If you’re in B2B sales, you know most “AI sales tools” overpromise and underdeliver. You sift through call recordings, guess at buyer intent, and hope someone on your team actually follows up. This guide is for sales leaders and reps who want to actually understand buyer engagement on calls—without wasting time or getting distracted by shiny dashboards.
We’ll walk through how to use Sybill, a tool that claims to analyze sales calls and flag real engagement signals. I’ll show you what’s useful, what’s fluff, and the simplest way to get actionable insights from your calls.
Step 1: Get Your Calls Into Sybill
Before you get any value, Sybill needs your call recordings. It works with Zoom, Google Meet, and a few others, but check compatibility first—no point buying a tool you can’t use.
To get started: - Sign up for an account (they make you verify your email, like everyone else). - Connect your calendar and video meeting account. - Decide if you want every call recorded, or just specific ones. If you’re in a “recording consent” state, don’t ignore legal basics.
Pro tip:
Don’t bother uploading old calls unless you’re doing a one-off analysis. The real value is in ongoing calls where you can tweak your approach.
Step 2: Let Sybill Process and Transcribe Calls
Once connected, Sybill automatically joins scheduled calls as a silent participant or via integration. It’ll record, transcribe, and process the call—no work on your part.
Here’s what to expect:
- Transcripts are generally accurate, but not perfect. Don’t expect legal-grade detail.
- Calls show up in your dashboard typically within 30–60 minutes. If you’re waiting hours, something’s up.
- Video analysis (like facial expressions) is only available if everyone’s camera is on. Otherwise, it sticks to audio cues.
What to ignore:
The “magic” of instant insights. AI transcription and sentiment take a little time—don’t expect results the second your call ends.
Step 3: Review Engagement Metrics (But Skeptically)
Sybill will spit out a dashboard with lots of numbers: talk ratios, questions asked, “engagement score,” and sometimes emotional cues (smiles, nods, etc.). Here’s what actually matters:
- Talk Ratio:
If you’re talking more than 70% of the time, you’re probably lecturing, not selling. Aim for 50/50 or less. - Questions Asked:
Genuine questions from buyers are gold. Track these, not just “uh-huhs.” - Sentiment/Emotion:
This is where AI gets fuzzy. Take “buyer looked interested” with a grain of salt. If you see a clear pattern (everyone looks bored when you demo pricing), that is useful. - Engagement Over Time:
Watch for drop-offs. If buyers check out after 20 minutes, your pitch is too long or off-target.
What to ignore:
Composite “engagement scores” with no explanation. If you can’t tell what drives the number, don’t base your next call on it.
Step 4: Dig Into the Call Timeline
This is where Sybill is actually helpful. You get a timeline showing when buyers asked questions, went silent, or showed emotion (if on video). Use this to spot real signals:
- Spikes in Engagement:
Did the buyer suddenly ask three questions when you mentioned a feature? That’s a sign to dig deeper next time. - Awkward Silences:
If there’s a long pause after you answer a key question, something didn’t land. Figure out why. - Objections and Concerns:
Mark these moments. Sybill sometimes flags them automatically, but you should double-check. AI isn’t great at nuance.
Pro tip:
Don’t overanalyze every eyebrow raise. Instead, look for repeated patterns across calls.
Step 5: Tag and Share Key Moments
Sybill lets you clip or tag important sections of the call. This is straightforward but worth doing:
- Tag objections, competitor mentions, or moments where the buyer flips from passive to active.
- Share these clips with your team or manager. Skip the “highlights reel” unless you want to waste time in meetings.
- Use tags for coaching, not just reporting. “Look how the buyer leaned in when we talked ROI” is more useful than a vague “engagement spike.”
What to ignore:
Overly edited “demo reels” for leadership. Focus on practical examples, not sales theater.
Step 6: Compare Calls and Spot Trends
Over time, Sybill can show you trends across deals or reps:
- Which topics get buyers talking?
- Does engagement drop when you share pricing?
- Are certain reps consistently getting more buyer talk time?
If you see clear patterns, adjust how you run calls. If all the data looks random, don’t force a narrative—sometimes it just is.
Pro tip:
Don’t obsess over micro-metrics. The goal is to spot what actually gets buyers engaged, not to win at “talk ratio bingo.”
Step 7: Take Action—Don’t Just Admire the Data
Here’s where most teams fall short. Insights are useless if you don’t do something with them.
- Shorten your slides if buyers check out during your deck.
- Ask more open-ended questions if engagement is low.
- Share key learnings with your team—but keep it simple.
What to ignore:
Fancy reports that don’t translate into action. If you can’t explain the takeaway in a sentence, it’s probably not worth sharing.
The Honest Truth: What Works, What Doesn’t
Works: - Identifying sections where buyers are genuinely engaged (or not). - Catching when you’re talking too much. - Tagging and sharing specific moments for coaching or follow-up.
Doesn’t work: - Relying on “emotion AI” to read minds. Use it as a hint, not gospel. - Expecting Sybill (or any tool) to magically close deals. It’s a mirror, not a salesperson. - Getting lost in dashboards. Spend more time talking to buyers than looking at charts.
Keep It Simple, Iterate Often
Sybill is useful if you use it to get real feedback and tweak your approach—not as a crutch or a vanity metric machine. Start by tracking what feels obvious, ignore the noise, and keep making small changes. The goal isn’t to hack engagement scores; it’s to have better conversations that turn into real deals.
Try it for a few weeks, focus on actual buyer behavior, and adapt. That’s about as close to “AI sales magic” as it gets.