The big benchmark for B2B sales: 2023, a fascinating year for Sales!
Posted: Sun Feb 16, 2025 10:02 am
Sales benchmarks in 2023: are you average?
The average KPIs for the sales function come to us from a survey by HubSpot, administered to 1,477 sales professionals around the world (including France). Here are some benchmarks to assess your sales performance in 2023 :
The average conversion rate (sale) is around 21% ;
The average closing rate is around 29% ;
The median sale amount is $4,000 (47% of all transactions are between $1,000 and $5,000);
91% of sales professionals practice upselling , and upselling tactics generated 21% of companies' revenue in 2023;
87% of sales professionals practice cross -selling , with again 21% of turnover spain telegram data generated by this tactic;
Logically, 42% of the turnover of the overwhelming majority of companies was generated on the existing customer portfolio, through cross-selling or upselling.
Let’s now move on to the trends that emerged or consolidated in 2023 .
The B2B Super-Buyer Becomes Even More Autonomous with AI
Even before the arrival of AI, we had seen the emergence of a more autonomous, better informed and more demanding super-buyer, thanks to several factors in the macro environment:
The unbridled digitalization of the purchasing journey during and after the pandemic break;
The arrival of millennials and generation Z in the purchasing function ( 75% of decisions are made by these generations according to a PYMNTS study);
These buyers, now accustomed to online purchasing in their daily B2C experiences, expect the same standards in B2B (intuitiveness, ease, speed, even entertainment);
The uncertain situation pushes them to be even more vigilant, because they have even less room for error than in the past .
Also according to HubSpot, 96% of salespeople say that prospects they interact with for the first time have usually already researched the product or the company offering it.
Also, 71% of buyers say they prefer to collect the information they can glean themselves before contacting a salesperson.
AI therefore only strengthens the super-buyer's capabilities to make him more informed and more confident than ever. Gartner already explained three years ago that the B2B salesperson had to migrate from a role of "promoter" to that of "sense maker" .
For HubSpot, it must present itself as a "consultant" to find its place in the purchasing cycle of its target. A consultant will therefore help the buyer to prioritize the information he has collected, to draw relevant insights from it , to confront them with the reality on the ground using case studies proposed by the salesperson, to make comparisons, to anticipate an ROI , etc.
“ Salespeople must now prioritize building strong relationships, building trust with buyers, understanding their specific needs and challenges, and using AI to deliver a highly personalized experience ,” the HubSpot study reads.
In short, AI should benefit both parties to finally align the B2B buying experience with expected standards, whether in terms of quality of the relationship, productivity of conversations and shortening the sales or purchase cycle, depending on the perspective.
The average KPIs for the sales function come to us from a survey by HubSpot, administered to 1,477 sales professionals around the world (including France). Here are some benchmarks to assess your sales performance in 2023 :
The average conversion rate (sale) is around 21% ;
The average closing rate is around 29% ;
The median sale amount is $4,000 (47% of all transactions are between $1,000 and $5,000);
91% of sales professionals practice upselling , and upselling tactics generated 21% of companies' revenue in 2023;
87% of sales professionals practice cross -selling , with again 21% of turnover spain telegram data generated by this tactic;
Logically, 42% of the turnover of the overwhelming majority of companies was generated on the existing customer portfolio, through cross-selling or upselling.
Let’s now move on to the trends that emerged or consolidated in 2023 .
The B2B Super-Buyer Becomes Even More Autonomous with AI
Even before the arrival of AI, we had seen the emergence of a more autonomous, better informed and more demanding super-buyer, thanks to several factors in the macro environment:
The unbridled digitalization of the purchasing journey during and after the pandemic break;
The arrival of millennials and generation Z in the purchasing function ( 75% of decisions are made by these generations according to a PYMNTS study);
These buyers, now accustomed to online purchasing in their daily B2C experiences, expect the same standards in B2B (intuitiveness, ease, speed, even entertainment);
The uncertain situation pushes them to be even more vigilant, because they have even less room for error than in the past .
Also according to HubSpot, 96% of salespeople say that prospects they interact with for the first time have usually already researched the product or the company offering it.
Also, 71% of buyers say they prefer to collect the information they can glean themselves before contacting a salesperson.
AI therefore only strengthens the super-buyer's capabilities to make him more informed and more confident than ever. Gartner already explained three years ago that the B2B salesperson had to migrate from a role of "promoter" to that of "sense maker" .
For HubSpot, it must present itself as a "consultant" to find its place in the purchasing cycle of its target. A consultant will therefore help the buyer to prioritize the information he has collected, to draw relevant insights from it , to confront them with the reality on the ground using case studies proposed by the salesperson, to make comparisons, to anticipate an ROI , etc.
“ Salespeople must now prioritize building strong relationships, building trust with buyers, understanding their specific needs and challenges, and using AI to deliver a highly personalized experience ,” the HubSpot study reads.
In short, AI should benefit both parties to finally align the B2B buying experience with expected standards, whether in terms of quality of the relationship, productivity of conversations and shortening the sales or purchase cycle, depending on the perspective.