The triggers and consequences of digital sales: a systematic literature review

Abstract

The megatrend of digitalization has the potential to fundamentally change sales practices. This is because digital technologies impact the entire sales organization and can significantly support the daily work of salespeople or even replace human salespeople. Despite the growing interest in digital sales in practice and academia, the phenomenon remains little understood. Therefore, this article looks at (1) the triggers of digital transformation in sales and (2) how the digital transformation in sales affects the sales environment and the role of the sales function in firms, before presenting (3) unanswered research questions on digital sales. Our literature review provides an overview of the current body of knowledge on digital sales and reveals that technology is not entirely replacing human salespeople. Indeed, whilst the customer-sales relationship (information, communication, and interaction) is changing, the future of sales is likely to be a mixture of digital and non-digital channels. The literature review also reveals that the keys to competitive advantage are analyzing customer needs, applying technologies to meet the new relationship requirements, making data-driven decisions, and changing the sales function.

Keywords:

• Systematic review
• digital
• sales
• ecosystem
• transformation
• automation

Digital transformation is fundamentally changing sales (Alamäki and Korpela 2021, p. 302), as has been discussed intensively in practice and research (Alavi and Habel 2021, p. 83). The major changes in sales are triggered by technological advancements (Mattila, Yrjölä, and Hautamäki 2021, p. 113) that transform how organizations and customers interact (Lee and Cho 2020, p. 332; Yadav and Pavlou 2020, p. 133). These disruptions present several opportunities. Firstly, digitalized sales can lead to substantial productivity gains (Wengler, Hildmann, and Vossebein 2021, p. 599). Secondly, due to growing internet access, products are easier to distribute internationally (Lindh et al. 2020, p. 324). Thirdly, 44% of millennial buyers prefer no interactions with sales representatives, and one-third of all buyers prefer a seller-free sales experience (Gartner, Inc 2020b, pp. 2, 3, 6). Following these opportunities, the future of sales will be more digitalized, and companies with sophisticated digital assets will have significantly higher profits than companies with less well developed digital capabilities (Schürmann et al. 2017).

Alongside these opportunities, the digital transformation of sales also presents several challenges for companies and complicates sales (Alamäki and Korpela 2021, pp. 307–308). In today’s sales environment, companies must adapt to a new breed of customers who are more knowledgeable (Fergurson, Gironda, and Petrescu 2021, pp. 652–653; Rodriguez, Peterson, and Krishnan 2012, p. 375), depend less on salespeople (Bongers, Schumann, and Schmitz 2021, p. 153), and are the controlling participant in the interaction (Dixon and Tanner 2012, p. 12). Therefore, to ensure competitiveness, companies invest increasingly in their digital transformation (Guenzi and Habel 2020, p. 57; Lee and Cho 2020, p. 332). This transformation affects the salesforce’s structures, strategies, and capabilities and is, therefore, a driving force in changing the entire sales management and ecosystem (Mattila, Yrjölä, and Hautamäki 2021).

Accordingly, technological development can be a source of competitive advantage and a threat to ongoing survival for other companies (Deloitte Development LLC 2020, p. 7), and can force companies to adapt their management practices, strategies, and business models (Fernandez-Vidal et al. 2022). Because digital sales requires a fundamental change of the sales domain (Andzulis, Panagopoulos, and Rapp 2012, p. 311) and changes the way companies do business, research and practice are increasingly focusing on the digital transformation of sales (Kraus et al. 2022; Rodriguez, L. Dixon, and W. Peltier 2014).

Previous research is somewhat fragmented and has focused on the adoption of digital technologies in sales (e.g., Mahlamäki et al. 2020; Sanakulov, Kalliomaa, and Karjaluoto 2018) and how digital transformation in sales should be introduced from a strategic perspective (Guenzi and Habel 2020). Moreover, a vast amount of research deals with the effect of digital technologies on sales function and company performance (Guenzi and Nijssen 2021; Hallikainen, Savimäki, and Laukkanen 2020; Hunter 2019). Although the customer orientation is crucial for a beneficial customer-sales relationship (Fergurson, Gironda, and Petrescu 2021, p. 653), previous research is relatively silent regarding customer perspectives on sales digitalization (Mahlamäki et al. 2020, p. 162). Moreover, it remains unclear as to how digital technologies will change salespeople’s roles and skills and how sales can effectively integrate digital technologies to satisfy customers (Bongers, Schumann, and Schmitz 2021, p. 152; Singh et al. 2019, p. 6). Although digital sales is highly relevant to research and practice, it is still a relatively new research domain, and companies are therefore still uncertain about their digital sales initiatives and how exactly digital sales works (Fergurson, Gironda, and Petrescu 2021, p. 653; Wengler, Hildmann, and Vossebein 2021, pp. 599-600). Because of this, only a a few business-to-business (B2B) organizations have thus far responded appropriately to the changing forces (Gartner, Inc 2020a, p. 2).

Consequently, this literature review focuses on the following questions: What triggers digital transformation in B2B sales? How does digital transformation in B2B sales affect the sales environment and the role of the sales function in firms? In addressing these issues, our research contributes to the sales literature by elaborating on the driving forces of the digital sales environment. We show that a shift of power from sellers to buyers (Agnihotri et al. 2016, p. 172), changing customer behavior and expectations (Alamäki and Korpela 2021, p. 312; Diba, Vella, and Abratt 2019, p. 1485), and technological advancements (Moncrief, Marshall, and Rudd 2015, p. 46) are driving the new sales environment. We describe each of these shifts in detail and conclude that they change the available information, style of communication, and interaction of the customer-seller relationship (Alamäki and Korpela 2021, pp. 298–299). Based on this analysis, we recognize that the digital transformation in sales requires a role change of the sales function (Mattila, Yrjölä, and Hautamäki 2021, p. 116; Oh 2017, p. 1137) and we specify this role change.

The structure of this article is as follows. First, we provide a theoretical background for our literature review by describing the evolution of sales. Second, we present an overview of the literature search procedure and the literature analysis. Third, we present the findings of our literature review. Lastly, we highlight the theoretical and practical implications of our study and provide an agenda for future research.

Research background

The birth of modern sales is closely linked to the developments of mass production in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The prevailing view on sales was once transaction-oriented, and the manipulation of buyers was seen as a central sales task (Hartmann, Wieland, and Vargo 2018, p. 2). However, today’s sales environment is different: the characteristics of customers are changing, new technologies influence the way in which sales operates, and, due to increasing competition, the customer relationship is becoming more important to successful sales (Marcos Cuevas 2018, pp. 200–201). Due to these factors, the perspective on sales has been changing (Hartmann, Wieland, and Vargo 2018, p. 3). Citing Dixon and Tanner (2012, p. 9), “sales is the phenomenon of human-driven interaction between and within individuals/organizations in order to bring about economic exchange within a value-creation context”. This perspective considers the changing environment and indicates that sales should engage with customers instead of manipulating them. Sales can no longer be seen as an independent role but rather should be carried out collaboratively in order to create value for sellers and buyers.

Nevertheless, the transformation of markets is a constant phenomenon (Corsaro and Maggioni 2022, pp. 686–687). Today, new cutting-edge technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) (Singh et al. 2019), big data and analytics (Hallikainen, Savimäki, and Laukkanen 2020), social media (SM) (Ogilvie et al. 2018), and extended reality (XR) (Dwivedi et al. 2021) are profoundly changing the sales environment (Alavi and Habel 2021). These digital assets expand the role of technologies (Singh et al. 2019, p. 4) and offer salespeople new digital selling capabilities (Mullins and Agnihotri 2022). Moreover, Rocco and Bush (2016) recognize the ability of digital technologies to connect with the customer and to satisfy their needs because digital sales is “the use of enabling technologies combined with leading sales processes to improve business results that drive real value for both buyers and sellers” (p. 17). Accordingly, while previous perspectives applied digital technology only for sales-side benefits, the digital sales perspective elaborates on how such technology can be used for buyer-side benefits as well (Rocco and Bush 2016, p. 18). For this reason, digital sales connects the individual salesperson with digital sales technologies (Rapp and Beeler 2021, p. 39) in such a way as to create customer value (Mullins and Agnihotri 2022).

