Sales Statistics

Over the past 20 years, the world has drastically changed, starting with the customers’ attitudes regarding purchasing decisions and their expectations from sellers. Old manipulative sales techniques don’t work anymore, and technological advancements have changed the game forever. If you want to survive in this dynamic world, you must be open to change. That’s why we’ve prepared some mind-blowing sales statistics to help you improve the way you sell, so let’s dive right into it.

Sales Statistics (Editor’s Choice)

• Every second prospect is not qualified to make a purchasing decision.
• 98% of cold calls are rejected.
• 50% of buyers use LinkedIn to support their decision when purchasing.
• 75% of all B2B transactions are directly made online.
• 52 is the average number of daily calls made by sales reps.
• One in 8 people in the US are employed full-time at sales positions.
• 17% of salespeople haven’t attended college.
• 48% of salespeople see low-price rivals as their greatest challenge to closing.

Sales Prospecting Statistics

1. Half of your prospects are not the right match for your product or service.

This means that you don’t have to close a deal with every person you encounter. Identifying prospects that aren’t a good fit is hard but think about the time, resources, and opportunities you’ve missed because you were chasing the wrong prospect.

(Sales Insights Lab)

2. Reaching a prospect takes eight cold calls on average, according to sales call statistics.

Most salespeople stop calling the prospect after the first few attempts, but we all know that if you want something in life you need to be persistent. Making sales calls will never be easy, but setting call goals and creating a plan to follow should make the process much easier.

(The Brevet Group)

3. Over 70% of prospective customers would like to hear from sales professionals early in their buying journey.

Research by RAIN Group addresses the misconception that buyers don’t want to hear from sellers early on in their decision-making process. Sales statistics in their study show that 71% of buyers actually want to hear from sellers. Early on, buyers are still open to new ideas, which makes this the perfect time to capture their interest.

(Marketing Dive)

4. 96% of buyers claim that sellers who focus on the value they can deliver will influence their purchasing decisions.

You’ve probably already heard the phrase “adding value.” But what does that mean? As a seller, you should provide the information, insight, and actions that the buyer cannot find on their own. Shifting the focus from yourself to customers and understanding that sales begin and end with the buyer is a real game-changer.

(Marketing Dive)

5. Prospecting through cold calling results in only 2 percent of scheduled appointments.

There are many important facts about sales, but this one deserves special attention. This fact tells us that there are more efficient ways to reach prospects than cold calling. Although cold calling is not dead by any means, you should still consider different approaches.

(Square 2 Marketing)

6. Only 15% of potential customers are satisfied with their experience over the phone.

Preparation remains the key to success. To ensure that your prospects have a positive experience over the phone, it’s always good to plan and prepare before each call, as 33% of customers expect to resolve a problem with a single interaction.

(Business 2 Community)

Business Sales Statistics

7. Before making a purchase, 82% of customers view five or more content items from the winning vendor.

Not only does this sales information emphasize the importance of content marketing, but it also reminds us that customers are doing their research before committing to a product. By sharing useful, relevant, and mobile-friendly content, you’ll easily differentiate from others who are not doing it. Teaming up with content marketing professionals might be a good idea if you don’t have an in-house content marketing team to help you deliver top-quality content.

(Propeller CRM)

8. LinkedIn is being used by more than 55% of B2B buyers to support their purchase decisions.

All sales stats indicate that buyers place their trust in their professional networks to support their purchase process. Boasting an impressive 774 million users, LinkedIn has been ranked as the most used and trusted social media by B2B buyers, which means that they use it to gather all the information they need before and during their sales journey.

(Business LinkedIn)

9. 75% of all B2B purchases are made online.

The logic behind this sales stat is obvious. Buyers now have the option to purchase 24/7, and the speed of completing the transaction is incomparable to offline purchasing. If you don’t have social channels or are not active on them, it’s time to get worried.

(Influencer Marketing Hub)

10. Businesses see a 451% increase in qualified leads using marketing automation for nurturing prospects.

Sales facts show that businesses are increasingly benefiting from marketing automation software. This type of software focuses on customer relationship management, storing all of your contacts and their activity. Automation, meanwhile, allows you to be more efficient and bring in more money.

(Salesforce)

11. 60% of B2B tech buyers are millennials.

