Tuesday, 1 July 2025
28.1 C
Singapore
27.4 C
Thailand
19.9 C
Indonesia
27.7 C
Philippines

Salesforce report highlights challenges for Singapore’s sales professionals

Salesforce's new report reveals the challenges faced by sales professionals in Singapore, including adapting to customer expectations and integrating AI technology.

Salesforce, a global leader in CRM, has released its latest “State of Sales” report, which provides insights from 5,500 sales professionals across 27 countries, including 100 from Singapore. The report details the balancing act that sales teams face between leveraging technological advancements and fostering trusted customer relationships in a competitive environment.

Struggle to meet changing customer expectations

The report points out that adapting to changing customer expectations is the foremost challenge for sales teams globally, a sentiment echoed by 66% of sales professionals in Singapore who find it increasingly difficult compared to last year. Moreover, sales professionals in Singapore spend only 29% of their working hours engaging with customers, which is significantly lower than desired.

The surge in AI adoption faces hurdles

Sales teams are increasingly adopting AI to boost productivity and personalise experiences. However, the report reveals significant challenges in fully realising AI’s potential. While 73% of sales teams in Singapore have either fully implemented or are experimenting with AI, issues such as trust in data, security, integration, and inadequate employee training, are notable hurdles. Only 17% of sales professionals in Singapore trust their data’s accuracy, affecting crucial aspects of sales like target setting, forecasting, and gathering competitive intelligence.

Improvements in employee retention amid tight labour market

On a global scale, sales staff retention has improved, with the average turnover reducing from 25% in 2022 to 18% over the last 12 months. In Singapore, the turnover rate is slightly higher at 20%, but only 8% of sales professionals are currently looking to switch jobs, indicating a stabilising labour market within the sales sector.

Sujith Abraham, Senior Vice President and General Manager at Salesforce ASEAN, stated, “Evolving customer expectations means that sales professionals must find more time to better understand and build deep relationships with customers. AI has the potential to enhance sales professionals’ productivity, giving them more time to deepen connections with customers.” He also highlighted the need for accurate data and trust to effectively implement AI, recommending a unified platform that provides reliable AI outputs to increase productivity.

Hot this week

Garmin launches quatix 8 smartwatch for mariners in Singapore

Garmin introduces quatix 8 in Singapore, a rugged smartwatch for mariners with marine tools, AMOLED display, and long battery life.

NVIDIA reveals RTX 5050 entry-level GPU – but is it worth your money?

NVIDIA’s RTX 5050 launches at US$249 with DLSS 3 and Blackwell tech, but better GPU options are only slightly more expensive.

Apple’s AirTag 2 is nearly ready, but the launch may be delayed until autumn

AirTag 2 is nearly ready, but a new report suggests Apple may delay the launch to autumn alongside the iPhone 17.

Moneythor launches AI Suite to help banks deliver deeper customer experiences

Moneythor unveils AI Suite to help banks deliver personalised, app-like customer experiences and improve digital engagement.

Baidu’s Apollo Go eyes Southeast Asia in global robotaxi push

Baidu's Apollo Go plans to launch robotaxi services in Southeast Asia by late 2025 as global autonomous driving competition heats up.

Spotify lets you personalise your Discover Weekly playlist like never before

Spotify now lets you personalise Discover Weekly with genre filters, such as pop and R&B, helping you better shape your weekly playlist.

Hundreds of Brother printers have a serious flaw you can’t entirely fix

Hundreds of Brother printers have a flaw that lets hackers guess your admin password and one critical issue can't be fixed with updates.

Dubai gears up for air taxi revolution

Joby delivers its first air taxi to Dubai, moving closer to a 2026 launch and signalling real progress in the future of flying taxis.

Anker recalls five more power banks over fire risk concerns

Anker is recalling five more power banks due to fire risks and urges users to stop using them immediately and seek a free replacement or gift card.

Related Articles

Popular Categories