Beyond that, the literature has traditionally differentiated between markets like B2B, business-to-consumer (B2C), and consumer-to-consumer (C2C) and has failed to consider links between these markets (Gummesson and Polese 2009, p. 337). However, because of digital advancements (Mingione and Leoni 2020, p. 72), the exclusive view on markets has become less relevant, and the B2B domain contains B2C elements and vice versa (Dant and Brown 2008). In this new B2B2C market, value is created by “business that sell to business that—in turn—sell to consumers” (Mingione and Leoni 2020, p. 77).

Moreover, due to technological advancements and the emergence of digital service products, C2C interactions have received much attention (Bacile 2020, p. 442) and companies have started to recognize the potential of C2C interactions to generate value (Bruhn, Schnebelen, and Schäfer 2014, pp. 164–165). For this reason, new strategies that consider the whole ecosystem, including business and consumers, must be established (Mingione and Leoni 2020, p. 77). Thus, thinking and acting in the sales ecosystem gains increasing importance (Rusthollkarhu, Hautamaki, and Aarikka-Stenroos 2021) because it changes the way companies interact with customers, stakeholders, and representatives of customer projects (Alamäki and Korpela 2021, p. 307). Digital sales supports customer value creation and leads to a digital sales ecosystem with enhanced customer relationships, value propositions, and sales practices (Mullins and Agnihotri 2022).

Due to companies’ increasing customer orientation, their customer relationship management (CRM) is becoming indispensable for long-term profitability (Soltani et al. 2018, pp. 237–238). CRM, as a strategic approach, improves technology-enabled information sharing between seller and buyer and is a source of competitive advantage (Itani et al. 2020, p. 264). To successfully apply CRM, companies must combine technologies, processes, and people to develop a deep understanding of customers (Ryding 2010, p. 225) and to make customers central to the company (Park et al. 2010, p. 1135). On the whole, CRM has the potential to improve firm performance, and therefore companies are increasingly investing in their CRM capabilities (Foltean, Trif, and Tuleu 2019, p. 563).

To summarize, it can be said that organizations must re-think the role of the sales function because salespeople must be faster, smarter, quicker to respond to the customers’ needs, and be able to personalize their selling strategies (Corsaro and Maggioni 2022, p. 687). These transitions require fundamental organizational and societal changes that will affect processes, products, business models, roles, working methods, and human behaviors (Guenzi and Nijssen 2021, p. 131; Wengler, Hildmann, and Vossebein 2021, p. 600).

Literature search and analysis

The methodological approach follows the four steps proposed by Snyder (2019) and is visualized in Figure 1. The first phase included the design of our review. We identified the need for a literature review on digital sales by analyzing recent academic and business research on this topic and formulated our research questions. The search strategy was designed as follows. To conduct comprehensive research on relevant academic articles, we searched in Emerald Insight, Science Direct, Springer Online Library, Ebsco Business Source Premier, and Wiley Online Library. We decided to pre-select high-quality journals before conducting our keyword search. To do this, the type of journals offered by these online libraries was first verified. An assessment of journal relevance was based on the aim and scope of these journals (no conference proceedings were included to ensure a high quality). Journals were then assessed as relevant if their aim and scope included innovation, technology, digital (transformation), and marketing/sales. After that, the quality of these journals was assessed. Solely peer-reviewed journals that were ranked in Q1 or Q2 according to the Scimago Journal Ranking (SJR) were included in our literature search (resulting in a total of 134 journals).

Figure 1. Process of the systematic literature search.

We searched for relevant articles within these journals using the terms sales AND digit*, sales AND transform*, sales AND automat* in title, abstract, and keywords. Afterwards, in the second phase, we tested our literature research and realized that articles published before 2010 were relatively unimportant for our research purpose. Therefore, we decided to limit our search to articles published from 2010. For each search result, we checked whether the title was relevant to our research and identified 203 articles. Next, duplicates were identified and deleted, resulting in 171 articles. To further refine our literature search, we read the abstract of each remaining article to determine whether the article was relevant to answering our research questions. Articles that were not related to B2B or sales were excluded. Articles were included when they had relations to technologies or tools described in transformation processes, work practices, and competencies in sales. If an article’s abstract was insufficient to assess its relevance, the conclusion or implications were also read. If we were still unsure about the article’s relevance after this, we included it, leading to 45 articles after the initial search. After this, a forward and backward search followed, as proposed by Webster and Watson (2002). This led to additional 27 articles and a final sample of 72 articles (Appendix). Then, in the third phase, the sample articles were analyzed. Attribute coding was applied to establish an overview of the bibliographic data. To analyze the sample articles’ content in detail, we decided to conduct in-vivo coding first (Saldaña 2013, pp. 91–95). We then identified similarities between the huge amount of codes and reorganized them. The last step employed axial coding to determine which codes were dominant and which were less important (Saldaña 2013, pp. 218–223). This is how we organized our codes into the categories market shifts, transformation of the customer-sales relationship, and digital sales function.

Findings

Overview

In our bibliographic analysis, we investigated the relative importance of the included journals. To do this, we matched the sample articles with their corresponding journals. Table 1 shows that 21 articles stem from the journal Industrial Marketing Management, which amounts to almost 30% of our review articles. Just behind this, the Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management provided 13 articles, and Business & Industrial Marketing gave us 11 articles. We can thus identify these three journals as the most important to the digital sales literature, as they command a share of over 60% of all the relevant research studies that we found. This may indicate the openness of these three journals to publications in the area of digital sales. It should also be noted that our literature research includes 19 qualitative studies, 28 quantitative studies, 13 conceptual papers, and 12 reviews.

Table 1. Article distribution by journal.

Journal	No.	Share
Industrial Marketing Management	21	29.2%
Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management	13	18.1%
Journal of Business & Industrial Marketing	11	15.3%
Business Horizons	4	5.6%
Journal of Business Research	4	5.6%
Journal of Systems and Information Technology	3	4.2%
	56	78%

Additionally, Figure 2 provides an overview of the total number of distributed articles by publication year. From 2010 to 2018, we see that the attention paid to digital sales is relatively low but that it rises from 2019 onwards. In 2021 there are almost as many articles published as in 2020 despite our forward search being cut off in June 2021. Following this, digital sales will gain more and more attention in the literature. The cumulated literature supports this assumption. Between 2011 and 2018, the growth of the curve is relatively constant. From 2019, though, one can observe an increasing growth in the body of literature, revealing that a growing amount of attention is being paid to digital sales research.

Figure 2. Article distribution by year of publication.

Table 2 depicts the frequency of keywords within the included journals. Keywords were considered in the table if they occurred in the keyword section of at least five articles. The table indicates that SM is highly important to digital sales. Behind that, we can locate keywords such as digital transformation, digitalization, artificial intelligence, or sales force automation.

Table 2. Frequency of keywords.

Keyword	Frequency
Social media	18
Sales management	8
Digital transformation	8
Artificial intelligence	7
Sales	7
Machine learning	6
Sales force automation	5
Sales performance	5
Digitalization	5

The content analysis of our articles resulted in four categories (Figure 3). We named them market shifts (I), transformation of the customer-sales relationship (II), digital sales function (III), and digital sales environment (IV). In (I), we describe the shifts in the contemporary sales environment, including the shift of power, customer behavior and expectations, and technology. Category (II) summarizes the impact of (I) on the customer-sales relationship. The third category (III) considers how the sales function must change to meet the new relationship requirements, while (IV) summarizes the implications for a digital sales environment.

Digital sales environment

The identified articles imply implies that the selling environment has fundamentally changed over the past 20 years (Oh 2017, p. 1137), with technological advancements altering the relationship between customers and sales (Sinisalo, Karjaluoto, and Saraniemi 2015, pp. 126–127). Customers have more power than before (Agnihotri et al. 2016, p. 172), they prefer fewer in-person interactions (Rangarajan et al. 2021), and expect proactive behavior (Alamaki and Korpela 2021). According to our findings, the digital sales environment can be described as a two-dimensional matrix (Table 3). The digital customer-sales relationship is described by information, communication, and interaction on one axis. On the other axis, we place customers and stakeholders, salespeople, and the emerging technologies that connect both parties. Each column shows the customers’ and stakeholders’ viewpoint, how the emerging technologies can be used to satisfy the new needs, and how salespeople should behave in this digital sales environment. The following sections further elaborate on these insights.

