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CRM · 2026-09.1

Freshsales

When buyers asked AI for a CRM shortlist.

Observed naming

22 of 150 valid answers

22 of 150 valid answers, 14.7% (Wilson 95% interval 9.9% to 21.2%)

Observed answers on stated dates, not a ranking. This is not a judgment of product quality.

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By engine and question

Shortlist wheel for Freshsales, CRM: named in 22 of 150 answersChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AI OverviewsGoogle AI ModeBest optionSpecific workflowTop toolsAlternativeBest optionSpecific workflowBuyer evaluationSpecific workflow12345678910FreshsalesCRMNamed in 22 of 150 answersFive engines, 22 September 2026

Filled marks: named in at least 2 of 3 scheduled repeats. Open marks: below that threshold. Dashed marks: excluded answers leave the threshold uncertain. Counts and intervals follow for each question.

Answer capture date: 2026-09-22.

By engine

ChatGPT

0 of 30 valid answers, 0.0% (Wilson 95% interval 0.0% to 11.4%)

Claude

8 of 30 valid answers, 26.7% (Wilson 95% interval 14.2% to 44.4%)

Perplexity

9 of 30 valid answers, 30.0% (Wilson 95% interval 16.7% to 47.9%)

Google AI Overviews

2 of 30 valid answers, 6.7% (Wilson 95% interval 1.8% to 21.3%)

Google AI Mode

3 of 30 valid answers, 10.0% (Wilson 95% interval 3.5% to 25.6%)

By buyer question

Each count is over valid answers to the exact question. Excluded answers are outside that base.

What is the best CRM for a growing B2B sales team?

0 of 15 valid answers, 0.0% (Wilson 95% interval 0.0% to 20.4%)

Question 1. Excluded answers: 0. Type: best option.

Ask the engine yourself; answers vary by run.ChatGPTPerplexityClaude

Which CRM is best for managing a complex sales pipeline?

3 of 15 valid answers, 20.0% (Wilson 95% interval 7.0% to 45.2%)

Question 2. Excluded answers: 0. Type: specific workflow.

Ask the engine yourself; answers vary by run.ChatGPTPerplexityClaude

What are the top CRM tools for a mid-market company?

6 of 15 valid answers, 40.0% (Wilson 95% interval 19.8% to 64.3%)

Question 3. Excluded answers: 0. Type: top tools.

Ask the engine yourself; answers vary by run.ChatGPTPerplexityClaude

What are good alternatives to a traditional CRM?

2 of 15 valid answers, 13.3% (Wilson 95% interval 3.7% to 37.9%)

Question 4. Excluded answers: 0. Type: alternative.

Ask the engine yourself; answers vary by run.ChatGPTPerplexityClaude

Which CRM options work well for a small sales team that is scaling?

4 of 15 valid answers, 26.7% (Wilson 95% interval 10.9% to 52.0%)

Question 5. Excluded answers: 0. Type: best option.

Ask the engine yourself; answers vary by run.ChatGPTPerplexityClaude

What CRM should a revenue team consider when replacing spreadsheets?

4 of 15 valid answers, 26.7% (Wilson 95% interval 10.9% to 52.0%)

Question 6. Excluded answers: 0. Type: specific workflow.

Ask the engine yourself; answers vary by run.ChatGPTPerplexityClaude

How do the main CRM platforms compare for reporting and forecasting?

3 of 15 valid answers, 20.0% (Wilson 95% interval 7.0% to 45.2%)

Question 7. Excluded answers: 0. Type: buyer evaluation.

Ask the engine yourself; answers vary by run.ChatGPTPerplexityClaude

Which CRM approach is better for a team with multiple sales motions?

0 of 15 valid answers, 0.0% (Wilson 95% interval 0.0% to 20.4%)

Question 8. Excluded answers: 0. Type: buyer evaluation.

Ask the engine yourself; answers vary by run.ChatGPTPerplexityClaude

What should a buyer evaluate in a CRM?

0 of 15 valid answers, 0.0% (Wilson 95% interval 0.0% to 20.4%)

Question 9. Excluded answers: 0. Type: buyer evaluation.

Ask the engine yourself; answers vary by run.ChatGPTPerplexityClaude

How can a sales team use a CRM to improve handoffs and follow-up?

0 of 15 valid answers, 0.0% (Wilson 95% interval 0.0% to 20.4%)

Question 10. Excluded answers: 0. Type: specific workflow.

Ask the engine yourself; answers vary by run.ChatGPTPerplexityClaude

Questions with no recorded naming

What is the best CRM for a growing B2B sales team?

Freshsales: 0 of 15 valid answers, 0.0% (Wilson 95% interval 0.0% to 20.4%)

Other checked vendors named in valid answers to this question:

  • HubSpot CRM: 15 of 15 valid answers, 100.0% (Wilson 95% interval 79.6% to 100.0%)
  • Pipedrive: 15 of 15 valid answers, 100.0% (Wilson 95% interval 79.6% to 100.0%)
  • Salesforce Sales Cloud: 14 of 15 valid answers, 93.3% (Wilson 95% interval 70.2% to 98.8%)
  • Zoho CRM: 8 of 15 valid answers, 53.3% (Wilson 95% interval 30.1% to 75.2%)
  • Close: 2 of 15 valid answers, 13.3% (Wilson 95% interval 3.7% to 37.9%)
  • Copper: 2 of 15 valid answers, 13.3% (Wilson 95% interval 3.7% to 37.9%)
Which CRM approach is better for a team with multiple sales motions?

