Key takeaways
- Conversation intelligence records calls, turns them into text and analyses the patterns.
- Transcription gives you one call; conversation analytics finds patterns across many.
- Coaching, onboarding and product feedback are the main uses.
- Recording rules differ by country, so tell participants and check consent before recording.
How conversation intelligence software works
Conversation intelligence software joins video meetings or connects to the phone system, records the call and turns it into a transcript with each speaker marked. It then tags topics, questions and next steps, writes a summary and usually attaches the call to the right contact and deal in the CRM.
Most tools also give managers a searchable library of calls, so they can find every call where a competitor or a pricing objection came up.
Sales call transcription vs conversation analytics
Sales call transcription turns one call into text, while conversation analytics looks across many calls for patterns. A transcript helps the seller remember what was agreed; analytics tells a manager that buyers keep raising the same concern at the same stage.
Common measures include how much the seller talked compared with the buyer, how many questions were asked, how long the seller spoke without a pause and which topics came up in won and lost deals.
Consent and call recording rules
Call recording rules differ by country and, in some places, by region, and some require every participant's consent. The safe practice is to tell everyone at the start of the call that it is being recorded and why, and to stop if anyone objects.
Under the UK and EU GDPR, a recording is personal data, so you need a lawful basis, a privacy notice that covers it, a set retention period and controls on who can listen. Take legal advice for the markets you sell into.
How teams use call recording and analysis
Teams use call recording and analysis mostly for coaching, onboarding and learning what buyers care about. The value comes from people reviewing calls and acting on them, not from the recordings piling up.
- Managers coach from specific moments in real calls.
- New sellers learn from a library of strong discovery calls and demos.
- Product teams hear feature requests and objections in the buyer's own words.
- Customer success reads what was promised before taking over an account.
- Marketing tests its messaging against the language buyers use.
Conversation intelligence vs revenue intelligence
Conversation intelligence focuses on what is said in calls and meetings, while revenue intelligence combines that with email, calendar and CRM activity to judge deals and support the forecast. Many products now do both, but the two jobs are worth separating when choosing.
A team that mainly wants better coaching needs strong call analysis. A team that mainly wants a trustworthy forecast needs the wider deal view.
Where Pebbles Ai fits
- CapabilityAI workspacePebbles Ai does not join, record or analyse calls. Assistant chat offers voice dictation and transcribes audio files of up to 25 MB, so notes you dictate after a call become text you can work from.
- CapabilityProspecting & customer recordsA record page in the Pebbles Ai CRM, which is in Beta, holds notes and tasks beside the activity, so what a buyer agreed on a call sits with the contact or deal.
Common questions
How long should sales call recordings be kept?
Only as long as they serve the purpose you recorded them for, such as coaching or a deal in progress. Set a retention period, delete recordings when it ends and say so in your privacy notice.
What is talk ratio in a sales call?
Talk ratio is how much of the call the seller spoke compared with the buyer. Discovery calls where the buyer does most of the talking usually surface more about their problem.
Does conversation intelligence work on phone calls?
Most tools handle both video meetings and phone calls, as long as they can connect to the meeting platform or phone system the team uses.
About this page. Written by the Pebbles Ai team for people who run sales, marketing and growth. Last updated .