Table 3. Digital sales environment.

		Information (facts and details)	Communication (process information exchange)	Interaction (influence people and their decision-making)
Customers and stakeholders		Aquire relevant information on their own. More information is accessible than ever before.	Prefer digital communication. Depend less on salespeople’s communication readiness.	Ask for value, personalized content and solutions, and proactive behavior. Control the exchange.
Technologies that act as connector	Artificial intelligence	Analyzes the distributed information. Distributes personalized information.	Enables automated and personalized communication.	Develops strategies to best influence the customers. Supports the decision-making of salespeople.
	Big data and analytics	Serves as a database. Transforms the data into information.	Enhances decision-making about communication design.	Enhances decision-making about interaction design.
	Extended reality	Makes complex information easier to understand. Offers visualization.	Enables authentic digital communication by combining physical and nonphysical objects.	The seller can directly influence the buyer during a conversation. Enables customer engagement and involvement.
	Social media	Provides useful information on relevant stakeholders. Serves as an information source to create profiles.	Plattform-based conversations. Enables personal communication and mass communication.	Practices marketing and advertising. Enables cooperation within the ecosystem.
Salespeople		Help users to find the required information quickly. Know how to use the new technologies beneficially. Guide customers in using digital tools. Highlight added values of products.	Use digital tools to communicate, especially at the beginning of the sales process. Respond promptly. Choose the channel based on customer needs.	Make customer-oriented decisions based on the available information. Collaborate inter- and intra-organizationally. Guide customers through their journey. Act proactively and propose new value based on the available information.

Shift of customer power

In the past, the relationship between buyer and seller was based on information asymmetry, meaning the seller acted as an expert and information source (Marshall et al. 2012, p. 359; Oh 2017, p. 1137). This relationship has changed, though, with the power shifting from the seller to the buyer (Agnihotri et al. 2016, p. 172; Andzulis, Panagopoulos, and Rapp 2012, p. 308; Enyinda et al. 2021, p. 992) because today’s customers are more knowledgeable (Rodriguez, Peterson, and Krishnan 2012, p. 375). That is, they are more self-learning and can gather relevant information on their own in the early stages of the sales process (Alamäki and Korpela 2021, p. 312). Following that, buyers depend less on salespeople’s assistance (Bongers, Schumann, and Schmitz 2021, p. 153; Oh 2017, p. 1137), they can evaluate product offers on their own and thus have a narrower consideration set when entering the sales process (Vieira et al. 2019, p. 1100). Hence, the customer is now controlling the interaction (Dixon and Tanner 2012, p. 12; Rangarajan et al. 2021).

Shift of customer behaviors and expectations

Customer behaviors and expectations are also changing. Customers now rely less on traditional information sources (e.g., catalogs, trade shows) and prefer to stay digitally informed (Alamäki and Korpela 2021, p. 312; Diba, Vella, and Abratt 2019, p. 1485). They increasingly reduce in-person interactions and prefer digital tools to interact with the seller. This alteration has been primarily driven by the COVID-19 pandemic (Rangarajan et al. 2021). Customers ask for a value, expect sales to suggest new ideas and solutions proactively, and want to stay informed about new offerings. In particular, it is customers who have a close and wide-reaching business partnership with the selling company who expect this proactive behavior (Alamäki and Korpela 2021). Additionally, the customers may feel overwhelmed by the amount of detailed information available and therefore require personalized content that can be understood and applied quickly (Rangarajan et al. 2021).

Shift of technology

Technological advancements are changing the sales environment (Moncrief, Marshall, and Rudd 2015, p. 46), and companies sense the advantages of automating sales by applying information technology in improving their firm performance (Rodríguez, Svensson, and Mehl 2020; Sinisalo, Karjaluoto, and Saraniemi 2015, p. 124).

Basic applications enable the automation of routine tasks or administrative tasks such as customer contact tracking, forecasting, or reporting (Park et al. 2010, p. 1130; Ryding 2010, p. 225; Sanakulov, Kalliomaa, and Karjaluoto 2018, p. 169), while more sophisticated applications are seen as key to a better customer relationship and can conduct technology-enabled selling (Ryding 2010, p. 226). These enhance sales responsiveness, customer understanding, and the meeting of customer needs, and thus contribute to value creation (Mahlamäki et al. 2020, p. 162; Sinisalo, Karjaluoto, and Saraniemi 2015, p. 128).

To benefit from these technological possibilities, companies use a variety of sales force automation (SFA) tools, such as sales configurators (Mahlamäki et al. 2020), online chats (Koponen and Rytsy 2020), robot advisors (Syam and Sharma 2018, p. 144), e-monitor systems (Da Vieira Cunha, Carugati, and Leclercq-Vandelannoitte 2015; DelVecchio, Deeter-Schmelz, and Anselmi 2013), avatars (Berthon et al. 2010), and online buying/e-business (Vieira et al. 2019, p. 1085).

However, technological advancements do not automatically lead to increases in productivity (Hunter 2019, p. 202). Indeed, research reveals that approximately 60% of all sales automation projects fail to show measurable benefits (Jelinek 2013, p. 636), and that “most companies realize no benefit to revenue” (Cascio, Mariadoss, and Mouri 2010, p. 1088).

In particular, the literature discusses applying the following emerging technologies in sales: artificial intelligence, big data, extended reality, and social media. These technologies are described in the next paragraphs.

Artificial intelligence

AI requires data from the environment (input), then manipulates this data to create value (process), and lastly feeds information back to the environment to achieve the best (expected) output (Paschen, Kietzmann, and Kietzmann 2019, p. 1411; Paschen, Wilson, and Ferreira 2020, p. 405; Paschen et al. 2021). AI “relies on several key technologies, such as machine learning, natural language processing, rule-based expert systems, neural networks, deep learning, physical robots, and robotic process automation” (Davenport et al. 2020, p. 26). Singh et al. (2019, p. 5) connect AI with sales and describe it as “Learning […] that permits artifacts […] to perform some or all of the sales role autonomously”.

The most significant potential value is related to marketing and sales activities (Davenport et al. 2020, p. 25). Hunter (2019, p. 202) states that approximately 40% of sales tasks will be automated through AI, mainly routine tasks, and it can be applied in every step of the sales process (Paschen, Wilson, and Ferreira 2020). Table 4 provides an overview of the application and the limitations of AI in sales.

Table 4. Applications and limitations of AI.

Application

Limitations

Customer profiles (e.g., lead management, predictions, information on buying center) (Davenport et al. 2020, p. 25; Paschen, Kietzmann, and Kietzmann 2019, p. 1412; Syam and Sharma 2018, p. 145) Chatbots for non-complex issues (Bongers, Schumann, and Schmitz 2021, p. 150) Personalized recommendations (Davenport et al. 2020, p. 25) Dynamic pricing (Paschen, Wilson, and Ferreira 2020, p. 407) Close the sale and order processing (Syam and Sharma 2018, p. 145) Emotional support (Bharadwaj and Shipley 2020, p. 107) Strategy development and execution (Paschen, Kietzmann, and Kietzmann 2019, p. 1411; Vieira et al. 2019, p. 1102) Rapid prototyping (Syam and Sharma 2018, p. 144) Training and hiring of salespeople (Zoltners et al. 2021, p. 89)

Requires interpretation by skilled salespeople (Zoltners et al. 2021, p. 89). Limited emotional and social competencies (Paschen, Wilson, and Ferreira 2020, p. 411). Customers may feel uncomfortable (Davenport et al. 2020, p. 25).

Big data and analytics

Big data is a huge and complex set of information that requires specific techniques for it to have any benefit (Paiola and Gebauer 2020, p. 246). Moreover, a thorough analysis (big data analytics) is required to extract hidden insights (Hallikainen, Savimäki, and Laukkanen 2020, p. 91) and to use big data for decision-making (Paiola and Gebauer 2020, p. 246; Wang and Wang 2020, p. 13). It also has enormous potential for new business models; however, it still lacks extensive application in the industry (Alavi and Habel 2021, p. 84; Wengler, Hildmann, and Vossebein 2021, p. 606). Table 5 depicts the application areas and current limitations of big data in sales.

