2024 was the year that business finally turned the corner from “post-pandemic” to “post-post-pandemic”. After years of alternating malaise and panic, many companies saw their sales numbers pick up and their customers gain appetite. Even with some remaining worries about economic trends and geopolitical risks, there are plenty of reasons for your sales strategies to reflect this optimism.

At least that’s what our Chief Revenue Officer Survey revealed. Conducted in mid-2024, this survey asked revenue leaders nationwide about their companies’ performance, their sales teams’ capabilities, and their technology investments, resulting in insights into where sales teams are focused.

Of course, it’s not all sunshine and rainbows. Sales leaders still have numerous challenges to navigate, internal and external. In this article, we’ll recap a few trends our survey revealed and suggest some steps sales leaders can take to thrive in 2025.

1. The Data Supports an Optimistic View.

While CROs still have concerns about their own performance, and they worry that economic trends could disrupt their year, they’re mainly confident in meeting their goals. Data shows companies preparing to build their revenue pipelines and capitalize on growth trends. They’re increasing their sales goals, expanding their sales teams, and considering big investments for the year ahead.

It’s not just our survey that supports this. Employment numbers and market data indicates a soft landing from pandemic-era chaos, buoyed by falling interest rates. Companies should prepare to take advantage, investing in a more ambitious sales plan that matches a more bullish market.

2. Last Year Was for Attracting Customers, and Next Year Is for Monetizing Them.

Choosing where to focus is critical for sellers. Though sales leaders see opportunity in a wide range of areas, one trend emerged: In 2024, revenue leaders saw attracting net new logos as their most urgent priority. In 2025, however, their sales strategies hinge on cross-sell and upsell motions, to monetize their new accounts. Generally, this is a sound strategy—just remember that a healthy sales approach will have new accounts constantly being engaged and upgraded over the course of the year. Make sure you’re keeping a good balance of prospects moving through your sales system.

3. Sales Cycles Keep Getting Longer.

Every year, companies report longer and longer sales cycles, driven by increasing cost sensitivity and complex approval processes. Buyer approval was ranked as a top concern again as sellers encountered additional layers of approvals and vetting.

Companies can’t thrive if deals keep taking longer and longer to close. CROs should consider how they can accelerate the parts of the sales cycle that are under their control. While a seller can’t make their customer sign a contract, they can implement systems that speed up negotiations and signing, shortening cycles and delivering better service.

4. Sales Targets Are Going Up, But Headcount Isn’t Always Following.

In a stronger market, competition for sales talent will be especially fierce. In our survey results, many organizations anticipate being asked to grow their revenue in 2025 without a corresponding increase in sales headcount.

If your organization must navigate this challenge, consider how you can manage your existing headcount more effectively. Can you reduce back-office responsibilities off your sales reps? Can you provide better training? Can you leverage technology to identify quality accounts more quickly?

5. “Pretty Good” Isn’t Good Enough When It Comes to Sales Technology.

On balance, surveyed CROs considered their technology to be merely alright, reporting that their go-to-market, contracting, and sales performance management systems were average at best. This is far from catastrophic—pretty good is better than bad, and it likely means these technologies are performing their basic functions.

However, average technology performance likely means you’re not getting your money’s worth. Other data seems to bear that out: CROs continue to report challenges that better technology can fix. By either investing more in optimization or in using the capabilities you already have, you may be able to gain a competitive advantage from your existing tech spend.

6. Data Readiness Is the Foundation of New Capabilities, But Too Many Organizations Aren’t Prepared.

Business analytics tools are getting more powerful every day, and AI has opened an exciting new frontier for businesses. Unfortunately, many CROs report data challenges that they’ll need to solve before they can reap the benefits. Data quality is one key issue: Many companies lack confidence in their data, and so any analytics built on that data will also be untrustworthy. Others say that their systems aren’t connected—which leads to similar problems. With silos between teams managing different systems, it’ll be difficult to get the business aligned on which numbers are right. Whatever challenges your business faces, good underlying data is a prerequisite for modern analytics.

Read our CRO Survey Report for More Details and More Data.

With a strong year for sales coming up, sales leaders have a big opportunity to drive success for their organizations through smart sales strategies and tactics. The data in our CRO Survey report shows where these leaders are investing, what worries them, and how they plan to make shifts in the year ahead. Download the report for more insights. Still have questions? Check out our webinar where we’ll unpack the results of the survey in more detail.