The sales function in the twenty‐first century: where are we and where do we go from here?

Purpose – This article aims to position current sales research in relation to what academics perceive as important future research areas for sales theory and practice. It makes the argument that after a 20‐year period of rapid growth and almost a decade of a transition phase, sales research is now a mature area of academic inquiry. The paper seeks to highlights gaps in current knowledge and promising avenues for future sales research endeavours. Design/methodology/approach – The article is based on a survey of European sales academics; answers are mapped in matrices demonstrating fields of importance against research volume per subject over the past 20 years. Findings – While sales research has made many theoretical and managerial inroads, there are still areas where research efforts would greatly enhance both practitioner and academic knowledge. Research limitations/implications – Researchers should focus their efforts on the highlighted areas, taking particular account of the interplay between sales and finance/accounting. This would allow researchers to address such issues as budgeting and forecasting more systematically than had been done heretofore. Originality/value – The article combines perceptual data with Williams and Plouffe's meta‐analysis of published sales research to deliver a comprehensive and actionable picture of the state of sales research.