Table 5. Applications and limitations of big data.

Application	Limitations
Customer profiles and customization (Hallikainen, Savimäki, and Laukkanen 2020, p. 90) Monitoring and success measurement (Paiola and Gebauer 2020, pp. 251–252) Strategy development (Zoltners et al. 2021, p. 89) Optimize business processes and make data-based sales decisions (Hallikainen, Savimäki, and Laukkanen 2020, p. 90)	Adequate data is not the status quo in most organizations (Leeflang et al. 2014, p. 5). Analytics culture required to derive knowledge (Hallikainen, Savimäki, and Laukkanen 2020, p. 96). Speed of gathering knowledge based on data is crucial (Hallikainen, Savimäki, and Laukkanen 2020, p. 96).

Extended reality

Experts see XR as a general term for augmented and virtual reality that will be as prevalent in the future as the internet is today (Boyd and Koles 2019, p. 592; Dwivedi et al. 2021). Research into XR is still in its infancy but it is considered to have the potential to create greater enjoyment in customers, indicating that XR could encourage buyers to have longer interactions with sales and thereby enhance engagement (Boyd and Koles 2019, p. 595). The users of XR receive immediate feedback (Boyd and Koles 2019, p. 593), and the technology improves customer understanding (Dwivedi et al. 2021). Moreover, the literature shows that XR enhances connectivity and user involvement.

Overall, the technology enables information sharing and processing, co-creation, and collaborative learning (Boyd and Koles 2019). With XR, customers and sales can have real conversations, and the technology improves understanding of complex issues (Syam and Sharma 2018, p. 143). Table 6 presents the current sales applications and limitations of XR.

Table 6. Applications and limitations of XR.

Application

Limitations

Visualization (Syam and Sharma 2018, p. 143) Interaction with the environment and stakeholders (Boyd and Koles 2019, p. 592) Advertising and sales tools to experience the product (Dwivedi et al. 2021; Webster and Watson 2002) Extensions to services and physical products (Dwivedi et al. 2021; Webster and Watson 2002) Training programs (Boyd and Koles 2019, p. 594) Virtual meetings (Syam and Sharma 2018, p. 143)

Missing guidelines on how organizations can successfully integrate XR (Boyd and Koles 2019, p. 591). Complex management of XR and thus specific skills are required (Dwivedi et al. 2021). Lack of technological performance and XR applications (Dwivedi et al. 2021).

Social media

Social network tools have their origin in purely customer-specific (peer-to-peer) purposes and are now evolving toward customer-centric applications (Ogilvie et al. 2018, p. 57). B2B companies are slower in adopting SM than B2C companies (Lacoste 2016, p. 34; Meire, Ballings, and van den Poel 2017, p. 26), and B2B companies have only in recent years begun to adopt them (Foltean, Trif, and Tuleu 2019, p. 564).

SM has increasing importance for a firm’s operations in emerging markets (Vieira et al. 2019, p. 1088) and facilitates communication (Habibi et al. 2015, p. 642; Lipiäinen 2015, p. 13; Marshall et al. 2012). Moreover, it enables better customer engagement (Agnihotri et al. 2012, p. 335; Rodriguez, Peterson, and Krishnan 2012, p. 367) and cooperation within the entire sales ecosystem (Bocconcelli, Cioppi, and Pagano 2017, p. 695), with some seeing SM as the rebirth of personal relationships (Lacoste 2016, p. 35)

SM has the potential to affect every step in the sales cycle and strategic plan of an organization (Moncrief, Marshall, and Rudd 2015, p. 47); however, only 23% of firms actively use SM in their sales process (Bocconcelli, Cioppi, and Pagano 2017, p. 696). Table 7 provides an overview of the application of SM in B2B sales and its limitations.

Table 7. Applications and limitations of social media.

Application	Limitations
Customer profiles and customer orientation (Enyinda et al. 2021, p. 1002; Lacoste 2016, p. 37) Build and manage customer relationships (Lacoste 2016, pp. 34–35) Content sharing (Habibi et al. 2015, p. 642) Communication and cooperation (Bocconcelli, Cioppi, and Pagano 2017, p. 695) Marketing and advertising (Lacoste 2016, p. 34) Close the sale (Ogilvie et al. 2018, p. 55)	Specific studies on the application of SM are scarce (Lacoste 2016, p. 34). Information overload (Ogilvie et al. 2018, p. 62) Lack of meaningful data (Meire, Ballings, and van den Poel 2017, p. 31) Loosening of information control (Lacoste 2016, p. 35)

Transformation of the customer-sales relationship

The literature indicates that the various shifts transform the available information, communication, and interaction of the customer-sales relationship.

Information

Searching for appropriate information about potential customers is an unavoidable task for sales (Nelson, Walsh, and Cui 2020; Rodríguez, Svensson, and Mehl 2020, p. 6). Digital sales offers the possibility to change this issue fundamentally: more information is available to both sides—customer and seller—and thus, both can make informed decisions (Pandey, Nayal, and Rathore 2020, p. 1191). Digital information is faster, automatically collectible, and analyzable. Thus, it allows companies to achieve cost advantages and to solve the issue of information velocity and immediacy (Mattila, Yrjölä, and Hautamäki 2021; Sinisalo, Karjaluoto, and Saraniemi 2015). Significantly, organizations’ social capital generated through SM platforms has gained increasing attention because it enables more profound and more personal insights (Itani, Agnihotri, and Dingus 2017, p. 73). This is why the possibilities of digitalization in sales decrease the information asymmetry and make it easier for all market participants to gather and analyze information (Zhang and Li 2019).

Communication

Modern information technologies reduce communication costs significantly (Wengler, Hildmann, and Vossebein 2021), so companies must change the way in which they communicate with customers (Alamäki and Korpela 2021). Firstly, digital sales leads to an increased range of communication channels. While traditional channels refer to modes of communication such as phone calls or postal services, digital channels can be seen as e-mails, websites, or online meetings. The most recent development has come in the form of SM channels like LinkedIn, Facebook, or blogs (Fraccastoro, Gabrielsson, and Pullins 2021; Karjaluoto, Mustonen, and Ulkuniemi 2015). Although communication has become more and more digital, SM does not seek to replace the other channels entirely but rather complement them (Andzulis, Panagopoulos, and Rapp 2012). This mix of channels creates new opportunities for sellers and buyers (Moncrief, Marshall, and Rudd 2015). On the one hand, customers can move between the offered channels depending on their needs, while on the other hand, sales can choose (or steer buyer firms to) appropriate channels depending on the strategic importance of the customer, relationship culture, innovativeness, or geographical location (Bongers, Schumann, and Schmitz 2021; Fraccastoro, Gabrielsson, and Pullins 2021).

Secondly, the mix of channels leads to a new character of communication. While traditional channels like phone calls entail a one-to-one relationship, digital sales offers one-to-many or even many-to-many relationships (Guesalaga 2016, p. 72). Sellers can communicate en masse with their clients or communicate with a person individually if required. In this way, SM channels transform customers from passive to active communication participants (Moncrief, Marshall, and Rudd 2015, p. 47) and improve the quality of communication (Guenzi and Nijssen 2020, p. 346).

Interaction

Digital sales provides “more opportunities for influencing and interacting with customers” (Mattila, Yrjölä, and Hautamäki 2021, p. 115) and changes the mode of interaction (Järvinen and Taiminen 2016, p. 164). Firstly, via adaptive selling, a salesperson tailors his behavior “to best meet the needs of specific customers” (Hunter 2019, p. 204). The literature shows that digital sales enhances the sales organization’s adaptive selling capabilities (Agnihotri 2020, pp. 293–294; Itani, Agnihotri, and Dingus 2017).

