runs. This documentation becomes valuable later when you scale or improve. Lessons Learned should be an integral part of the project method. Make sure that open issues are given clear responsibilities and completion dates.
Conclusion
Pilot projects offer a structured path for successful introduction of AI in sales. You'll minimize risks and gather valuable insights before you make major investments. For sales assistants like Bliro, this step-by-step approach pays off in particular - it enables seamless integration and ensures team acceptance.
Successful pilot projects start with SMART goals and carefully selected test customers. Define measurable KPIs and establish regular feedback loops with your sales team. This approach creates transparency and trust in new technologies.
Start small, plan in a scalable way - that's the key. Your Bliro pilot project may only run in one team at first, but the technical concept should already take into account the company-wide implementation. At the same time, existing systems such as your CRM must be seamlessly integrated.
The results speak for themselves: Companies that initially test AI solutions such as Bliro in a controlled manner achieve higher success rates during the full rollout. They realize the benefits - such as up to 22% higher conversion rates and 8 hours of time savings per employee per week - faster. Pilot projects are not a detour, but the smartest path to digital transformation in sales.
