When we say “change,” we’re not talking about chump change. We’re talking about technological and economic change. And we’re not talking about simply adapting to these types of changes: we’re talking about anticipating them, embracing them, and — above all else — profiting from them.
Naturally, as we’re in the configure, price, quote business — a.k.a., CPQ; a.k.a., quote to cash; a.k.a., contract to cash — we’re going to share how a CPQ system helps you drive revenue (make bills) from change.
Yesterday’s products, yesterday’s pricing
If you’re in B2B sales — especially if you’re selling technology products and services — you know that there’s always something new hitting the market, or about to.
You also likely know that no matter how well you differentiate your product or service from the competition, there’s always some jerk worthy competitor out there low-balling everyone, turning every market into a commodities market.
While a CPQ system won’t necessarily help drive new product development or impact overall market prices, it can ensure that every rep in your organization is offering your most recent edition at your most competitive price point by consolidating both in a dynamic products and pricing catalog. By centrally administering products and prices, you know that every sales proposal sent is your best foot forward, no matter who’s walking it to the client.
Do you see what I see?
Another way to stay on top of the competition and changes in the market is to ensure the captain of your ship has visibility of all reps and, more importantly, all quotes from all reps.
In even the best CRM systems like Zoho, Dynamics, and Salesforce, a sales manager can easily lose sight of quotes as most CRM solutions don’t offer visibility beyond “quote sent” and “quote signed” (or “opportunity lost”).
But a configure, price, quote system — in addition to empowering reps with the ability to send more accurate, more relevant proposals more quickly — gives sales leaders that much needed absolutely necessary ability to view a quote’s progress.
Using the sales analytics tools built into most CPQ systems, a manager can quickly see which reps’ quotes are getting the most traction, and which may have stalled, and have the info they need to take corrective action in real-time.
Ensure everyone’s ready for prime time
Ahhh, changes in personnel. There’s nothing a sales manager loves hates more than getting new reps up to speed. Nothing against the newbies and rookies, but every hour spent in training in an hour not spent selling.
Most CPQ systems are intuitive enough that anyone who can use Outlook can use CPQ. But the solution is as much about historical data as it is about usability. Because inside your CPQ software resides almost all the information and tools a rep — regardless of their experience — needs to succeed: the winning quotes.
Job #1 for any new rep you hire should be a deep dive into those winning proposals. And this isn’t a simply “learn from what has worked in the past” kind of training/undertaking: this deep dive is so that the newbies can actually use those winning proposals. Essentially, your CPQ system can help you adapt to changes in personnel by equipping rookies with the tools and quotes used by seasoned pros!
Change is certain in sales. But tapping the power of CPQ can help you roll with those changes easily, efficiently, and profitably.
If you'd like to learn more about this topic or see IQX for yourself with a free demo, contact us.
