NEW WALES-SPECIFIC findings from Pipedrive‘s UK report, ‘Hard sell: How sales teams can reclaim the profession‘, suggest Wales is the most sceptical market in Britain when it comes to sales.
In Wales, just 11% of people say salespeople are trustworthy – the lowest regional figure in the UK and well below the national average of 21%. More than half (55%) say salespeople are not trustworthy, while 45% describe their overall opinion of the profession as negative and just 9% as positive.
That scepticism appears to be grounded in experience as much as image. Nearly half (49%) of Welsh respondents say they can’t remember ever having had a positive experience with a salesperson, compared with 34% nationally. Welsh consumers are also more likely to associate salespeople with negative traits such as being pushy (74%), money-driven (62%) and manipulative (57%).
This does not look like a simple nuisance-caller effect. 23% say phone outreach makes them feel pressured often or always, below the UK average of 35%. The findings may suggest a deeper trust gap around the experience of sales, as even trust-building tactics appear less effective in Wales: only 40% say no pressure to decide immediately would make them trust a salesperson more, and just 23% say honest acknowledgement of pros and cons would help. More than a quarter (28%) say nothing would change their view at all.
Al is not solving the problem either. Just 17% of Welsh respondents say they are open to buying from Al-driven sales tools, while 62% are not. Among those not fully open to Al-led sales, 54% say they do not fully trust Al and 43% say they value human connection.
Sean Evers, VP of Sales & Partner at Pipedrive, said: “Wales stands out because the data suggests the issue goes beyond irritation with cold calls or caution around new Al tools.
“There appears to be a deeper scepticism around the sales experience itself. That means businesses cannot rely on ‘doing the same but more or faster’, or on smarter tools alone.
“They need to rebuild credibility by being more honest, more patient and more relevant from the very first interaction.
“Humanity and empathy lie at the heart of creating meaningful relationships and businesses.”
Figures are from ‘Pipedrive’s Hard sell: How sales teams can reclaim the profession report’, based on a Sapio Research survey of 1,500 UK adults in March 2026, including 1,000 general population respondents and 500 current or former salespeople.
