UPWARD Releases Its Original Panel Survey, “Field Sales Reality Survey 2026”

UPWARD Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; CEO: Ryusuke Kaneki) conducted its own panel survey, the “2026 Field Sales Survey,” targeting 370 sales representatives whose work centers on in-person visits, and has published the survey white paper.

Even now, when online sales meetings and inside sales have become commonplace, field sales (sales centered on in-person visits) remain a key sales model that forms the core of Japan’s sales industry. Activities that build trust through face-to-face interactions continue to support the front lines of business.

On the other hand, there has been insufficient visibility into how time spent in the field is utilized and log the customer information gathered log. This survey was conducted with the aim of identifying challenges using primary data—with a primary focus on how field sales representatives spend their time—and deriving solutions based on those findings.

The survey revealed the following realities: Field sales representatives have their time consumed by travel and post-visit tasks, leaving only about 20–30% of their scheduled working hours (according to our company’s estimates) for actual sales meetings.Most activity reports and daily logs are not completed during travel or at client sites; instead, they become “take-home work” that must be done after returning to the office or home. Furthermore, it became clear that the more client visits a representative makes, the less detailed log become log, resulting in a failure to sufficiently accumulate important customer information. Ensuring that this information is not overlooked and turning field data into an asset to be leveraged is the next step toward improving sales productivity.

Key Findings of the Survey

1. 82.0% of salespeople who conduct sales meetings are “field sales representatives”

According to the screening survey, 82.0% of sales representatives conducting business negotiations focused their activities on in-person visits (72.2% visit-focused + 9.8% split evenly between visits and online interactions).

2. 23.0% of the day is allocated to business meetings (estimated)

With time consumed by commuting and post-work tasks, the time available for business meetings amounts to only 23.0% of scheduled working hours (based on an estimate assuming each meeting lasts 45 minutes).

3. 58.6% of report and daily log entries are completed “after returning to the office or after arriving home.”

58.6% of reports and data entries were submitted after returning to the office or home, rather than while on the go or at a client site (among those who are aware of the reporting system and actually submit reports; N=256). The biggest complaint about the reporting tool was that “manual entry is a hassle” (27.2%).

4. The more visits there are, the thinner log becomes, and customer information is not accumulated.

The time spent on data entry per week remains roughly constant (50–66 minutes), regardless of the number of visits. As a result, log decreases for staff members with a higher volume of visits, and for those with the highest frequency, it amounts to just 2.0 minutes per visit (estimated). Since log cannot keep up with the volume of visits, this risks becoming a bottleneck for data utilization and AX (transformation through AI).

5. Even after implementing tools, digital transformation

Only 23.8% of respondents felt that digital transformation their company’s digital transformation was “progressing,” and even among those using SFA/CRM systems, about one-fifth (19.1%) responded that it was “not progressing.” Simply introducing these tools is not translating into tangible results on the front lines.

6. What the field staff really want to spend their time on is “core sales activities”

When asked what they would like to do with any free time resulting from streamlined administrative tasks, 47.3% of respondents (actual number, excluding duplicates) chose one of the following: business negotiations, follow-ups with existing clients, or new business development—a figure that exceeded the percentage who chose rest or vacation (25.7%). Improving the quality of how time is spent is not only a strategy for boosting productivity but also something that frontline staff themselves desire.

Background of the Survey

UPWARD helps visualize field sales activities to improve productivity and resolve on-site challenges. This survey was conducted as a first step to clarify the actual conditions on the ground using primary data and to identify key challenges. We will continue to work toward creating an environment where field sales representatives can focus more on their core sales responsibilities.

Survey Overview

• Survey Title: Survey on the Actual Practices and Operational Challenges of Field Sales (Outside Sales)
• Survey Sponsor: UPWARD Co., Ltd. (proprietary panel survey) / Survey Method: Online survey
• Screening Survey: May 28–31, 2026; N=2,400 (of which n=1,445 were sales representatives conducting business meetings)
• This Survey: June 2–9, 2026; Valid Responses: N=370 (Out of 400 total responses, 30 logically invalid responses in the ranking questions were excluded)
  _{*The figures “About 20–30% of time is spent on sales meetings” and “About 2 minutes per visit” are estimates based on questions regarding travel time and the number of visits.For multiple-choice questions, the total percentage may exceed 100%.}

[Regarding the Citation and Reproduction of Survey Results]

• When citing or reproducing the results of this survey, please clearly state the source as “UPWARD Co., Ltd., ‘Field Sales Survey 2026.’” If using the results online, please include a link to the press release page ( https://upward.jp/info/20260702−2/ ).
• Please refrain from editing or altering the data in any way that would distort the intent of the survey results. For inquiries regarding the secondary use of the data or for further details, please contact the inquiry desk listed below.

Download the Survey Report

This press release presents only a portion of the survey results. You can download the full 18-page survey white paper, “Field Sales Survey 2026,” which includes detailed tabulations and cross-tabulations as well as analysis and recommendations addressing on-the-ground challenges, for free from the link below. We encourage you to read it.

Download URL: https://upward.jp/downloads/field-sales-survey-2026/