Secondly, the literature reveals that social selling is a very prominent and contemporary selling approach. Social selling “leverages social and digital channels for understanding, connecting with, and engaging influencers, prospects and existing customers […] for building business relationships” (Ancillai et al. 2019, p. 297). Accordingly, it uses knowledge about customers and the network of customer relationships to navigate and influence customers (Itani, Agnihotri, and Dingus 2017, p. 64). This generated social capital aims to create new opportunities, improve understanding of the customer, enhance relationships, and thus boost the overall sales performance (Ancillai et al. 2019, p. 295). For this reason, the data acquired through SM improves the adaptive selling behavior of salespeople (Itani, Agnihotri, and Dingus 2017, p. 72).

Thirdly, value co-creation and value-based selling require an ecosystem perspective due to the involvement of several actors (seller, buyer, other stakeholders) (Wengler, Hildmann, and Vossebein 2021, p. 600). It is a proactive and continuous interaction process that aims to identify new development opportunities and latent needs as well as create customer-specific value propositions and then implement them. Value co-creation requires inter- and intra-organizational interactions and the participation of all actors in the ecosystem. Therefore, the role of non-sellers as value co-creators is becoming more important (Alamäki and Korpela 2021).

Responsibilities

The transformation of the customer-sales relationship calls for a role change of the sales function to ensure that it does not become obsolete (Mattila, Yrjölä, and Hautamäki 2021, p. 116; Oh 2017, p. 1137). Especially in complex selling situations, salespeople still play an essential role (Alavi and Habel 2021, p. 84; Mattila, Yrjölä, and Hautamäki 2021, p. 114). Nevertheless, salespeople face increased competition from demanding customers (Oh 2017, p. 1137), and how customer relationships are built and maintained is changing (Krings, Palmer, and Inversini 2021, p. 175; Ryding 2010, p. 225). Based on the literature, we were able to identify the following emerging responsibilities (Figure 3)”:

Table 8. Characteristics of the digital sales force.

Characteristics of the digital sales force

Abilities Characteristics of digitalization (Järvinen and Taiminen 2016, p. 173; Wengler, Hildmann, and Vossebein 2021, pp. 605–609) Market sensing and learning (Park et al. 2010, p. 1136) Dealing with data (Paschen, Wilson, and Ferreira 2020, p. 411; Rodríguez, Svensson, and Mehl 2020; Wengler, Hildmann, and Vossebein 2021, p. 609) Customer orientation (Bongers, Schumann, and Schmitz 2021, p. 163; Pandey, Nayal, and Rathore 2020, p. 1200; Rodríguez, Svensson, and Mehl 2020; Syam and Sharma 2018, p. 145; Zhang and Li 2019, p. 1429) Divisional and functional cooperation (Alamäki and Korpela 2021; Andzulis, Panagopoulos, and Rapp 2012, p. 309; Bongers, Schumann, and Schmitz 2021, p. 154; Mattila, Yrjölä, and Hautamäki 2021, p. 117) Cope with mix of sales channels (Bongers, Schumann, and Schmitz 2021, p. 163) Mindset Learning oriented (Bongers, Schumann, and Schmitz 2021; Mattila, Yrjölä, and Hautamäki 2021; Park et al. 2010) Performance oriented (Jelinek 2013, p. 637) Innovative (Bongers, Schumann, and Schmitz 2021, p. 163; Jelinek 2013, p. 637; Karjaluoto et al. 2014, p. 974)

User coordination

Customers are increasingly requesting well-designed digital tools (Rangarajan et al. 2021). For this reason, one new responsibility of the sales function applies to the coordination of users. Sales has to promote digital channels and help users benefit from them so that users can find their required information quickly and thus appreciate the responsiveness of the seller company (Mattila, Yrjölä, and Hautamäki 2021).

Ecosystem management

The traditional dyadic customer-supplier relationships are replaced by an ecosystem approach and thus by complex interactions within and between companies. This ecosystem approach leads to an increased interdependence, connectivity, and co-evolution of actors and technologies that affect relationships. A well-managed and connected sales ecosystem positively affects customer loyalty, customer experience, and value for customers (Alamäki and Korpela 2021). Accordingly, the sales function is responsible for organizing the exchange of the participants within the sales ecosystem (Diba, Vella, and Abratt 2019, p. 1484).

Value facilitation

Customers’ changing expectations imply the need for more proactive behavior among salespeople (Alamäki and Korpela 2021, p. 298). Thus, companies recognize the increasing importance of market intelligence and the move toward value-based selling (Wengler, Hildmann, and Vossebein 2021, p. 600). Sales as a value facilitator represents a shift toward understanding the latent needs of customers and is an attempt to proactively create a new solution that meets those needs instead of offering a product from the existing portfolio (Alamäki and Korpela 2021).

Social selling

Salespeople should integrate SM into their jobs (Agnihotri et al. 2016, p. 173) and practice social selling because social content has a meaningful impact on buying decisions (Ancillai et al. 2019, p. 293). By using this approach, salespeople can leverage SM to acquire insights, connect with actors in the sales ecosystem, and engage and influence customers (Ancillai et al. 2019, p. 297).

Collaboration

Sales has evolved into a collaborative effort, requiring collaboration between various teams within the sales organizations and external participants of the ecosystem. Sales on its own cannot and will not satisfy customers due to the complexity of this type of value creation (Mattila, Yrjölä, and Hautamäki 2021, p. 113).

Salesperson’s characteristics

Considering these transformational forces, a change in the salespeople’s characteristics is required. However, this “role change is an individual salesperson’s adaptive decision” (Oh 2017, p. 1137). For this reason, the literature suggests that digital salespeople must have the following characteristics, as shown in Table 8.

Abilities

Profound knowledge related to digitalization and market sensing and learning is essential (Park et al. 2010, p. 1136). Additionally, salespeople must know how to deal with data, including how to acquire and interpret data (Paschen, Wilson, and Ferreira 2020, p. 411; Rodríguez, Svensson, and Mehl 2020; Wengler, Hildmann, and Vossebein 2021, p. 609) and knowledge concerning security and privacy risks (Rodríguez, Svensson, and Mehl 2020). Moreover, digital sales is customer-oriented and salespeople require in-depth knowledge about their customers. For this reason, salespeople must be able to analyze the unique characteristics of customer firms and their ecosystem (Bongers, Schumann, and Schmitz 2021, p. 163). Moreover, the literature recognizes the importance of divisional and functional cooperation, especially with service and marketing departments (Alamäki and Korpela 2021; Järvinen and Taiminen 2016, p. 172). Lastly, the mix of sales channels requires unique qualities such as vigilance, the ability to cope with ambidexterity, and vigilance (Bongers, Schumann, and Schmitz 2021, p. 163),

Mindset

Salespeople assess the knowledge that they attain along their career path as helpful and use it to inform their decision-making in new situations. This approach can either be an enabler for or an obstacle to digital sales (Oh 2017, p. 1139). Bongers, Schumann, and Schmitz (2021, p. 162) and Jelinek (2013, p. 637) point out that high interest in learning influences the likeliness of using digital technologies in sales. Rodríguez, Svensson, and Mehl (2020) support this assumption by revealing that innovativeness is a determining factor for the digitalization of the sales process. Accordingly, companies should pay more attention to the personal innovativeness of salespeople and to whether or not they have a high-performance orientation (Jelinek 2013, p. 637; Karjaluoto et al. 2014, p. 974).

Discussion and conclusions

Theoretical implications

With this study, we make a contribution to the field by analyzing the literature surrounding the highly relevant topic of digital sales in B2B markets. More specifically, our literature analysis demonstrates how customer and technology shifts have changed the customer-sales relationship and explains which requirements for the sales function result from this. We go on to explain that salespeople have lost their informational advantage over customers because customers are now developing self-learning habits and are better informed than ever before. Moreover, customers’ expectations and behaviors are changing, with technological advancements making the customer-sales relationship more digital and automated. As a result, the type of information and how such information is acquired are changing, meaning that salespeople must adjust their communication strategies and re-think how they can influence customers. Moreover, we can illustrate that an ecosystem approach drives the new relationship. These transformations result in a profound change in the sales function.

