AI-First GTM: The New Playbook for Sales Execution

Shownotes

About the Guest

Hannah Ajikawo is an award-winning go-to-market consultant and founder of Revenue Funnel, helping B2B scale-ups unlock growth and optimize their revenue engines. With 16+ years of experience, Hannah has been recognised as a LinkedIn Top Voice, LinkedIn Sales Insider, Salesforce Influencer, and one of the 100 Most Powerful Women in Sales by Demandbase. She is also a HubSpot Modern Sales Leader and a global expert in aligning sales processes with modern buyer journeys to drive sustainable growth.

Connect with Hannah.

Episode Summary

In this episode of OnBase, host Paul Gibson welcomes Hannah Ajikawo for a deeply insightful conversation on building strong go-to-market foundations and how AI is reshaping the future of sales execution.

Hannah reflects on her career journey and the moment she realized that many teams don’t truly understand strategy. She outlines the importance of focusing GTM energy on where businesses win most, shares her “go-to-market building blocks” framework, and explains how AI can enhance precision across the buyer journey—from awareness to pricing strategy.

Whether you’re leading a sales team, rolling out new tech, or trying to scale confidently, this episode is full of practical wisdom.

Key Takeaways

• GTM Fundamentals: Essential GTM fundamentals include defining where to play and how to win, understanding the market and buyer decision-making, and aligning processes, methodologies, people, and technology.  
• AI’s Influence: AI is reshaping GTM strategies by influencing how we think about possibilities, what buyers expect, and how sales reps approach their roles.  
• AI in the Buyer Journey: AI is particularly primed to support the early stages of the buyer journey (awareness and consideration) by aiding in education, lead management, and unbiased data interpretation.  
• Focus is Key: Organizations should focus on where they win most, identifying unique advantages and aligning their business to serve that specific buyer.  
• AI Implementation: To incorporate AI effectively, organizations should identify core tasks, determine what can be automated, and strategically integrate AI tools to enhance efficiency and scalability.  
• Continuous Learning: Leaders must proactively learn about AI and its applications to ensure their teams and strategies remain current. 

Quotes

“If you really sit down, remove ego, and look at the data—you’ll find where you win. Focus there. That’s the cheat code.”

Tech Recommendations

• Demandbase – For GTM prioritization and signal intelligence.
• Sybill.ai – AI-powered call analysis and coaching.
• Twain.ai – Tailored messaging and engagement optimization.
• SimpleTalk.ai – Conversational AI for real-time needs handling.

Resource Recommendations

Podcasts:

• The Founders Podcast
• Diary of a CEO (Stephen Bartlett) 

Newsletters:

• Substack (for AI newsletters)    

Blogs

• Gates Notes– Bill Gates’ blog    
• Daniel Priestley’s content

Shout-outs

• Jen Allen-Knuth, Founder, DemandJen
• Lisa Kelly, Founder and CEO, Radical Results
• Barry Flaherty, GTM Leader

Best Moments

• 00:53
  Hannah Ajikawa's career journey and the founding of Revenue Funnel.  
• 02:51
  The importance of GTM fundamentals and addressing underperforming teams.  
• 05:54
  How repositioning and focus transformed pipeline generation for a B2B tech company.  
• 10:00
  AI's influence on GTM strategies and sales processes. 
• 12:22
  Areas of GTM most primed to benefit from AI integration.  
• 16:19
  Actionable advice for strengthening GTM foundations.  
• 22:46
  How AI is changing account-based go-to-market approaches.