Sales Reps Spend Only 37% of Time Selling According to Research from InsideSales.com

By STS Staff Writer On Nov 13, 2017

New InsideSales.com Study Reveals That Sales Reps Spend Only 37% Of Time Selling

Sales representatives need to make much better use of their time, concludes a new report from InsideSales.com. The report was commissioned by Labs, a division of the sales acceleration SaaS software leader. The Time Management for Sales study, based on responses from nearly 200 sales reps including a dozen in-depth interviews, provides a closer look at the way inside and outside sales representatives are currently spending their time.

Lindsey Armstrong, President of InsideSales.com, said, “Sales teams have a serious challenge with time management. When 63 percent of salespeople’s time is focused on activities other than selling—whether by necessity due to policies and tools or to lack of process and organization—revenue suffers. We can see that most organizations, and the sales industry at large, have a significant requirement (and opportunity) to get these issues resolved.”

28 percent of sales reps follow a structured time management system.
37 percent of sales reps’ time is spent on revenue-generating activities.
18 percent of sales reps’ time is spent using their customer relationship management system (CRM).

The Declining Role of CRM

Perhaps the study’s most surprising result is the declining dependence on—and use of—CRM. 18 percent of a sales rep’s time is spent on CRM, while 61.7 percent of their time is spent using sales technology. Worse still, close to 10 percent of a sales rep’s time is spent in spreadsheets to help them accomplish what they wish they could do in CRM.

Armstrong continued that CRM is the most frustrating technology surveyed. As a solution, Armstrong points to the importance of recognizing CRM being useful as a system of record but reminds sales reps and leaders of CRM’s limitations as a system of sales growth. New combinations of big data paired with artificial intelligence (AI) and sales technology applications create the outcome Armstrong refers to as an “AI System of Growth,” which is what salespeople want and what will ultimately allow salespeople to achieve their full potential and reach their highest revenue goals.

Currently, InsideSales.com offers the industry’s leading AI-fueled sales acceleration platform powered by Neuralytics, a predictive and prescriptive self-learning engine that drives revenue growth. The platform helps companies acquire new customers faster and improve cross-sell/upsell conversions and rep performance.

InsideSales.com has received numerous industry awards including the 2017 AIconics Award for Best Artificial Intelligence Application for Sales and Marketing, Forbes Cloud 100 list, CNBC Disruptor 50, AlwaysOn Global 250, OnMedia 100 Top Private companies, and more.