Customer Relationship Management, or “CRM” systems, are tools designed to improve the relationship companies have with their customers. Through a CRM software, business leaders can track relationships with clients, personalize their interactions and collect useful insights.
Today, CRM technology is set to reach a value of around $128.97 billion in 2028, representing a CAGR of 12.1% in the next 7 years.
So, what do you need to know before you dive into the world of opportunities CRM has to offer?
Today, we’re going to explore some of the most valuable CRM statistics for 2024.
Let’s get started.
Key CRM Statistics – Editor’s Choice
- 79% of business buyers say it’s crucial to interact with a salesperson they deem to be a trusted advisor when making a purchase.
- 91% of data in CRM systems is predicted to be incomplete, stale, or duplicated each year.
- 74% of companies say that converting leads into their customers is their top priority.
- Salesforce, Microsoft, and Oracle have some of the highest shares of the CRM market.
- 74% of respondents say that CRM solutions give them better access to customer data, allowing for more personalized service.
- 65% of businesses adopt CRM technology within the first 5 years of launch.
General CRM Statistics
1. CRM growth isn’t slowing down
In 2020, the global market for Customer Relationship Management was valued at $52.64 billion. The impact of the pandemic in the same year accelerated the demand for CRM significantly. Companies needed a new way to connect with clients in a digital age. By 2028, CRM technology should be worth around $128.97 billion worldwide.
2. Companies usually invest in CRM technology within the first 5 years
Companies are keen to improve their relationships with clients as quickly as possible. This often means investing in CRM early – during the first 5 years of a company launching. When the technology is implemented into the company, it’s used around 80% by sales teams, 46% by marketing, and 45% by customer services.
3. The average ROI on CRM is $8.71 for each dollar spent
Nucleus Research revealed an average of $8.71 returned for every dollar spent in 2014. Though this number hasn’t been updated since then, Dynamic Consultants commented on the evolution of the CRM market in 2021, and calculated that this number may have increased to an average of around $30.48 for every dollar spent in 2021.
4. CRM technology can improve business agility
Zendesk found that around 64% of customers started using a new channel for customer service in 2020, and they increasingly want consistent experiences across every platform. 80% of companies reported having to make changes to their support technology in 2020, including adding new features and capabilities to their CRM solution
5. 91% of companies with 10 or more employees use a CRM
CRM technology is rapidly becoming a table-stakes feature in all business technology. According to industry estimates from Grandview Research, more than 91% of companies with 10 or more employees use a CRM to manage conversations with customers. CRM analytics also represent one of the fastest-growing areas of CX technology.
6. Sales teams spend around 18% of their time in CRM
Although sales teams are often considered top users of CRM technology, they only spend around 18% of their time checking out CRM insights. Additionally, sales teams might be spending around 35.2% of their time on actions unrelated to sales and customer service.
7. 68% of marketing leaders say their company competes on CX
CRM solutions are tools dedicated to the improvement of meaningful customer experience. Salesforce studies reveal that customer experience is at the top of the KPI categories for many customers. Additionally, around 68% of marketing leaders say their company is increasingly competing based on customer experience above anything else.
8. CRM will be the largest area of spending on enterprise software
By the end of this year, Gartner predicts that CRM technology will represent the largest area of enterprise software investment. Companies from small brands to large banks and consulting agencies are all increasingly turning to CRM.
9. AI CRM could deliver an extra $1.1 trillion revenues by the end of 2021
Salesforce believes that artificial intelligence and automation will be two of the major factors accelerating the growth of CRM going forward. In a report conducted during 2017, the company revealed that AI could lead to $1.1 trillion in additional CRM revenues.
CRM Adoption Statistics
10. 64% of companies say CRM tools are impactful, or very impactful
A report on the State of Sales by LinkedIn found that 64% of companies consider CRM technology to be either impactful or very impactful. Additionally, sales teams using CRMs also showed a 17% higher job satisfaction.
11. 22% of salespeople don’t know what a CRM is
CRM technology still doesn’t have the impact on the industry that it deserves. Around 22% of salespeople say they don’t know what a CRM is, and 40% of companies don’t use a CRM at all. These companies often rely on spreadsheets and email for storing customer data.
12. When adopting CRM, people want specific features
The top requested features among CRM software solutions are contact management, interaction tracking, scheduling, and reminder features, and pipeline monitoring. Customers also mention features like central databases, sales automation, and email marketing integrations.
13. Salesforce owns around 20% of the overall CRM market
Salesforce is probably the best-known company associated with CRM technology. The company has more than 150,000 customers, and more than 20% of the overall CRM market. Currently, Salesforce is growing its revenue at a rate of 23.2% annually.
14. CRM adoption is crucial for customer experience
The Salesforce State of Sales reports found that connecting with customers requires a deeper knowledge of audience data. Around 50% of teams are using data for accurate forecasts, and high performing sales teams are more likely to baser their forecasts on data-driven insights.
15. 92% of companies already use databases to store customer information
Companies are already collecting data on their customers at an incredible scale. Around 92% of teams say they use a database to store customer information. However, a lot of companies still don’t have a reliable way to manage this information.
