How professionals can use AI to strengthen relationships and accelerate growth

Using AI to strengthen relationships and accelerate growth.

This post is part of the Partnered Intelligence series exploring practical AI tools for professional-services marketers. Each installment focuses on a specific marketing or communications need — from PR and content to design, video, and business development — and the AI tools that can make your work faster, smarter, and more impactful. Today’s focus: business development and relationship strategy.

When most people think about AI in marketing, they picture automation or content creation. But one of the most exciting frontiers is relationship-building — using AI to help professionals nurture the right connections, personalize outreach, and plan business development activity with more focus and less friction.

AI doesn’t replace the human touch that drives growth. Instead, it helps you make more of it possible. By handling the busywork, surfacing insights, and tracking follow-up opportunities, AI gives you the bandwidth to focus where it matters most: trust and connection.

Here are a few tools I’ve found especially promising for relationship-driven marketing and BD.

GrowBIG AI (See previous post for more detailed information.)

Best for: Business development coaching, relationship strategy, and outreach planning. Why it matters: Built on the GrowBIG System’s “Give to Get” philosophy, GrowBIG AI acts like a virtual BD coach. It helps professionals generate client outreach ideas, track follow-ups, and even role-play scenarios for better conversations. Pro tip: Use it as a personal accountability partner — set weekly goals for outreach, and let the tool prompt you with value-driven reasons to connect.

AI-Assisted CRM Tools

Best for: Pipeline and relationship management.

Why it matters: Many CRM platforms (like HubSpot, Salesforce, and Zoho) are adding built-in AI assistants that automate reminders, draft meeting recaps, and suggest next steps based on client behavior.

Pro tip: Pilot these features to reduce manual entry — but make sure you maintain clear data governance and privacy standards.

ChatGPT

Best for: Crafting outreach messages, follow-up notes, and thought-starter ideas.

Why it matters: ChatGPT can quickly tailor messages to different audiences or help you refine how you articulate your value proposition.

Pro tip: Ask it to “rewrite this message to sound warmer and more collaborative” or “draft a two-line follow-up after meeting at a conference.” Then personalize before sending.

Prowly

Best for: Tracking journalist and influencer relationships that overlap with BD efforts.

Why it matters: While designed for PR, Prowly’s CRM-style tracking can help teams manage outreach across media, referral sources, and key contacts.

Pro tip: Use its tagging and notes features to centralize relationship history so multiple team members stay aligned.

Making It Work

If you’re integrating AI into BD, start small:

1. Use AI for idea generation — outreach topics, event follow-ups, or thought-leadership collaborations.

2. Add automation for consistency — reminders, summaries, and templates.

3. Keep authenticity at the center — personalize every touchpoint.

AI can amplify your relationship habits, but only if they’re grounded in genuine connection.

Partnered Intelligence POV

Relationship-building is still the heartbeat of professional services. The difference today is that AI can make it more intentional, trackable, and scalable.

I’ve seen teams expand their BD momentum simply by using AI to stay organized and proactive — not reactive. The professionals who thrive in this next era will be those who combine empathy and technology to build meaningful momentum.

👉 What AI tools (or habits) are helping you nurture relationships more effectively?