If your business is still using word processing software and spreadsheets to produce quotes and manage pricing, you’re not alone. While many large businesses use Configure Price Quote (CPQ) applications to simplify and streamline the process, smaller businesses often are unaware that CPQ is a tool that is accessible to them as well. Here are the reasons why your organization should consider CPQ software and how it can help your business:
1.) Accelerate the process
An advantage of Salesforce SteelBrick CPQ is that it is faster to implement that other CPQ software.
In general, CPQ can help businesses grow faster simply because time spent quoting is time not spent selling. Sales teams typically need to meet with other members of the team to answer questions or gain approvals, and responses often take a day or more. And once generated, quotes can also be subject to a myriad of revisions from other members of the team.
With Salesforce SteelBrick CPQ, time is saved. All products and price orders can be uploaded, and quotes can be generated with the click of a button.
One advantage of Salesforce SteelBrick CPQ is that it is faster to implement than other CPQ software and is easy to use on any device.
With SteelBrick CPQ you can:
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Reduce errors in opportunities, quotes & contracts
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Quickly create accurate quotes & proposals
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Improve productivity and close more deals
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Increase deal sizes with cross-sell and up-sell guidance
2.) Easily access key metrics and reports
SteelBrick CPQ is also native on the Salesforce platform. You can utilize standard Salesforce dashboards, workflows and reports. This means there is increased visibility into opportunities and automated approvals. This is especially important when CPQ is utilized as a risk mitigation tool. CPQ helps to ensure that deals are not lost due to slow or error-riddled quotes, missed up-sell opportunities, or out-of-date pricing when integrated with your existing Salesforce data. Like other Salesforce applications, SteelBrick CPQ makes it easy to generate the right intelligence and reporting quickly.
3.) Customize products, services and pricing to each individual customer
Pricing can be customized by using advanced pricing rules.
Using your existing sales and customer data, SteelBrick CPQ also allows B2B sellers to offer the mix of products and services that each individual customer needs. Pricing can also be customized with advanced pricing rules that can be set towards volume discounts, percent-of-total discounts, pre-negotiated contract pricing and channel and partner pricing.
4.) It’s affordable and well-received by sales teams
Another advantage to SteelBrick for small businesses is that it is an affordable solution that salespeople almost always dive right into. The quotes generated are professional, branded and can include everything from cover letters to marketing materials, making a professional impression on clients.
5.) It puts a stop to steep discounting
SteelBrick CPQ also ensures that there are no discounts lower than your company permits. Consistent, accurate pricing is guaranteed. Any discount must adhere to all of the discounting guidelines, or it is not allowed to be processed through the system. Discount thresholds can be combined with approval processes and approvers are alerted and can make approval decisions from their mobile devices.
How to Decide Which CPQ Software is Right for Your Business
When deciding which CPQ software is right for your business, you want CPQ software that is able to generate fast, affordable results.
A few questions to ask:
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What CRM does your company currently use? By having a CRM system that is on the same platform as your CPQ app, you can ensure seamless flow of data and ease in customization and administration.
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Is there a requirement for mobile usage? If your sales team is often on the road, you want to use a CPQ software that enables them to create quotes while they are on-the-go. That simple.
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How fast and affordable is implementation? You want CPQ software that is able to generate fast, affordable results. We recommend asking other CPQ software users for their feedback before implementing a new CPQ software.
In Summary
SteelBrick CPQ helps sales reps do their job more efficiently and accurately. By automatically generating the right mix of products and services for each customer and providing an accurate quote, CPQ allows your sales reps to concentrate on customer relationship building and contacting their next lead.
Summa boasts deep experience in creating fast, flexible, reliable and secure connectivity between cloud, on-premises, new and legacy core applications, as well as IoT and mobile devices. As both the implementation partner and the customer engagement solution architect for our clients, we achieve business results using Marketing, Sales and Service Clouds and other platform components of Salesforce.com. In 2015, we won the Salesforce.com Partner Innovation Award for Non-Profit Success for our work innovating new fundraising, donor and volunteer management solutions for The United Way of Southwestern PA. Plus, Salesforce.com is one of Summa's fastest-growing practice areas. As Gold Partners, we're excited to do more, excel more and produce more transformative solutions for our clients.
