Does AI Mean Your Sales Funnel Should Be Worse? with Tanner Sherman

<p>For twenty years the rule was simple: get more people into the top of the funnel. AI broke that rule. Jonathan Green talks with Tanner Sherman (Principal &amp; Managing Broker, Top Tier Investment Firm, Omaha) about what happens when inquiring costs nothing — 150 "is this still available?" messages a day, 1,500 inquiries per rental, and a signed-lease rate that fell from one in 80 to one in fifteen hundred. The fix is not a better funnel. It is a deliberately worse one.</p><p><b>Key Takeaways:</b></p><ul><li>AI did not create more demand, it created more noise. Tanner's team went from roughly one signed lease per 80 inquiries to one per 1,500 once "I'm interested" became a single tap.</li><li>Deliberate friction is the filter. An auto-reply that asks people to text the office cuts 1,500 inquiries down to 100–150 actual humans, then to 10–12 showings, then to one lease.</li><li>Stop optimizing for engagement and start optimizing for proof of commitment. Reach, clicks and inquiries are exactly the numbers AI inflates fastest — the number that matters is who took a costly step.</li><li>Referrals repriced overnight. When résumés, portfolios and proof can all be generated, a person somebody actually knows beats a better-qualified stranger.</li><li>Delegate to AI the way you delegate to people, using the four levels: investigation, informed progress, informed results, ownership. Most people never leave level one and then blame the tool.</li></ul><p><b>Notable Quotes:</b></p><p>"It's become too easy to inquire. We get spammed with probably 150 'is this still available's a day." — Tanner Sherman</p><p>"Whether you're hiring a VA, a US-based employee, or delegating to AI, the intention of the employer needs to be clear as to what level you're utilizing that skill." — Tanner Sherman</p><p><b>Connect with Tanner Sherman:</b></p><ul><li>LinkedIn: <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/tanner-sherman-707529222" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">https://www.linkedin.com/in/tanner-sherman-707529222</a></li><li>Website: Top Tier Investment Firm — <a href="https://toptierinvestmentfirm.com" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">https://toptierinvestmentfirm.com</a></li><li>Podcast: Freedom Fighter Podcast — <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/freedom-fighter-podcast/id1765821493" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/freedom-fighter-podcast/id1765821493</a></li></ul><p>Enjoyed this? Follow The Artificial Intelligence Podcast and