As this age group moves into business decision-making roles, they bring a new age of B2B sales with them. Now is the time to carry out some serious research about millennials, their preferences, and motives since, according to B2B sales statistics, they account for 60% of the prospects you will get in touch with.

(TrustRadius)

12. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, 55% of companies have decided to lower their budget.

The COVID-19 pandemic affected all industries and companies. As a result, most businesses had to lower their budget.

(McKinsey)

Sales Productivity Statistics

13. Sales productivity is necessary to achieve growth, according to 71% of C-level executives.

These days everyone wants to be more productive, but only a few make it happen. To achieve high levels of productivity, you need to work smarter, not harder. If we were to apply that to sales, that would mean figuring out how to close more deals for the amount of time you spend actively selling.

(Brainshark)

14. The average sales representative makes 52 calls on a daily basis.

So, here’s the math. You make 52 calls on average, and it takes eight cold calls to reach a buyer. After all the time you have spent reaching the buyer, sales stats further reveal that 98% of cold calls don’t result in an appointment, which points to a very low time-to-productivity ratio.

(IRC Sales Solutions)

15. Sales figures reveal that 72% of reps who used social selling in their strategy met the quota 23% more often than their colleagues who didn’t.

Social selling is the art of using social media to connect with potential buyers so that when they are ready to buy, you are the first person that comes to their mind. This technique leads to better lead generation and is a perfect way to leave cold calls in the past.

(EveryoneSocial)

Sales Agent Stats

16. Full-time sales positions account for almost 13% of all jobs in the US.

No matter how much the technology improves, we will always need sales professionals. Their role, however, goes far beyond persuading people into buying something. They’re also consultants, strategists, and providers of new creative ideas.

(The Brevet Group)

17. 55% of those who make their living in sales lack the right skills to be successful.

This sales stat does not necessarily indicate the lack of talent, but rather the organization’s failure to give its sales reps proper training and resources that would make them successful at their job. However, there’s no success without hard work, and the only way to achieve that is to be committed to sales as a profession. Unfortunately, sales statistics reveal that this is not the case for as many as 80% of all salespeople.

(The Brevet Group, LinkedIn)

18. Within one year, 67 percent of sales agents have only reached out to 250 or fewer prospects.

This is a surprisingly low number for most types of sales and also means that there are people that aren’t anywhere near those 250 prospects. Meanwhile, 15% of salespeople have reached out to over 1,000 prospects over the past year, according to sales figures.

(Sales Insights Lab)

19. 44% of salespeople drop the prospect after a single follow-up call.

According to sales follow-up statistics, 60% of buyers say “no” four times before saying “yes.” When it comes to sales, it’s vital to be persistent. So, don’t shy away from rejection, and you’ll notice soon that your follow-up efforts are paying off.

(Invesp)

20. 17% of salespeople surveyed did not attend a four-year college.

Since there’s no college major in sales, 24% of salespeople majored in business, and many others had a background in engineering, liberal arts, and communications, while 17% haven’t attended college at all.

(HubSpot)

Sales Closing Statistics

21. The number one priority for 75% of companies is closing more deals.

Closing is a challenging part of the sales process, and it’s getting harder every year, but studies show that collaboration results in higher performance. In fact, 91% of the top-performing sales organizations collaborate across all departments to close big deals.

(GetAccept)

22. 48% of salespeople say that their biggest barrier to closing are low-price competitors, as confirmed.

Buyers usually opt for lower prices when purchasing, but slashing the price of your product shouldn’t be your first choice. One way you could get ahead of the competition is to provide value, customer service, and high-quality content that will establish credibility and trust. Although price plays an important role when making purchase decisions, sales facts confirm that quality and customer service will win more customers in the long run.

(Richardson)

23. Compared to other networks, leads coming from client and employee referrals have the highest lead-to-deal conversion rate, i.e., 3.6%.

The best way to get new outbound leads and potential clients is through sales referrals, as most people prefer doing business with a company they know or have heard about. This is why you should include referrals into your sales strategy.

(Salesforce)

24. Tracking closed deals to engagement on social media is common practice for 54% of salespeople.

More often than not, people invest a lot of money into social media and think that heavy use of it will somehow generate income. Social media does not close deals for you, but it helps increase potential sales. According to closing sales statistics, social media-oriented salespeople also lose fewer deals compared to their colleagues who aren’t using social media at all.