Furthermore, we summarized how the sales environment has changed and how sales organizations can respond to these changes by using technology and modifying salespeople’s tasks. As a result, our research meaningfully contributes to Singh et al.’s (2019, p. 12) call for research into changes in the sales role and skills, interactions with customers, and how salespeople can benefit from technological advancements. Our literature review thus demonstrates how salespeople should behave and can use emerging technologies to respond to these shifts and partially regain some power back from customers.

Moreover, our literature review confirms interdependencies between the presented emerging technologies, the relationship, and sales function. For instance, the application of AI in sales requires a huge data input that needs to be processed. The data can be structured (e.g., demographics, transaction records) or unstructured (e.g., comments, reviews, photos) (Paschen, Wilson, and Ferreira 2020, pp. 405–406). Following this data is key to successfully transforming sales (Wengler, Hildmann, and Vossebein 2021, p. 605) and to gaining a competitive advantage (Hallikainen, Savimäki, and Laukkanen 2020; Leeflang et al. 2014, p. 5). Accordingly, our framework in Table 3 complements the literature that has failed to provide a holistic framework to contextualize these interdependencies.

Beyond that, our findings confirm that the boundaries between B2B, B2C, and C2C have been blurring (Bacile 2020; Bruhn, Schnebelen, and Schäfer 2014; Dant and Brown 2008): Technologies that were previously used in B2C or C2C markets are now increasingly adopted in B2B markets to deliver customer value. For instance, research was once heavily focused on the B2C perspective on extended reality, but now it is increasingly looking at extended reality in B2B markets (Boyd and Koles 2019, p. 591). The same applies to SM technology, which is now becoming important in B2B companies, too (Lipiäinen 2015, p. 3). An early study on the blurring lines between markets stems from Gummesson and Polese (2009), who highlight the importance of C2C interactions in the ecosystem. Customers of different companies can share opinions and information on seller companies. SM technology, in particular, addresses this issue since it makes information easily accessible and enhances interactions (Järvinen and Taiminen 2016, p. 164).

Additionally, our findings show that digital sales requires tight cooperation, as proposed by Mattila, Yrjölä, and Hautamäki (2021, p. 113). First, digital sales needs inter-organizational collaboration because digital sales takes place in an ecosystem with various actors (sellers, buyers, other stakeholders) who create value (Wengler, Hildmann, and Vossebein 2021, p. 607). Second, intra-organizational cooperation is required because the lines between marketing and sales have been blurring (Alamäki and Korpela 2021, pp. 298–299), value-based selling is important to digital sales (Alamäki and Korpela 2021), and sales probably needs competencies from other company departments to implement digital technologies in their daily work.

When considering the sales function, we can say that sales must deal with a huge amount of information. Salespeople must cope with customer characteristics, the new information delivered by technological advancements, and the new shape of the customer-sales relationship with its ecosystem approach. Consequently, an important task for salespeople in the era of digital sales is to analyze these information sets and to build appropriate customer strategies. Therefore, we follow the suggestions of Peesker et al. (2022), who indicate that analytical skills are more important than ever before. The literature reveals that digital sales will be a mixture of digital and non-digital channels (Bongers, Schumann, and Schmitz 2021, p. 151), and that salespeople must determine when it is appropriate to use each channel.

However, the literature is silent, with the exception of Mahlamäki et al. (2020) and Alamäki and Korpela (2021), in regard to customers’ or other stakeholders’ perspectives on digital sales. We elaborated on the shifts on the customer side and describing the more technology-enabled customer-sales relationship. Moreover, we showed how salespeople and technologies can respond to the customer shifts and present the primary function of digital technologies in the relationship. Nevertheless, our research does not offer a perfect answer to the question of how customers assess digital sales. Therefore, future research should address customers’ viewpoint on digital sales and uncover which sales practices customers prefer, how a mixture between digital and non-digital sales practices can be applied, and which technologies are best suited to which type of customer.

Additionally, our literature review outlined four emerging sales technologies. We showed how these technologies transform the customer-sales relationship: they make more information accessible to customers and sales, they change the communication style, and they shape how sales and customers can influence each other. However, we suggest that future research should investigate further emerging technologies. For instance, the internet of things (IoT) and the industrial internet of things (IIoT) have been recognized as potential means for unlocking the value of production machines (Paiola and Gebauer 2020, p. 246). Moreover, Bongers, Schumann, and Schmitz (2021, p. 164) suggest that blockchain technology may have a notable role to play in sales in the future. However, we could not identify any research in our sample that adequately addresses the application of these technologies in sales.

Lastly, we would like to emphasize that digital technologies will not wholly replace salespeople, and they still play an essential role in complex selling situations (Alavi and Habel 2021, p. 84; Mattila, Yrjölä, and Hautamäki 2021, p. 114). This is the case for two key reasons: customers may feel uncomfortable when talking to a bot (Davenport et al. 2020, p. 25), and digital solutions still have limited emotional and social competencies (Paschen, Wilson, and Ferreira 2020, p. 411). Nevertheless, the profiles of salespeople must change in order to continue serving customer needs and to avoid becoming obsolete (Mattila, Yrjölä, and Hautamäki 2021, p. 116; Oh 2017, p. 1137).

Practical implications

Our study’s findings regarding the sales function highlight the importance of human resources in successfully adopting digital sales in organizations. Key to the adoption of digital technologies is the individual’s ability (Guenzi and Nijssen 2020; Rodríguez, Svensson, and Mehl 2020), which means that companies must develop digital capabilities (Wengler, Hildmann, and Vossebein 2021) and change their training and hiring profiles (Zoltners et al. 2021, p. 98).

The literature review also highlights the importance of a digital salesforce in B2B markets and describes recent developments on this topic. Managers should pay more attention to technology shifts and how they influence the customer-sales relationship. The importance of SM is rising, and thus companies must develop concepts to leverage SM and think about how this approach could be automated with technologies. Furthermore, the practice of sales will benefit from our insights into the shifts in technology because our findings indicate clear application scenarios for the presented technologies. With this information at their disposal, managers can evaluate possible applications in their companies.

In addition to this, the framework in Table 3 can serve as a tool for designing companies’ customer-sales relationships. We show that the customer-sales relationship is being completely overhauled and therefore so is the role of the sales function. Managers can use the framework to analyze how their customers are changing, how they can use technologies to enhance relationships, and how they can adjust the sales tasks and behaviors accordingly. Based on these insights, companies can derive implications for their digital relationships, identify interdependencies, work on their sales strategies, and develop new roles for sales.

Limitations and avenues for future research

This systematic literature review has certain limitations. As the section on the literature search and analysis showed, we limited our literature search to five databases and assessed each journal’s relevance before entering our defined search terms. Moreover, we only included articles in the English language and journals ranked as Q1 and Q2 according to SJR. Therefore, it is possible that we neglected a few relevant articles in our research. Additionally, the selection and analysis of articles may have caused the authors to overlook some key information when designing the models depicted in Figure 3 and Table 3. For this reason, we welcome researchers to use our approach as a fundament to refine our models.

Figure 3. Framework of the literature review.

Following on from this, we propose that future research contributes to the field of digital sales by addressing the following three research gaps. Firstly, the customer’s point of view on digital sales must be taken into account. In our opinion, future research could build upon our frameworks (Figure 3, Table 3) in order to determine how digital sales can meet customers’ requirements and how digital sales can ensure a competitive and loyalty-driven customer experience. Future research should also uncover which sales practices customers prefer and how a mixture of digital and non-digital sales practices can be applied. Moreover, research must elaborate on which technologies are best suited to which type of customer and the primary function of each digital tool in the relationship.

Secondly, we observed that the fragmented literature on digital sales lacks a closer investigation of the interconnection within and of the identified categories. For instance, the literature highlights the importance of SM data but does not reveal how AI and big data can assist salespeople by leveraging this data. Furthermore, we showed that multi-actor communication is important to digital sales. Consequently, future research should develop a sense of how technologies can be used beneficially to conduct digital sales communications, how sales can steer the information exchange and translate it into a competitive advantage, and how digital sales interactions can be designed and managed properly.

Thirdly, the literature describes in detail how the role of the sales function must change due to the new customer-sales relationship. However, the sample literature fails to reveal whether digital sales requires solely a role change for sales or actually requires the introduction of a new function. Finally, we highlighted that salespeople require new skills in order to adapt to the digital sales environment. However, future research must figure out adequate training concepts, how the digital readiness of salespeople can be influenced, and which specific skills are required to enable confident use of the proposed emerging technologies.

