Some things in life are best made by hand—a dining room table, a wool suit, a pecan pie—so it makes sense that some businesses can charge an impressive premium for handmade products. But some things should not be made by hand—computers, medicine, cars. For more and more businesses, that list of things not to make the old-fashioned way includes business proposals. Those businesses are improving performance by turning to Quotation Management Software (QMS) to make quotes for prospects.
These businesses have discovered what anyone who makes things by hand has learned: a lack of automation increases inefficiency, error, and cost. And while that risk may be acceptable and maybe even beneficial for a baker, it is something a complex business can and should avoid.
QMS software un-silos your business
One reason some businesses struggle to write proposals without QMS software is that different components of a business maintain relevant information in separate locations. In these cases, drawing up a business proposal the old-fashioned way requires either greater expertise or a great deal of effort—either way the business is working at less than maximum efficiency.
QMS software increases the efficiency of business proposals by compiling information from different sources into one organized and easy-to-use location. Not only does this make it possible to generate proposals more quickly, it makes it possible for more people within a company to create, deliver, and track proposals, which means efficiency lifts across the board. And the more efficient the process, the better the chances of getting the first proposal into the hands of the prospect.
QMS software is highly adaptable
Often a business will want to submit similar versions of the same proposal, with a slight tweaks in each one. But if you do this the old-fashioned way--manually--you increase opportunities for human error.
No such problem exists with QMS software, however. The software simplifies the process of altering proposals, giving you and your prospect immediate and correct information about the different costs of different options. Because QMS software increases flexibility without sacrificing accuracy, it can give a company a competitive edge.
QMS software can save you money
Beyond inflexibility and error, the trouble with old-fashioned ways of doing things is that they, of course, take more time. And, as everyone knows, time=money. Making business proposals is no different.
Without QMS software, developing a business proposal requires time and specialized knowledge—each time a company makes a proposal this way, it's like buying a bespoke suit. This may be fine for a company that doesn't need to create too many proposals, but for a larger company in a competitive space, where the business opportunities are flying fast, the initial investment in QMS software can quickly begin saving money.
So, as much as we may love the old ways of doing some things--making cheese, tailoring suits-- we shouldn't love the old ways of doing everything. When it comes to making business proposals, QMS software is the fastest, most accurate, and most cost-effective method around.