16. Around 82% of organizations use CRM for sales reporting
Around 82% of the companies surveyed in a recent report say they use their CRM systems for sales reporting and process automation. However, senior management across companies are also relying more on CRM solutions to handle actionable customer data.
17. 75% of decision-makers say they’re now embracing more tech
The COVID pandemic pushed more companies to embrace digital tools for the management of customer conversations. Around 75% of decision-makers said the pandemic forced them to increase their investment in digital software.
Benefits of CRM Software
18. 74% of companies say CRM technology gives better access to customer data
Gaining better insights into customers is the key to delivering more personalized and meaningful experiences. Around 72% of companies say that using a CRM gives them access to better customer data. Users also recommended CRM technology for improved relationship management and enhanced interaction tracking.
19. Productivity is a major benefit of CRM technology
The improved data accessibility offered by CRM technology can reduce the complexity of the sales cycle by 8-14% on average. CRM decision-makers also claim that they benefit from a 14.6% increase in productivity when using social and mobile CRM.
20. CRM software can improve sales by up to 29%
Research from Salesforce indicates that CRM software can increase sales by as much as 29% while improving sales forecasting accuracy by up to 32% and improving sales productivity by 39%. The result is better business outcomes all around.
21. 92% of companies believe CRM technology is crucial to achieving goals
Super Office found that a valuable customer experience is the main reason or adopting a CRM solution. Around 92% of companies believe the technology is crucial to achieving their goal of “customer-centricity” and delivering more meaningful brand relationships.
22. 47% of users say CRM improves customer satisfaction
In the age of customer experience, around 47% of CRM users say CRM technology has a massive impact on their customer satisfaction rate. Capterra also found that the most desired CRM features for the biggest results were social media monitoring and social media prospecting tools.
23. Companies are Prioritizing CRM Activities
The HubSpot State of Marketing report indicates that 75% of companies believe it’s increasingly important to close more deals for their teams, and 48% want to improve the efficiency of sales funnels. 69% claim to want to turn more contacts into customers, and 33% say increasing revenue from existing customers is a priority. All of these focus points require access to a CRM.
How CRM Technology is Changing
24. Around 81% of marketers operate their CRM from multiple devices
CRM technology isn’t just for the desktop or laptop anymore. CRM solutions are becoming increasingly common on mobile devices. 81% of users say they frequently access their technology from more than one device.
25. Global Cloud CRM solutions are growing
By 2025, the cloud CRM market size is expected to reach a value of around $34.5 billion, with Salesforce, Microsoft, Adobe, SAP, and Oracle leading the way as the top industry vendors. The same report suggests that Salesforce already owns around 50% of the cloud QCRM space.
26. Social media CRM is growing
GWI finds that around 1 in 4 customers interact with their favorite brands on social media. These customers want access to more support, sales, and services on their preferred social channels, paving the way to more CRMs with social technology.
27. Interest in AI CRM is increasing rapidly
Research shows that general interest in AI for CRM technology has increased significantly since 2016, with more companies looking into tools that can help them to manage more complex data. AI could be the key to addressing the omnichannel demands of clients going forward.
CRM Technology and Customer Experience Statistics
28. CRM could be key to tracking omnichannel experiences
Now that customer experiences are happening on multiple channels, companies need more technology to track and preserve the conversation across different platforms. Around 68% of customers say its important for customer service agents to be familiar with their service history – something that CRM can offer. Additionally, 73% say they’re likely to switch brands if consistent service can’t be provided.
29. 52% of companies say CRMs could reduce the silos in customer data
When examining the benefits of CRM technology, Super Office found that around 52% of companies are looking at CRM technology as a way to reduce the silos between teams in the workplace. Other challenges that teams want to overcome include a culture not aligned around customer needs (39%), and missing platforms for managing data (35%).
30. 52% of customers go out of their way to buy from their favorite brands
Customers are increasingly showing loyalty to companies that can offer better experiences through CRM insights and personalization. Zendesk found that personalized experiences drives loyalty, and 52% of loyal customers will go above and beyond to buy from their favorite brands, even if that means spending more.
31. The pandemic accelerated demand for CRM
Salesforce found that 88% of service teams found gaps in their technology solutions (including CRM software) during the pandemic. Now, 77% of agents also say their job is more strategic and requires more data than it did 2 years ago. Additionally, 81% of decision makers are accelerating their digital initiatives following the pandemic.
32. Customer satisfaction and retention are both influenced by the CRM
47% of users polled in a Capterra study said that customer satisfaction significantly improved, along with customer retention when they were using a CRM system. Users of the CRM also saw a 45% increase in sales revenue, and a 39% improvement in cross-selling and upselling success.
CRM Software – Next Steps
To say you’ve got a lot of information in terms of CRM statistics would be quite the understatement. But with all this data, you should be able to make an informed decision about investing in CRM and pave the way for a seamless business experience.
Now for the next steps. With our buyer’s guide on the best CRM software you can get a little more information about how to choose and how much this software will cost your specific business.
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