Declaration of interest

The authors report that there are no competing interests to declare.

Appendix

Table

Article	Customer	T	AI	Big data	XR	SM	Rel.^1	Sales	Key findings	Sector	Type
Agnihotri (2020)						x	x		SM enhances information exchange and responsiveness and is thus an important buyer-seller channel. Salespeople can better acquire, maintain, and engage contacts.	B2B	Conceptual paper
Agnihotri et al. (2012)						x	x		SM makes more information available that can be used to practice social selling. The SM use must fulfill the needs of salespeople and customers.	B2B	Conceptual paper
Agnihotri et al. (2016)	x					x	x		SM shifts the power to the customer, makes more information available, and enhances interaction. SM enhances information communication and encourages salespeople’s responsiveness. SM can be used to generate content and develop networks.	B2B	Quantitative study
Agnihotri et al. (2017)							x		CRM has a positive influence on communication and should be combined with SM.	B2B	Quantitative study
Alamäki and Korpela (2021)	x		x			x	x	x	Customers have other needs, are better informed, and expect proactive sales and new value propositions. Sales must practice value-based selling. This approach is digitally transformed, and AI will fundamentally influence sales. An ecosystem approach including all actors is required to adapt to the new interconnection. SM can be a solution to enhance these connections. Customers increasingly ask for value, new ideas, and digital content.	B2B	Qualitative study
Alavi and Habel (2021)							x		SM (data) is important in managing relationships. Salespeople are still required in complex selling situations.	B2B	Review
Ancillai et al. (2019)							x	x	Salespeople must leverage SM data in order to practice social selling and thus connect with actors in the ecosystem, engage them, and acquire new customers.	B2B	Review
Andzulis, Panagopoulos, and Rapp (2012)	x					x	x		Customers are social customers with more power and they seek collaboration. Buyers must seamlessly integrate SM with organizational strategy and listen to customers and competitors in order to adapt to the changes. The application of SM is different for each company, and SM can be used to communicate intra- and inter-organizationally.	mixed	Review
Baker and Delpechitre (2013)		x						x	Automation facilitates and enables the performance of sales. SFA initiatives require a strategic approach, and salespeople must be trained in using new technologies.	B2B	Quantitative study
Berthon et al. (2010)							x	x	Shows the application of avatars in sales that enable virtual encounters.	mixed	Qualitative study
Bharadwaj and Shipley (2020)			x				x		Technology-enabled relationships are prevalent in the sales process. AI enables the capture and analysis of a massive amount of data in sales.	B2B	conceptual paper
Bocconcelli, Cioppi, and Pagano (2017)						x	x		SM is important for interacting within the whole ecosystem. With SM, companies can better cooperate with customers and develop strategies.	B2B	Qualitative study
Bongers, Schumann, and Schmitz (2021)	x		x				x	x	Customers can choose between channels and are less dependent on sales. They tend to terminate relationships spontaneously. Sales must accommodate customers’ ambidexterity. AI improves decision-making and can make salespeople’s tasks obsolete.	B2B	Qualitative study.
Boyd and Koles (2019)					x		x		Guidelines on how to implement XR are missing. XR improves the customer experience, enhances learning and knowledge, and can be used for training. The advantages of XR are that it provides immediate feedback and enables information sharing. These in turn improve the customer relationship.	B2B	conceptual paper
Cascio, Mariadoss, and Mouri (2010)		x						x	Technologies can automate tasks, making sales more productive. Salespeople and sales managers require an open mindset toward new technologies.	B2B	Quantitative study
Da Vieira Cunha, Carugati, and Leclercq-Vandelannoitte (2015)		x						x	Computer-mediated control may have negative consequences and can be met with resistance.	B2B	Qualitative study
Davenport et al. (2020)			x						AI can influence marketing strategies, business models, sales processes, customer service, and customer behavior. AI can deliver personalized recommendations and emotional support, and can be used for segmentation, customer screening, and augmenting salespeople’s capabilities. Customers may experience discomfort when using AI.	mixed	Review
DelVecchio, Deeter-Schmelz, and Anselmi (2013)		x						x	Monitoring the salesforce may have negative consequences, meaning that a balance of control is required.	B2B	Quantitative study
Diba, Vella, and Abratt (2019)	x					x	x	x	SM leads to more intra- and inter-business communication. Customers rely less on traditional sources, have more information available, and the role of sales is changing. Customers can use SM throughout their entire buying process.	B2B	Conceptual paper
Dixon and Tanner (2012)							x	x	Sales roles must change and engage and collaborate with customers. Sales helps the customer by facilitating his/her decision-making process and by serving as an architect of change.	mixed	Conceptual paper
Dwivedi et al. (2021)			x		x	x			Companies lack knowledge of digital technologies. AI increases the effectiveness of sales. XR will have a huge impact on sales and can be used as a sales and advertising tool to directly interact and communicate with customers. The management of XR is highly complex. SM can be a useful tool for acquiring customers.	B2B	Conceptual paper
Enyinda et al. (2021)	x					x	x		SM changes the sales process and exchanges between buyer and seller. SM changes the balance in the marketplace and is key to capturing customers’ opinions.	B2B	Quantitative study
Foltean, Trif, and Tuleu (2019)	x					x	x		SM leads to many-to-many relationships, and it can improve the CRM capabilities of the seller. The customer has the power, becomes an active participant, and wants to become a co-creator of value. Companies use SM to create awareness, to acquire customers and engage them, and to create interactions.	mixed	Quantitative study
Fraccastoro, Gabrielsson, and Pullins (2021)						x	x		Customers use a variety of channels. Communication tools such as SM complement and assist sales. SM occurs among many users and is usually used to gather information and acquire new customers.	B2B	Conceptual paper
Guenzi and Habel (2020)							x		More information is available through digital possibilities. Customers can gather information independently.	mixed	Qualitative study
Guenzi and Nijssen (2020)						x	x	x	SM complements traditional tools and enhances communication. SM improves salespeople’s outcomes, and older salespeople use SM less than younger salespeople, older people, the less they use it.	mixed	Quantitative study
Guenzi and Nijssen (2021)						x	x	x	SM is an important digital technology in sales. The future salesperson is able to apply a wide range of technology in customer interactions. The relationship becomes more virtual and technology-based.	B2B	Quantitative study
Guesalaga (2016)							x		SM leads to many-to-many relationships, closer connectivity, and changed interactions.	B2B	Quantitative study
Habibi et al. (2015)						x	x		SM makes customers more knowledgeable and facilitates interpersonal communication. SM enables real-time insights into customers and trends and thus supports strategy development.	B2B	Conceptual paper
Hallikainen, Savimäki, and Laukkanen (2020)				x			x		Big data enables better relationships and increases business knowledge and firm performance. It improves decision-making, business processes, and customer understanding. Big data is not the key to economic success; therefore, it is the transformation of data required. Companies require an analytics culture to benefit from big data.	B2B	Quantitative study
Hunter (2019)		x	x						Technology and information can be used to predict behaviors. Technology improves efficiency and effectiveness by augmenting sales tasks. AI can automate sales tasks.	B2B	Quantitative study
Hunter and Panagopoulos (2015)								x	The commitment of the salesforce to technological change is crucial to successful technology adoption.	B2B	Quantitative study
Itani, Agnihotri, and Dingus (2017)						x	x		More information is available and adaptive behavior of sales is improved. SM complements CRM and can be used to target specific customers. CRM improves sales’ information communication and empathy.	B2B	Quantitative study
Järvinen and Taiminen (2016)							x		Technology transforms how business individuals interact. The authors identify automation possibilities across the entire sales process.	B2B	Qualitative study
Jelinek (2013)		x						x	The majority of SFA projects fail and can manage information with little effort. The training of salespeople is important for implementing digital tools successfully.	B2B	Review
Karjaluoto et al. (2014)								x	The study elaborates on key determinants influencing the adoption of mobile CRM systems. The personal innovativeness of the user is very important to a successful implementation.	B2B	Quantitative study
