Tracking quotes = fast-tracking quotes

If you’re a sales rep, you likely know where most of your outstanding sales quotes are.

You may not be tracking quotes from start to finish, but you have a rough idea of what’s waiting to be signed, by whom, and — most importantly to you — what your commission will be once the deal is done.

If you’re a sales manager, you likely know the status of some larger proposals out there, but likely don’t have granular data on each and every one in process.

And why would you? After all, each one only has a direct connection to whether this quarter’s numbers will be hit: what’s the big deal? (That’s sarcasm, of course: hard to convey in the written word.)

Contrary to what most CRM systems would have you believe, there’s a whole lot more to tracking sales quotes than simply sent and signed, than won or lost. There are a multitude of steps along the way that must be monitored and — when necessary — acted on.

The good news is that, like most current business challenges, “there’s an app for that,” and that business application is configure, price, quote (CPQ) software. With CPQ, tracking quotes from start to finish is not only easy: it’s automatic.

If you’re not already using CPQ for sales quote tracking, here are a few good reasons why you should get started doing so, and ASAP.

Not all sales reps are created equally

One of the many things Glengarry Glen Ross taught us is that sales reps come in many flavors: rock stars like Ricky Roma (played by Al Pacino), to bare minimum guys like George Aaronow (Alan Arkin), to schlubs like Shelley Levene (immortalized by Jack Lemmon). These guys basically had to get by on their guts and their wits: not a CRM system or sales quoting app to be had. The schlubs didn’t stand a chance.

But with CPQ software in the mix, you can make most any rep into a Ricky Roma. With sales proposal templates and easy drag-and-drop product and pricing configuration, it lets every rep create a sales proposal — in just a couple of minutes — that’s professional, custom, and compelling. And, as it’s cloud-based, reps can use it from anywhere, ensuring no opportunity is missed.

When it comes to sales quote tracking, CPQ can help a manager identify the Rickys and the Shelleys, and share the tactics used during the signing process that can help the latter become the former. (A manager might also keep a closer eye on the quotes put in by his Shelleys than by his Rickys.)

Missed opportunities, missed revenue

Quotes don’t always come back the same as when they went out. By this, we mean that it’s pretty common to iterate during the quote-signing process. With a CPQ system tracking and monitoring every possible pivot, sales leadership has more immediate and actionable insight into possible opportunities for upsells and upgrades.

For example, a client of ours was recently in the process of selling a CRM solution. The request came back to augment the quote to include a more robust email application in the solution.

Whereas the rep saw an opportunity to do a mere value-add, his manager — tracking the quote through his CPQ’s dashboard — saw a bigger opportunity for a full-featured marketing automation system. An opportunity to add an additional 3% in licensing fees became an opportunity to nearly double the size of the deal.

More data, more deals

Finally, when you move from “sent/signed” to more granular sales quote tracking, you are collecting far more data on the most critical step in any sales cycle.

Knowing when to ping a client, when to upsell/upgrade, when a manager should get involved to unclog bottlenecks: these kinds of actions are only made possible if you have the data. It’s this kind of information — and the ability to quickly respond to it — that takes an organization from simply tracking quotes to fast-tracking quotes.

Leveling the playing field… driving more deals… getting more actionable insights. Using CPQ  to track quotes makes it all possible.

Does CRM have quoting software? (And, if so, is it any good?)

Account management. Lead nurture. Sales forecasting. Quote making. Beet farming. There are things CRM software does well (accounts, leads, forecasting), things it does so-so (quote making), and things it doesn’t do at all (beet farming… and, in some CRMs, also quote making).

It’s not CRM’s fault that people try to use it for, well, everything. The solution is invariably the one sales and marketing people are most familiar with and therefore the one they use to solve most every business challenge. It’s the hammer that makes every problem look like a nail.

The fact is that not every problem is a nail. And when it comes to creating, delivering, and tracking sales quotes, most CRM systems simply don’t have what it takes.

Making a convincing, customized, professional sales proposal takes more than what’s typically built-in to a CRM system. It takes a specialized solution. It takes quoting software (a.k.a., configure, price, quote, or CPQ). And here’s why.

