What if your sales class felt less like memorizing a script and more like a real business conversation? One you could practice 30 times before it “counted”?
In MKT 310: Principles of Selling at the University of Dayton School of Business Administration (SBA), students do exactly that. With the help of conversational AI through a program called Copient.ai, they rehearse sales calls in a safe, low-pressure environment and then apply those skills in live role-plays at the Fiore Talarico Center for Professional Selling.
Building communicators, not just “salespeople”
Marketing professor Scott Friend has taught sales for about 15 years and joined the SBA’s Department of Management and Marketing, which houses one of the nation’s top sales programs (Sales Education Foundation, 2024), about 2 years ago. He describes MKT 310 first and foremost as a communication course.
Students learn how to:
- Conduct research to understand a product in preparation for sales calls
- Ask thoughtful questions
- Dig deeper to understand customer needs
- Actively listen for key information
- Present solutions clearly and confidently
“There are a lot of business careers that start in sales or customer-facing roles,” Friend said. “This class helps students perform and excel once they move into the industry.”
The course blends theory with application and experience. Students learn questioning techniques, adaptive selling and buyer styles, then apply them through a five-step sales framework from first approach to commitment. Grades are earned equally through exams and hands-on role plays.
Making role plays less intimidating and more helpful
Role playing can be intimidating, whether for a senior, a first-year student, or a high school senior interested in pursuing a marketing degree with an insight-selling minor.
Friend hears the same message every semester in course feedback:
“I did not want to role-play. It made me very nervous to do the role play, but it was the best thing that I did in this class, and it’s the thing that I’m going to take away with me the most.”
To support that journey from nervous to confident, he added AI-powered role-plays using Copient.ai, a technology developed by a University of Dayton graduate.
Before implementing the platform, Friend could assign only two sales calls because of the time required to provide meaningful feedback. With AI, students now complete up to 30 sales calls, including 28 AI-powered role-plays across four assignments and two live role-plays. This provides students with significantly more practice, faster feedback and greater confidence.
For every AI sales call, Copient AI:
- Simulates a buyer through a video-based avatar
- Scores performance using a sales-process rubric
- Shows students what they said during the conversation
- Provides targeted coaching tips for improvement
The result is more repetitions, better feedback and faster skill development. And the AI makes it real.
“It feels like two people talking. The AI avatar looks like a real person. It sounds like a real person, and the conversation is dynamic. It feels just like a real, virtual sales call,” Friend said.
Selling real products in a human-plus-AI classroom
The AI role-plays are fully customized for the class, allowing students to tailor their sales approaches.
“The key thing in sales is adaptive selling. It is not delivering a canned response. With AI in this class, the conversation could go in a hundred different directions, and having practice in multiple ways is really beneficial for students,” Friend said.
Students:
- “Work for” Oracle NetSuite and sell a real customer relationship management (CRM) system
- Practice with a fictional company based on detailed cases
- Interact with AI buyers built around social styles (emotional, analytical, talkative, guarded, etc.) that create endless conversational paths and outcomes, requiring students to critically think about the best approaches and engagement strategies
Friend compares it to selling to different investors on Shark Tank: the same product, very different personalities, requiring very different sales approaches.
“The simulation taught me that successful sales conversations aren’t about following a script. It is about listening, adapting, and connecting with the ‘person’ in front of you,” said Makenna Snider, junior marketing major and business analytics minor. “That’s a skill I know I will carry over into my professional interactions and future endeavors.”
Failing smart: Growth through practice
In each of the 30 calls, students are evaluated at every stage of the sales process, from building rapport to securing next steps. Only the highest score counts, allowing students to practice, improve and grow without penalty.
No matter who is providing feedback, Copient.ai or Friend, students are evaluated through each step of the process:
- Approach: Establishes credibility, builds rapport with the client and sets a clear agenda
- Needs Identification: Discovers goals, decision criteria and key challenges
- Presentation: Delivers solutions with compelling communication, visuals and value-driven messaging
- Overcoming Objections: Responds with strategy and confidence to client concerns
- Commitment: Secures next steps through trial closes and a clear path forward
“The instant feedback through Copient.ai was helpful because I was immediately able to see my results and fix the sections that needed improvement right away,” said Madeline Rozek, senior health science major with minors in marketing, psychology, and disability studies who plans to pursue a career in medical device sales. “It helped me master that section before I had to do the next assignment.”
“Failing smart is figuring out ways to keep doing the things that drive performance, doing less of the things that drive failure, or finding ways to leverage both,” Friend said. “AI allows students to complete repetitions, kind of muscle memory, of understanding the process, performing multiple ways and having different results happen. That’s really helpful.”
And AI helps students also see where their strengths lie. “Copient.ai still gave me feedback on the sections I got full points on. It quotes what I specifically said and what made it a valid point, said Rozek.
Preparing Future Flyers for a Human + AI Future
For future Flyers and their families, MKT 310 offers a clear picture of what AI in the business classroom looks like at UD: human skills first, AI as a practice partner and realistic preparation.
As Friend emphasizes, business is always evolving. Courses like MKT 310, paired with AI tools, help students become continuous learners who are ready for both today’s sales roles and tomorrow’s AI-enabled workplace.
“Sales is not just a career option, but a critical skill set that strengthens professionalism across the board,” said Snider. “Whether I’m presenting an idea, negotiating, or collaborating with a team, the concepts I learned through this course like active listening and value-based communication, apply everywhere. I feel more prepared to enter the business world with confidence.”
AI in the Business Classroom: About the AI Fellows Initiative
This article is part of the AI in the Business Classroom blog series, highlighting how the University of Dayton’s business faculty is shaping the future of business education through artificial intelligence.
The AI Fellows Initiative at the University of Dayton’s School of Business Administration equips students with hands-on AI experience and the ethical mindset needed to lead in a rapidly evolving business world.