Configure, Price and Quote: The perfect deal with CPQ
With CPQ to the perfect deal: Optimize your sales success increase efficiency by using an integrated CPQ system.
What is CPQ?
CPQ stands for Configure, Price, Quote. It is a sales support software solution that helps companies configure complex products or services, calculate prices and create quotes for customers.
CPQ systems are primarily needed to offer customizable products or services. CPQ is therefore used particularly frequently by manufacturers of technical equipment, software solutions or in telecommunications companies. With a CPQ system, sales staff as well as customers can select different options and configurations of a product, while the system automatically calculates the price and generates a suitable offer.
The essence of the personalized customer relationship
The most important building block for customers to remain satisfied and feel valued by companies is a personalized customer relationship. Individualized offers are crucial for this. However, many companies neither take the time nor have the right tools to respond to the needs of their clientele.
With the help of CPQ solutions, however, it becomes possible to realize this personalized approach and provide customers with a customized service offering. Companies can ensure that they are responding to the specific needs and requirements of their customers and providing exactly the offering that is expected by the customer. By providing tailored solutions in this way, companies can build deeper customer loyalty and invest in a long-term and sustainable customer relationship.
In practical terms, it looks like this:
A company that produces customized industrial machinery uses a CPQ system to streamline its sales process. When a potential customer expresses interest in a machine, the sales representative works directly with them to define the appropriate configuration. They discuss specific requirements such as performance, size, equipment and any customizations.
The CPQ module automatically calculates the price in the background based on the selected options. It takes into account factors such as material costs, labor and any available discounts. Furthermore, additional options such as maintenance contracts or supplementary services can be integrated into the offer.
Once the configuration is complete, the CPQ system generates a detailed quotation with all relevant information such as technical specifications, prices, delivery times and contract terms. The quotation is sent to the customer either electronically or in printed form.
How does sales support work?
Particularly in B2B as well as the manufacturing industry, complex products and services present companies with major challenges when it comes to creating individual quotations. Business criteria merge with product-specific requirements and demand a personalized offer for each individual customer. CPQ systems accelerate this procedural standard by supporting sales through automated functions. These include:
- Configuration: The CPQ system enables sales staff to configure products or services according to individual requirements and preferences. Product specifications and product characteristics such as size, color, functions or material are taken into account. The solution ensures that the configured options are technically feasible and also compatible.
- Pricing: Based on the selected configurations, the CPQ automatically calculates the price of the product or service. Various factors are taken into account, such as material costs, labor, customer discounts, taxes and other pricing rules. At the same time, complex pricing models can be stored, such as quantity discounts, graduated prices or customer-specific price agreements.
- Quotation generation: Once the configuration is complete and the price is set, a detailed quotation is generated automatically. The quotation contains all relevant information such as product descriptions and specifications, prices, configuration options, delivery terms, and contract details. For an even more customized customer experience, customer-specific templates can also be used to create the quotation in the corporate design.
- Workflow support: Some CPQ systems also support automated workflows such as release and approval of quotations by supervisors. Tasks such as sending quotes to customers or tracking sales opportunities in the sales process can also be automated using workflows.
- Integration: The connection between IT systems is also essential so that no isolated applications are created: CPQ, CRM and ERP should be connected in a meaningful way. As a result, all data flows seamlessly between the different systems, which further optimizes the sales process and ensures particularly high data accuracy (Link zu Zeile 7).
With the flexible CRM system from Ninox, you have all functions bundled in one place. CRM, ERP and CPQ can be controlled from a central database and thus offer maximum sales support.
With CPQ to the perfect quotation
The sales support provided by CPQ systems automates the process of product configuration, pricing and quotation generation. Sales staff thus work more efficiently, human errors are minimized and companies can ensure consistent customer communication.
At the same time, CPQ enables a personalized and rapid response to customers' individual needs. This inevitably leads to higher customer satisfaction and, incidentally, raises sales performance to a new level.
Help your sales force be more efficient: Provide your customers with customized quotes in seconds. With the CPQ features in Ninox CRM, quotation creation becomes a breeze.
