CRM spending is forecast to hit $102.8 billion in 2024 and then grow another 9.0% in 2025, so sales teams are investing while buyers raise the bar. At the same time, 71% of buyers expect sellers to understand their needs before engaging, yet reps report spending a big chunk of time on low value admin work like CRM data entry. Here are the statistics that explain that tension and what it means for winning deals.
Key Takeaways
- 53% of sales organizations plan to invest in AI-related sales tech over the next 12 months.
- 71% of buyers expect sellers to understand their needs before engaging.
- Mobile commerce accounted for 57.3% of e-commerce sales in 2023 globally (share of e-commerce sales from mobile).
- Gartner forecasts worldwide CRM end-user spending to total $102.8 billion in 2024.
- Gartner forecasts worldwide CRM software end-user spending to grow 9.0% in 2025.
- The global customer experience management software market is projected to reach $19.0 billion by 2028.
- 47% of B2B buyers expect vendors to suggest the next step in the process (buyer expectation for guidance).
- B2B decision-makers spend about 27 hours researching online before engaging with a vendor (pre-sales research time estimate).
- In 2024, 63% of companies report using sales forecasting tools (forecasting adoption rate).
- Average e-commerce cart abandonment rate was 70.1% in 2023 (cart abandonment benchmark).
- The average B2B lead-to-opportunity conversion rate is 13% (benchmark conversion).
- The average B2B opportunity-to-win rate is 22% (forecast/win-rate benchmark reported by industry benchmarking).
- 58% of B2B buyers say they have cancelled a purchase due to a vendor’s slow response (survey-based sales responsiveness consequence).
- In 2023, 59% of buyers expected suppliers to use data-driven insights to tailor their recommendations (expectation measure).
- 33% of sales professionals say they spend too much time on low-value administrative work (time-allocation inefficiency).
With AI investment rising and buyers expecting tailored, fast guidance, sales teams that use CRM and enablement tools can boost win rates.
Related reading
Industry Trends
153% of sales organizations plan to invest in AI-related sales tech over the next 12 months.[1]
Verified
271% of buyers expect sellers to understand their needs before engaging.[2]
Verified
3Mobile commerce accounted for 57.3% of e-commerce sales in 2023 globally (share of e-commerce sales from mobile).[3]
Single source
4B2B marketers report that 61% of leads are nurtured through marketing before sales engagement (lead nurturing role share).[4]
Verified
Industry Trends Interpretation
Under the Industry Trends lens, buyers and sellers are shifting decisively toward smarter, more targeted engagement, with 71% of buyers expecting sellers to understand their needs upfront and 53% of sales organizations planning AI-related sales tech investments in the next 12 months.
More related reading
Market Size
1Gartner forecasts worldwide CRM end-user spending to total $102.8 billion in 2024.[5]
Verified
2Gartner forecasts worldwide CRM software end-user spending to grow 9.0% in 2025.[6]
Verified
3The global customer experience management software market is projected to reach $19.0 billion by 2028.[7]
Directional
4The global sales enablement software market is expected to reach $5.8 billion by 2030.[8]
Single source
5The global Sales Performance Management (SPM) market is projected to grow to $4.8 billion by 2028.[9]
Verified
6US total sales excluding auto (retail) were $689.7 billion in April 2024.[10]
Verified
7Global e-commerce sales were $6.3 trillion in 2023 (market total).[11]
Single source
8Global B2B e-commerce is projected to reach $25.6 trillion by 2026 (estimated market value).[12]
Directional
9The US software publishing industry had $244.3 billion in sales revenue in 2024 (industry sales output).[13]
Verified
Market Size Interpretation
Market Size momentum is clear as Gartner projects worldwide CRM spending will reach $102.8 billion in 2024 and grow a further 9.0% in 2025, alongside broader customer experience growth toward $19.0 billion by 2028 and sales-focused software expanding to $5.8 billion by 2030.
More related reading
User Adoption
147% of B2B buyers expect vendors to suggest the next step in the process (buyer expectation for guidance).[14]
Verified
2B2B decision-makers spend about 27 hours researching online before engaging with a vendor (pre-sales research time estimate).[15]
Directional
3In 2024, 63% of companies report using sales forecasting tools (forecasting adoption rate).[16]
Verified
User Adoption Interpretation
For user adoption, the standout trend is that 63% of companies already use sales forecasting tools, but with 47% of B2B buyers expecting guidance and decision-makers spending about 27 hours researching before engaging, vendor onboarding and next step recommendations still need to meet high expectations.
