Beyond the Form: How Alon Rosenberg is Humanizing AI Sales

Podcast

Qualified Prospect

GUESTS: Alon Rosenberg, Co-Founder and CEO of Knock AI

Listen to the full episode:

Spotify - Stitcher - TuneIn - Apple Podcasts

Summary:

Most B2B teams are losing qualified buyers not because their product is wrong, but because their sales motion is too slow to keep up with modern intent. In this episode of The B2B Revenue Executive Experience, host Cory Cotten-Potter sits down with Alon Rosenberg, Co-Founder and CEO of Knock AI, to explore why conversational B2B sales and direct messaging are rapidly replacing forms, emails, and delayed demo bookings.

As buyer attention spans shrink and speed to lead becomes critical, Alon shares real data showing why 84% of qualified B2B buyers prefer to chat rather than fill out forms, and how blending AI with human trust is reshaping how deals actually close today. When 84% of qualified buyers prefer chat, forcing them into a form isn’t neutral friction. It’s an active disqualifier.

“Selling is trust and relationship. Without those two, it doesn't matter if you have the most amazing product; I'm not going to proceed with you. And I think that that's where a human touch will come. So it has to be a combination of AI and human.” — Alon Rosenberg

What You'll Learn:

Why 84% of qualified leads prefer direct chat over forms and emails
How to leverage the 90-minute intent window
The psychology behind why messaging feels different than email
How to pilot messaging adoption without disrupting your entire funnel
Why this works across all deal sizes and industries
How AI and human touchpoints must work together

Alon Rosenberg is the Co-founder and CEO of Knock AI, a platform transforming buyer-seller engagement through direct messaging. With vast experience scaling teams and building go-to-market strategies across startups and enterprise organizations, Alon brings a data-driven perspective to modern sales challenges.

‍

Key Insights:

[01:34] - Attention Spans Are Shrinking and Sales Must Adapt

Modern B2B buyer engagement is shaped by two highly linked forces: shrinking attention spans and overwhelming noise. Tools like ChatGPT have trained buyers to expect instant answers, summarized insights, and immediate progress. At the same time, the explosion of features, messages, and channels makes it harder than ever for sellers to stand out. The challenge is no longer guiding buyers step by step, but cutting through the noise with timely, high-impact interactions that meet buyers where they are: impatient, informed, and ready to move now.

[04:29] - Why Enterprise Deals Close Over Text, Not Zoom

Behind most enterprise deals isn’t a boardroom decision or a polished Zoom call, but a short, informal message exchanged in real time. AI and LLMs now dominate the early stages of buying. But when a buyer moves from evaluation to commitment, logic alone isn’t enough. Decisions rely on trust, and trust is built through human interaction. The winning sales motion blends both: AI to inform and accelerate, and human connection to create confidence and close the deal.

[11:54] - Messaging Works for Both $10K and $100K Deals

Effective discovery isn’t limited to face-to-face cues; it translates into digital conversations through patterns of engagement. In DMs, insight comes from how buyers respond, not just what they say. AI can remove surface-level friction by filling in context upfront, allowing sellers to focus on intent and momentum rather than interrogation. When teams shift from scripted question dumps to human, conversational exchanges, buyers show up more direct, more honest, and more ready to decide.

‍

FAQs

Q: Why are forms and demo bookings losing effectiveness?

A: Buyer engagement in B2B sales is increasingly conversational, instant, and human-centered, with buyers preferring real-time messaging over forms, emails, and scheduled meetings. Buyers' intent decays quickly, meaning delays between interest and interaction cause momentum and trust to drop.