(GetAccept, Forbes)

25. The closing rate increases by 35% with the use of “We” instead of “I.”

Collaborative language sells more often than independent words. Instead of “I” and “my,” you should use “we” and “our” as it reflects team spirit and gives the prospect the impression of a whole company behind you ready to back them up.

(Map My Customers)

26. Two main factors behind lost sales are budget and timing.

This sales fact allows us to understand what makes buyers suddenly swerve away. Around 50% of deals fall through because of budget, and 25% are down to timing.

(Lead Forensics)

Door-to-Door Sales Statistics

27. Door-to-door sales is a $28.6 billion industry.

You might think of door-to-door sales as a blast from the past, but they’re actually highly effective. Door-to-door sales also require relatively low investment compared to other sales channels, which makes them appropriate for new companies with relatively limited marketing budgets.

(Zety)

28. The average sales rep can create one lead for every 50 doors they knock on, as confirmed by door-to-door sales stats.

Most people stop knocking after too many rejections or take too many breaks. When it comes to sales, tenacity pays off.

(Zety)

29. It is estimated that a sales pro’s pitch will be listened to by 25% of all contacts.

Door-to-door selling is all about presentation. If you can present your product as a solution to particular pain points faced by your clients or explain how your product can make their lives simpler, the chances of landing a sale go through the roof.

(Zety)

Inside Sales Statistics

30. Compared to outside sales, inside sales are growing 15 times faster.

Although face-to-face sales are still important, the industry is changing, and customers prefer virtual sales over in-person meetings. In fact, two-thirds of buyers prefer not meeting face-to-face.

(Zety)

31. An efficient persuasion technique is to let recipients know they are free to reject a request submitted in the email, which doubles the likelihood that they will say yes.

Cold emailing is a powerful tool if you plan it right and use it correctly. If you give someone a way out, it will double the chances of them saying yes. Forty-two psychological studies, including over 22,000 people, suggest that this method can boost the number of sales via email.

(Copper)

32. Sales stats further reveal that the ideal length of a sales email is between 50 and 125 words.

Including too much text in sales emails is one of the biggest mistakes salespeople make. Prospects don’t need to know everything immediately, nor do they have the time to read multiple paragraphs.

(Copper)

33. 76% of sales professionals say their ability to provide customers with a consistent experience has been greatly or somewhat enhanced by sales analytics.

In addition to opening the door to a more effective, precise, and personalized process, analytics also give sales teams more profound insights to improve their sales process.

(Salesforce)

34. The highest opening rate of email is on Tuesday, according to sales statistics.

An email marketing report by Experian reveals that there’s something about Tuesdays that gets people to open their emails, so you might as well use this information to send more emails out, or maybe the extra-important ones that day. When it comes to the perfect timing, 11 AM has proven to be the best time of the day for sending emails.

(LeadFuze)

Sales Statistics FAQ

How many prospects make a sale?

When a seller and buyer agree to the sale’s conditions, and the buyer makes a commitment to the transaction, a sale takes place. Therefore, it takes one prospect to make a sale.

How many touchpoints does it take to make a sale?

On average, it takes eight touchpoints to close a sale. However, every prospect is different, so this number can vary.

How many no’s before a yes in sales does it take?

Sales facts show that 60% of customers say “no” four times before saying “yes.”

What percentage of sales reps hit their yearly quota?

On average, 65% of all sales reps hit their annual quota.

What is a good sales closing percentage?

According to analyses, best-in-class companies close 30% of sales qualified leads while average companies close 20%. This implies that a good sales closing percentage is somewhere between 15-20% of closed sales.

How many calls do you need before you make a sale?

Sales statistics indicate that 80% of sales are made on the fifth to 12th contact.

How many calls should a salesperson make a day?

To get the best sales results, a salesperson should make 60 sales calls per day.

Sources: Sales Insights Lab, The Brevet Group, Marketing Dive, Square 2 Marketing, Business 2 Community, Propeller CRM, Business LinkedIn, Influencer Marketing Hub, Salesforce, TrustRadius, McKinsey, Brainshark, IRS Sales Solutions, EveryoneSocial, LinkedIn, Sales Insights Lab, Invesp, HubSpot, GetAccept, Richardson, Salesforce, Forbes, Map My Customers, Lead Forensics, Zety, Copper, Salesforce, Lead Fuze, HubSpot, Blossom Street Ventures, Growth Orbit, VentureBeat, SalesBuzz.