European sales and marketing teams entered 2026 with a cautious dose of optimism as early data suggested budget spending would increase. However, the first quarter of the year has been marked by volatile markets, shifting buyer expectations and ongoing disruption from technology.
Sales reps in particular are feeling the brunt of the pressure, with higher sales quotas yet less chance of investments into new hires for the team.
While some leaders look to AI as a way to increase sales performance without adding to overhead costs heavily, others have lasting concerns about how AI could affect quality in other ways.
For B2B sales in Europe, those in the field are keenly aware of the importance of the personal touch and a close understanding of cultural differences across the continent. Closing a deal with a French company often demands close relationships that are nurtured over time, while risk-averse German buyers might prioritize technical expertise and attention to detail during the sales process.
Indeed, a Gartner report on the future of B2B sales highlights that a buyer-centric approach is the key to staying afloat.
This suggests that AI’s impact on the sales teams is likely to take an augmented format that builds on the strengths of executives and offers support in other ways.
Using AI to enhance a buyer-centric GTM strategy
By 2030, 80% of CSOs will require AI-augmented plans to navigate the future of sales.
However, success will hinge on the quality of the existing plans. AI can only amplify the speed of processes already in place. If poor go-to-market (GTM) fundamentals and data are in place, AI tools will only increase the volume of activity but won’t meaningfully improve sales outcomes.
Sales teams that use AI to scale the right behaviours and build on solid foundations are set to see the biggest difference and most positive outcomes.
A strong core team with solid GTM functions in place can be amplified by AI, helping executives meet their sales quotas despite tough conditions and limited resources.
Here, AI can be applied strategically to enhance the ability of the human team with certain sales functions, particularly well-suited to tech automation.
A survey of Chief Revenue Officers and Sales Leaders found that 93% expect AI to excel at prospect research and account prioritisation within the next 24 months, where it can be used to build prioritised lists, compress research and prep time for calls, and analyse calls and objection patterns at scale.
By leveraging AI to take care of the foundational work that determines who’s worth pursuing, sales reps can focus on the conversation and art of the sale, dedicating much more time to these calls and meetings. With a human-touch at the end of the pipeline, companies can hope to close more deals with the expertise and nuance that is key to B2B sales in Europe.
However, sales leaders don’t need to wait 24-months to access AI with the ability to handle prospect research.
A warm approach to cold outreach
The ‘show me you know me’ approach has long been adopted by sales teams to personalize outreach and connect with prospects. Yet the method is labor and resource-intensive.
Myuser was founded in 2018 to help companies turn cold outreach into a repeatable growth engine. Founder and CEO, Ibrahim Hasanov (article’s featured photo), was named in The AI Journal as an entrepreneur to watch in 2026.
The company has developed an autonomous sales agent built to meet the specific tasks of B2B outreach completely.
The solution doesn’t aim to take over the entire pipeline but work with the sales team to enhance performance. The platform helps companies focus their energy on fewer, high-quality calls by conducting extensive research on each prospect based on their complete LinkedIn history, posts, and online engagement to craft hyper-personalized communications.
“At the end of the day, people don’t want to feel like just another name on a list. If your outreach isn’t genuinely personalized and doesn’t offer real value, it’s probably going straight to the trash. That’s why we believe the era of copy-paste or template-based cold outreach is over- and it’s time for something smarter, more authentic, and actually worth reading,” Hasanov explained.
The Myuser platform also handles technical questions, follow-ups and scheduling. Sales reps are only notified when prospects are ready to convert, cutting down on the mental load associated with lead generation significantly.
“The key isn’t just blasting out messages, but setting the right budget and laser-focusing your targeting. Our platform- and our AI- helps customers define their ideal prospects, segment by industry, role, or even company growth stage, and then automate the outreach so it feels tailored- not spammy.”
Enhancing sales performance in 2026
AI helps to ensure that conversations happen with the right buyers and give sales reps context on each prospect but humans still own these conversations, playing the starring role in sealing the deal.
The technology will help European tech companies to cut through the noise, focus on conversation quality over call quantity and maintain a buyer-centric approach to sales strategy in 2026.
