"what is crm software" is the most-searched sales question in the US
The Most-Googled Sales Questions. Published October 2026.
A Hollerly study, October 2026.
Key findings
- "what is crm software" is the most-searched sales question on Google in the US, at 12,100 searches a month.
- "what is a sales associate" ranks second (8,100 a month) and "what is b2b sales" third (8,100).
- There are 680 distinct sales questions with measurable US search volume, adding up to 233,170 searches a month.
- 78.8% of that question volume starts with "what" and 14.9% starts with "how".
- "Sales basics" questions draw 142,340 monthly searches, the most of any topic group.
Definitions beat tactics
People ask Google about sales in plain terms. The biggest questions are definitions: what a role is, what a term means, how a number is calculated. Tactical questions about prospecting and closing draw much less volume.
| Rank | Question | Monthly US searches |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | what is crm software | 12,100 |
| 2 | what is a sales associate | 8,100 |
| 3 | what is b2b sales | 8,100 |
| 4 | what is sales | 4,400 |
| 5 | what is a unique selling proposition | 3,600 |
| 6 | what is a retail sales associate | 3,600 |
| 7 | what does a sales associate do | 2,900 |
| 8 | what is net sales | 2,400 |
| 9 | how to get net sales | 2,400 |
| 10 | what is inside sales | 2,400 |
| 11 | how do you get net sales | 2,400 |
| 12 | how to find net sales | 2,400 |
| 13 | is salesforce a crm | 2,400 |
| 14 | what are crm systems | 2,400 |
| 15 | what is a sales representative | 2,400 |
What people ask, by topic
Every question falls into one of four topic buckets, defined by keyword rules. General sales basics (definitions and calculations) make up the largest group by volume, followed by questions that name a role, a pay model or a tool. Prospecting and closing questions draw far less search volume than definitions.
| Topic | Questions | Monthly searches |
|---|---|---|
| Sales basics | 489 | 142,340 |
| Roles, pay and tools | 140 | 80,310 |
| Prospecting and pipeline | 36 | 8,430 |
| Pitching and closing | 15 | 2,090 |
Why it matters for sales content
Most sales content is written for practitioners who already know the vocabulary. The search data says a large share of demand comes from people at the start: new reps, career changers and buyers trying to understand a process. Content that answers the basic question first and the tactical one second matches how people search.
"What" questions account for 78.8% of question volume and "how" questions for 14.9%. The remaining volume is split among why, can, should and similar openers.
Hollerly's LinkedIn message automation tool writes each message with AI and follows up on LinkedIn and email until someone replies.
About the data
- Data: average monthly US Google search volume (English) for the most recent 12 months as of October 2026.
- Scope: the top 1,000 keywords by volume related to 30 sales topics (for example sales pitch, cold calling, prospecting, sales quota, b2b sales), limited to keywords that start with a question word and contain a sales term. Non-sales meanings such as sales tax, toll free and garage sales are excluded, leaving 680 questions.
- Calculation: questions are ranked by monthly search volume. Topic buckets are defined by keyword rules (listed in data.xlsx).
- Limitations: the 1,000-keyword limit means low-volume long-tail questions are underrepresented. Search volumes are rounded estimates. Close variants are counted separately.
Sources
- Average monthly US Google search volume (English), most recent 12 months as of October 2026
Source: Hollerly, The Most-Googled Sales Questions, October 2026. https://hollerlyai.com/research/most-googled-sales-questions
Charts and data are free to use under CC BY 4.0 with a link to this page. Press questions: hello@hollerlyai.com