Your customers, sales team, and partners want business information at their fingertips during the sales process. So if you're still carrying around line cards, marketing brochures, business card binders, and a pen and notepad to meet with existing or prospective accounts, it's time to make some changes.
According to one study, sales teams deploying configure, price, quote (CPQ) software solutions create 49% more proposals per rep per month than non-users.
If you answered "yes" to any of these statements; a Configure, Price, Quote (CPQ) tool is something your organization should seriously consider.
What's the ROI? Just a few months after launching CPQ, Novatech was closing 26% more deals thanks to their accelerated quoting process.
Video: See how Novatech closed more deals
One of the best product configurators on the market is Salesforce CPQ. We like CPQ for its ease of use and its ability to wrangle even the most complex products. But regardless of the tool you decide to use, here are some best practices to consider before launch:
Break it down into accomplishable goals. Use an Agile or Minimum Viable Product (MVP) approach to define, design, and deliver in sprints lasting no longer than 30-60 days.
Keep it as out-of-the-box as possible and adjust your processes to the tool. You’ll save a lot of time and money.
The tool and process needs to be simple and natural. Your product might be highly configurable and complex, but the steps to configure, price and quote shouldn't be. Think through the common questions customers ask or the requests they make. Then streamline information and action steps to fit their thinking and needs. Tesla did a great job of this with their "learn, configure, purchase" approach.
With any new software or process, developing and implementing a change management plan is crucial for for supporting user adoption.
Clearly define expectations and remain agile. Selecting a trusted partner to help you choose, implement or integrate a Product Configurator or CPQ tool can help keep the project on track. Having a knowledgeable outsider's perspective will keep your efforts focused and efficient and ultimately save your organization time and money.