Everyone wants proof, not promises. But many enablement programs measure inputs and anecdotes instead of outcomes. This guide shows how to prove the ROI of real-time sales coaching using a Living Playbook and an experimental design that finance can trust.
Key takeaways
- B2B buying is nonlinear and organized around looping buying jobs. Your guidance must match the job the buying group is actually doing. Gartner on buyer enablement
- Customers use about ten channels across the journey. Consistent messaging is a leading indicator of performance. McKinsey B2B Pulse 2024
- Real-time assistants have shown ~15% productivity gains in adjacent domains when they provide in-flow suggestions. Quarterly Journal of Economics study
- To quantify business impact, apply Forrester’s TEI structure: costs, benefits, flexibility, and risk. Forrester TEI methodology
- Use A/B testing to attribute impact and avoid the “we implemented many things at once” trap. HBR: The Discipline of Business Experimentation
Table of contents
- Why ROI is hard to prove
- A TEI-style measurement model
- Design an A/B test that finance will trust
- Leading and lagging metrics to track
- 30-day ROI playbook
- How Nomi fits
- FAQ
- References
Why ROI is hard to prove
Three traps show up again and again.
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Attribution fog
Multiple initiatives launch at once, so no one can tell what moved the needle. The fix is an experiment with clear treatment and control. -
Lagging-only measurement
Win rate and ACV change slowly. You need leading indicators tied to behaviors inside calls. -
Static playbooks
PDFs do not change behavior during the call. A Living Playbook gives in-call prompts that match the buyer job, which is where conversion actually shifts. See Gartner for the buyer job framework and McKinsey for omnichannel behavior.
Sources: Gartner on buyer enablement | McKinsey B2B Pulse
A TEI-style measurement model
Use Forrester’s Total Economic Impact (TEI) structure to communicate ROI in finance-friendly terms:
- Costs: licenses, enablement time, integration, change management
- Benefits: incremental pipeline progression, shorter cycle, higher win rate, fewer no-decisions
- Flexibility: reusable prompts across products and personas, faster onboarding of new reps
- Risk: performance variance, adoption risk, data quality risk
Reference: Forrester TEI methodology
Design an A/B test that finance will trust
- Define the treatment: for example, enable in-call prompts for price, ROI, and competitor moments.
- Split fairly: randomize by rep within territories or by accounts within segments.
- Hold the calendar: run for at least two selling cycles or until you have 200 to 300 qualified opportunities per arm.
- Pre-register metrics: decide in advance what “success” means to avoid confirmation bias.
- Analyze lift: report absolute change and relative lift with confidence intervals.
For experimental discipline, see HBR’s guide to business experimentation.
Leading and lagging metrics to track
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Leading indicators
- Prompt show rate and accept rate
- Time to handle key objections
- Coverage of buyer jobs per call
- Messaging consistency by persona and channel
-
Lagging indicators
- Stage-to-stage conversion
- Win rate
- Cycle time
- Average deal size
- No-decision rate
Field evidence from the Quarterly Journal of Economics shows that in-flow assistance improves agent productivity by about 15% in customer support, especially for less experienced agents. While sales is different, the mechanism is similar: timely suggestions raise consistency and reduce time to a good response. Read the study
30-day ROI playbook
Week 1: Baseline and design
Export last-quarter metrics, choose two or three high-leverage moments, and define your treatment and control.
Week 2: Build prompts and instrument
Create short in-call prompts from won call clips. Implement event tracking for show rate, accept rate, and next-step creation.
Week 3: Launch and coach
Run your split, reinforce adoption, and hold weekly reviews. Prune weak prompts, strengthen winners.
Week 4: Read results and decide
Calculate lift, run a simple ROI model with TEI components, and decide on rollout or another iteration.
How Nomi fits
Nomi is a real-time AI copilot for live sales calls. It listens to conversations, identifies what top performers do, and delivers in-call phrase suggestions so every rep benefits from a Living Playbook. The Nomi homepage positions this clearly and states it helps teams close about 12% more deals. Learn more or book a demo: https://www.nomi.so/.
What you can expect in practice:
- Live prompts when pricing, ROI, or competitors come up
- Context-aware phrasing that reduces hesitation and keeps the call moving
- A feedback loop that improves prompts each week based on real outcomes
FAQ
Can we prove ROI in one month?
You can build a strong directional case in 30 days. For statistical power on win rate, plan multiple cycles or higher sample sizes.
What if adoption is the bottleneck?
Measure show and accept rates by rep. Use coaching and incentives. If prompts do not show or are not accepted, they cannot create impact.
Does real-time coaching guarantee higher win rates?
No solution can guarantee outcomes. Evidence from adjacent domains shows in-flow assistance improves speed and consistency, which correlate with conversion. See the QJE study for details. Read the study
References
- Gartner. Marketing’s Role in Buyer Enablement. Buying jobs are nonlinear and loop throughout the journey. Read the article
- McKinsey. Five fundamental truths: How B2B winners keep growing. Buyers use many channels and expect seamless omnichannel experiences. Read the article
- Forrester. Total Economic Impact methodology. Communicate ROI using costs, benefits, flexibility, and risk. See the methodology
- Harvard Business Review. The Discipline of Business Experimentation. How to test and learn in business. Read on HBR
- Brynjolfsson, Li, and Raymond. Generative AI at Work. Quarterly Journal of Economics (2025). Real-time suggestions increased agent productivity by about 15 percent in customer support. Read the paper