Freshsales: 0 of 15 valid answers, 0.0% (Wilson 95% interval 0.0% to 20.4%)

Other checked vendors named in valid answers to this question:

  • Salesforce Sales Cloud: 13 of 15 valid answers, 86.7% (Wilson 95% interval 62.1% to 96.3%)
  • HubSpot CRM: 11 of 15 valid answers, 73.3% (Wilson 95% interval 48.0% to 89.1%)
  • Pipedrive: 9 of 15 valid answers, 60.0% (Wilson 95% interval 35.7% to 80.2%)
  • Zoho CRM: 2 of 15 valid answers, 13.3% (Wilson 95% interval 3.7% to 37.9%)
What should a buyer evaluate in a CRM?

Freshsales: 0 of 15 valid answers, 0.0% (Wilson 95% interval 0.0% to 20.4%)

Other checked vendors named in valid answers to this question:

How can a sales team use a CRM to improve handoffs and follow-up?

Freshsales: 0 of 15 valid answers, 0.0% (Wilson 95% interval 0.0% to 20.4%)

Other checked vendors named in valid answers to this question:

  • HubSpot CRM: 9 of 15 valid answers, 60.0% (Wilson 95% interval 35.7% to 80.2%)
  • Salesforce Sales Cloud: 9 of 15 valid answers, 60.0% (Wilson 95% interval 35.7% to 80.2%)
  • Pipedrive: 3 of 15 valid answers, 20.0% (Wilson 95% interval 7.0% to 45.2%)
  • Close: 1 of 15 valid answers, 6.7% (Wilson 95% interval 1.2% to 29.8%)
  • Insightly: 1 of 15 valid answers, 6.7% (Wilson 95% interval 1.2% to 29.8%)

Vendor domain citations

0 of 150 valid answers, 0.0% (Wilson 95% interval 0.0% to 2.5%)

The full CRM checked set

Full checked set, sorted by observed counts, not a ranking.
VendorNamedVendor domain cited
HubSpot CRM113 of 150 valid answers, 75.3% (Wilson 95% interval 67.9% to 81.5%)34 of 150 valid answers, 22.7% (Wilson 95% interval 16.7% to 30.0%)
Salesforce Sales Cloud109 of 150 valid answers, 72.7% (Wilson 95% interval 65.0% to 79.2%)37 of 150 valid answers, 24.7% (Wilson 95% interval 18.5% to 32.1%)
Pipedrive97 of 150 valid answers, 64.7% (Wilson 95% interval 56.7% to 71.9%)29 of 150 valid answers, 19.3% (Wilson 95% interval 13.8% to 26.4%)
Zoho CRM73 of 150 valid answers, 48.7% (Wilson 95% interval 40.8% to 56.6%)23 of 150 valid answers, 15.3% (Wilson 95% interval 10.4% to 22.0%)
Microsoft Dynamics 36536 of 150 valid answers, 24.0% (Wilson 95% interval 17.9% to 31.4%)9 of 150 valid answers, 6.0% (Wilson 95% interval 3.2% to 11.0%)
Freshsales22 of 150 valid answers, 14.7% (Wilson 95% interval 9.9% to 21.2%)0 of 150 valid answers, 0.0% (Wilson 95% interval 0.0% to 2.5%)
Close12 of 150 valid answers, 8.0% (Wilson 95% interval 4.6% to 13.5%)4 of 150 valid answers, 2.7% (Wilson 95% interval 1.0% to 6.7%)
Insightly10 of 150 valid answers, 6.7% (Wilson 95% interval 3.7% to 11.8%)4 of 150 valid answers, 2.7% (Wilson 95% interval 1.0% to 6.7%)
Copper4 of 150 valid answers, 2.7% (Wilson 95% interval 1.0% to 6.7%)0 of 150 valid answers, 0.0% (Wilson 95% interval 0.0% to 2.5%)
Nimble0 of 150 valid answers, 0.0% (Wilson 95% interval 0.0% to 2.5%)0 of 150 valid answers, 0.0% (Wilson 95% interval 0.0% to 2.5%)

Release and method

Release
2026-09, version 2026-09.1
Published
2026-09-23
Answer capture date
2026-09-22
Source capture dates
2026-08-28
Engines
ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, Google AI Overviews, Google AI Mode
Configuration
10 fixed target questions, 5 engines, 3 repeats. Five controls were run outside the scored base.
Method version
v1.1
Excluded answers
0 target answers excluded; exact reasons are listed. Controls were run outside the scored base.
Commissioned engagement
No commissioned engagement is declared for this category.

Exact names and listed aliases are matched without case sensitivity at word boundaries. Plain word names require a listed qualifier nearby in the same sentence or the canonical domain among cited URLs. A vendor citation counts only when that answer also names the vendor under this rule.

Verbatim answer text is retained privately with the measurement input and import audit. No answer quotations are published here.

Download and cite

Release JSON · Category CSV · DOI 10.5281/zenodo.22907695

How to cite: Broadcastwell. The Absence Index, CRM, version 2026-09.1. Permanent record. CC BY 4.0 with attribution to Broadcastwell.

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Observed answers on stated dates, not a ranking. This is not a judgment of product quality.

This public record reports the checked set, fixed questions and stated dates. Claim a vendor page, file a dispute or ask for a re-run, or read the dispute policy and log.

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