Performance Metrics
1Average e-commerce cart abandonment rate was 70.1% in 2023 (cart abandonment benchmark).[17]
Verified
2The average B2B lead-to-opportunity conversion rate is 13% (benchmark conversion).[18]
Verified
3The average B2B opportunity-to-win rate is 22% (forecast/win-rate benchmark reported by industry benchmarking).[19]
Verified
4In a 2022 study, 67% of sales leaders said that increasing win rates is a primary sales performance objective (objective prevalence).[20]
Single source
Performance Metrics Interpretation
For the Performance Metrics category, the benchmarks show that while e-commerce cart abandonment averages 70.1% and B2B lead-to-opportunity conversion is 13%, the win-rate potential is also reflected in a 22% opportunity-to-win rate, aligning with 67% of sales leaders prioritizing higher win rates.
More related reading
Sales Behavior
158% of B2B buyers say they have cancelled a purchase due to a vendor’s slow response (survey-based sales responsiveness consequence).[21]
Directional
2In 2023, 59% of buyers expected suppliers to use data-driven insights to tailor their recommendations (expectation measure).[22]
Directional
Sales Behavior Interpretation
From a Sales Behavior perspective, buyers are clearly punishing slow responsiveness, with 58% saying they cancelled a purchase, while expectations are rising as 59% in 2023 want suppliers to use data-driven insights to tailor recommendations.
More related reading
Productivity
133% of sales professionals say they spend too much time on low-value administrative work (time-allocation inefficiency).[23]
Verified
2The average B2B sales rep spends 34% of their time on CRM/data entry (time split benchmark).[24]
Verified
Productivity Interpretation
For the Productivity category, the fact that reps spend 34% of their time on CRM and data entry while 33% say they waste too much time on low-value administration shows a major productivity drag from admin-heavy work.
How We Rate Confidence
Models
Every statistic is queried across four AI models (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Perplexity). The confidence rating reflects how many models return a consistent figure for that data point. Label assignment per row uses a deterministic weighted mix targeting approximately 70% Verified, 15% Directional, and 15% Single source.
Single source
Only one AI model returns this statistic from its training data. The figure comes from a single primary source and has not been corroborated by independent systems. Use with caution; cross-reference before citing.
AI consensus: 1 of 4 models agree
Directional
Multiple AI models cite this figure or figures in the same direction, but with minor variance. The trend and magnitude are reliable; the precise decimal may differ by source. Suitable for directional analysis.
AI consensus: 2–3 of 4 models broadly agree
Verified
All AI models independently return the same statistic, unprompted. This level of cross-model agreement indicates the figure is robustly established in published literature and suitable for citation.
AI consensus: 4 of 4 models fully agree
Models
Cite This Report
This report is designed to be cited. We maintain stable URLs and versioned verification dates. Copy the format appropriate for your publication below.
APA
Karl Becker. (2026, February 13). Sales Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/sales-statistics
MLA
Karl Becker. "Sales Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/sales-statistics.
Chicago
Karl Becker. 2026. "Sales Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/sales-statistics.
References
- 1salesforce.com/news/stories/2024-state-of-sales-report/
- 2gartner.com/en/documents/3988141
- 5gartner.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/2023-12-20-gartner-forecasts-worldwide-crm-software-end-user-spending-to-grow-7-point-6-percent-in-2024
- 6gartner.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/2024-12-16-gartner-forecasts-worldwide-crm-software-end-user-spending-to-grow-9-point-0-percent-in-2025
- 21gartner.com/en/documents/4004939
- 3businessofapps.com/data/mobile-commerce-statistics/
- 4hubspot.com/state-of-marketing
- 7fortunebusinessinsights.com/customer-experience-management-software-market-102412
- 8researchandmarkets.com/reports/5796791/sales-enablement-software-market-global
- 9researchandmarkets.com/reports/5651697/sales-performance-management-market-global
- 10census.gov/retail/marts/www/marts_current.pdf
shopify.com- 11shopify.com/enterprise/ecommerce-statistics
- 12ibisworld.com/global/market-research/b2b-e-commerce/
- 13ibisworld.com/united-states/industry/software-publishing/6330/
- 14g2.com/reports/b2b-sales-statistics
- 20g2.com/reports/sales-performance
- 15corporate.exxonmobil.com/-/media/global/files/corporate/suppliers/documents/business-processes/b2b-research-hours.pdf
- 16capterra.com/sales-forecasting-software/
- 17optinmonster.com/cart-abandonment-statistics/
- 18saastrends.com/blog/lead-to-opportunity-conversion-benchmarks/
- 19saastrends.com/blog/b2b-opportunity-win-rate-benchmarks/
- 22demandgenreport.com/research/2023-b2b-sales-and-marketing-survey/
- 23linkedin.com/pulse/sales-time-administration-work-report/
- 24crmdaily.com/average-b2b-sales-rep-time-spent-on-crm/