Karjaluoto, Mustonen, and Ulkuniemi (2015)	x					x	x		Digital channels enhance communication and can improve the lead generation process. The customer is an active participant in the sales process. To apply SM adequately, companies must have knowledge of the culture of communication.	B2B	Qualitative study
Koponen and Rytsy (2020)							x		Via chats, customers are easier to contact, but despite digital characters, the social presence in chats is important. Chats enhance relationships.	B2B	Quantitative study
Krings, Palmer, and Inversini (2021)							x	x	Digital technologies lead to information velocity and interactive relationships. The way in which relationships are built and maintained is changing.	B2B	Quantitative study
Lacoste (2016)	x					x	x	x	SM changes the nature of relationships and their management. Customers expect relationships with their business counterparts and want to reduce face-to-face interactions. B2B companies are slower to adopt SM than B2C, and SM is not used to its full potential. SM reduces the costs of acquiring customers and creates trust.	B2B	Conceptual paper
Leeflang et al. (2014)				x					Most companies do not have their data well-structured.	mixed	Quantitative study
Lipiäinen (2015)	x					x	x		Social customers are better informed. Their requirements have changed, and they claim increased interaction. The customer has the power, and integration of SM in CRM can be an adequate response to this change. Companies must manage the dialogue between actors and engage them.	B2B	Qualitative study
Mahlamäki et al. (2020)		x							SFA improves value creation and efficiency. Research is silent regarding customers’ viewpoint on automation in sales.	B2B	Quantitative study
Mariadoss et al. (2014)		x					x		SFA increases effectiveness and efficiency and positively impacts the relationship and salespeople’s knowledge.	B2B	Quantitative study
Marshall et al. (2012)	x						x		Information is ubiquitous and makes the ecosystem better informed. High responsiveness of sales is required.	B2B	Qualitative study
Mattila, Yrjölä, and Hautamäki (2021)							x	x	Sales must coordinate and improve interactions and plays an important role in complex situations. Technologies can automate the relationship, and organizations must be able to adapt their knowledge.	B2B	Qualitative study
Meire, Ballings, and van den Poel (2017)				x		x			Data mining and SM should be combined for automatic handling. This approach improves the lead qualification and reduces the time for screening SM pages.	B2B	Quantitative study
Moncrief, Marshall, and Rudd (2015)	x					x	x		The article presents a framework on SM’s impact and shows that the customers control the relationship. Due to SM, they are better informed and can acquire relevant information on their own. The customers become active participants.	B2B	Review
Nelson, Walsh, and Cui (2020)		x					x		Information is highly valuable for sales to practice relationship management. Analytical CRM can improve the competitive intelligence of salespeople.	mixed	Quantitative study
Ogilvie et al. (2018)	x					x	x	x	Customers are more informed and can gather relevant information on their own. SM improves salespeople’s performance. Sellers must train their salespeople in using SM and change hiring profiles.	mixed	Quantitative study
Oh (2017)	x						x	x	The role of the salesperson, and the interactions they have with customers, have changed. The customer does not rely solely on salespeople anymore, so salespeople must adjust their capabilities.	B2B	Conceptual paper
Paiola and Gebauer (2020)				x					Through big data, companies can integrate customer information in their strategic planning. There are several possibilities for monitoring smart products and employees. Big data increases business knowledge and enables increased personalization, enhances decision-making, and optimizes processes.	B2B	Qualitative study
Pandey, Nayal, and Rathore (2020)	x					x	x	x	Customers have new expectations, require value co-creation activities, and are better informed. Due to these changes, sales requires much more effort. Companies must build SM capabilities and establish a social presence.	B2B	Review
Park et al. (2010)		x					x	x	Technologies improve the relationship and salespeople’s adaptive behavior. For this reason, salespeople need adequate skills in market sensing and learning. SFA enhances efficiency, effectiveness, and firm performance.	B2B	Quantitative study
Paschen, Kietzmann, and Kietzmann (2019)			x				x		AI helps sales gather a vast amount of information, analyze it, and transforms it into a decision. AI increases market knowledge, user knowledge, and customer knowledge.	B2B	Conceptual paper
Paschen, Wilson, and Ferreira (2020)			x					x	AI can be applied in the sales process steps and its implementation must be managed. AI supports sellers and buyers when the actors are able to acquire and interpret the data.	B2B	Review
Paschen et al. (2021)			x						AI can impact a wide range of marketing activities. Salespeople are consumers and curators of AI knowledge in value co-creation processes. AI’s biggest value in value co-creation is data collection.	B2B	Qualitative study
Rangarajan et al. (2021)	x						x		There may be an information overload for customers. At the same time, they want reduced in-person interactions and prefer digital tools.	B2B	Qualitative study
Rodriguez, Peterson, and Krishnan (2012)	x					x	x		The business environment is more challenging, the number of competitors is higher, and customers are better informed and connected among themselves. Companies must leverage SM and other sales technologies in order to strengthen their social capital and relationships. Businesses must think differently regarding how they communicate and engage with customers.	B2B	Quantitative study
Rodríguez, Svensson, and Mehl (2020)		x					x	x	More information is available to the sellers, and they must use this information to adjust their behavior. Automation enhances efficiency and effectiveness and requires training concepts.	B2B	Qualitative study
Ryding (2010)		x					x		Technologies change the relationship and automate routine tasks.	B2B	Qualitative study
Salo (2017)						x	x	x	Customers are becoming active participants. SM influences the whole ecosystem and allows actors to get closer to each other. Sales acts as a coordinator of messages.	B2B	Review
Sanakulov, Kalliomaa, and Karjaluoto (2018)		x				x			SFA should be an integral part of organizations. Organizations must consider individuals’ acceptance, implementation success, and task-technology fit. SM can serve as an effective channel for communicating with customers.	B2B	Qualitative study
Singh et al. (2019)			x					x	Salespeople must coexist with AI and other technologies. AI improves decision-making and changes value creation.	mixed	Conceptual paper
Sinisalo, Karjaluoto, and Saraniemi (2015)							x		Technology changes the relationships and leads to automatization and monitoring. Companies must consider several barriers to the adoption of sales technologies.	B2B	Qualitative study
Syam and Sharma (2018)			x		x			x	AI connects data pieces and helps one to make an informed decision. The application of AI depends on the type of product sold, the complexity, and the sales process step. Inter-personal interfaces limit the application of AI. XR can be used for presentation purposes and enhances customer learning, especially when the products are hard to imagine.	B2B	Review
Tarafdar et al. (2015)		x						x	The use of technology may lead to technostress and thus to the reduced performance of salespeople.	B2B	Quantitative study
Vieira et al. (2019)		x				x	x	x	Stakeholders are better connected, customers are better informed, and SM can improve the connection to the buyer company. New data can be used for analysis and decision-making. Several tools and platforms can automate sales, and sales must manage social circles and connectivity.	B2B	Quantitative study
Wang and Wang (2020)				x					Big data enhances the understanding of buyers’ intentions to buy and improves the monitoring of their purchase behaviors. Most research on big data is B2C-focused. Firms must establish business objectives in order to define data sources and the extent to which they can benefit from big data. Companies with an analytics culture have higher sales growth and better customer relationship performance.	B2B	Review
Wengler, Hildmann, and Vossebein (2021)		x		x			x	x	The focus of sales shifts to value creation that requires an ecosystem perspective. There is a high potential of automating tasks and changing the sales process. A transformation model shows that people, processes, and data are central to digital transformation.	B2B	Qualitative study
Zhang and Li (2019)						x	x	x	Customers have more power today because SM decreases information asymmetry. SM improves the relationship, enhances customer engagement, and creates trust. Salespeople are agents who connect buyers and sellers.	B2B	Quantitative study
Zoltners et al. (2021)			x	x			x	x	The sales role and the associated skills changed, the power has shifted toward the customer, and sales is working in a network. AI can boost the power of data and is the basis for targeted decision-making. The rich data on buyers and interactions enhance sales decisions. Data analytics is blending planning and execution.	mixed	Review

Note: T = general findings on technologies in sales, Rel. = findings on the customer-sales relationship.