Professionally designed sales proposal templates

Your CRM system doesn’t have them. Most CRMs have a few checkboxes and fields into which you manually enter products and pricing, and then… that’s it.

But your sales proposal is where the rubber hits the road! In many cases, it’s where your company is introduced to the decision makers and stakeholders, and also introduced alongside other competitive quotes. It has to look better than good: it has to stand apart from the crowd.

This may seem like a specious argument because, to use a cliche, “you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover.” But guess what? EVERYONE judges a book by its cover. The cliche that matters here is “you never get a second chance to make a first impression.”

If you’re using quoting software, you’ll benefit from an eye-catching sales proposal template that sets you apart and sells you well. But if you’re only using what “comes with” your CRM system, your quote will often look like… well… crap.

Dynamic product and pricing configuration engine

Using a CRM to insert products and pricing into sales quotes is often a manual labor intensive task. In many cases, too (especially with on-premises CRM systems), the products and pricing may not always be up-to-date as they may be stored separately on spreadsheets in local machines.

With quoting software, however, product and pricing configuration is centralized and streamlined. A rep doesn’t need to check the latest pricing sheets or other documents: it’s all baked into their CPQ system. They simply select a proposal template, and drag and drop the latest configs in there.

Additionally, this centrally administered engine empowers sales leaders to control pricing and discount structures remotely, and grant different levels of permission to different reps. E.g., a rep with 20 years of experience may get to set his/her own discounts, whereas a newbie can’t.

Advanced, granular quote tracking tools

If you have used your CRM solution to create and send quotes, you have probably seen that tracking is often reduced to a couple of key metrics: quote sent/not sent and deal won/lost.

The fact of the matter is that there are often countless events in between sent and won/lost that should be captured and analyzed. Adjustments to quotes, inquiries and replies, addendums, and more. If you’re not tracking these metrics in your “quote signing process,” you’re missing a big part of the picture.

Quoting software gives you this granular proposal tracking data; CRM typically does not.

CRM/CPQ integration

If you’ve read this far, 1) thank you and 2) don’t throw out your CRM system and replace it with quoting software. In our experience, they go together like a screwdriver and a toolbox. Your CRM is that toolbox, containing custom apps and solutions for specific tasks: revenue recognition, lead nurture, and, of course, creating/sending/tracking sales quotes.

While it can be used standalone, our opinion is that CPQ is even stronger when integrated with CRM systems. Ideally, integrated as a single sign-on solution that makes it “feel” as if it’s a feature in the CRM rather than an extension. That way your reps who see every problem as a nail will have access to a screwdriver when they need it – even if they think they’re still only using a hammer.

The perfect RFP response is less than a minute away

For most successful salespeople, an RFP hitting the inbox is the equivalent of a starting gun at a track meet. Annnnddddd… THEY’RE OFF!!

Also for most successful salespeople, when an RFP arrives, they don’t ponder, “Hmmmm. How should I reply to this?” They already have a plan in place for the perfect response, and it’s connected to a few basics: knowing the brand(s), using “customer-facing” language, and having the right technology.

The perfect RFP response is always “on-brand”

What does it mean to be “on-brand?” Most companies have positioning statements, vision statements, a set of keywords they focus on, a color palette, a logo, and that’s it: that’s the brand.

When you’re competing for an RFP, though, your brand has to be about more than just a fancy logo. It has to be about the benefits you deliver your customers. I.e., it’s not the look and feel of your brand–it’s the value.

Throughout every step in replying to any RFP, be sure and stay on-brand by communicating that value. If your brand is about, say, exceptional customer service, ensure you reference it in each applicable line-item in the RFP response.

For example, the customer is a hotel seeking equipment for a new fitness center. Your on-brand response would, of course, include the equipment, but also the fact that your people have the expertise to install, customize, and address any and all supporting questions. Put your customer service skills front and center wherever you can. It both builds your brand and separates you from the competition.

The perfect RFP response speaks to the client

Yes, it’s about the right products and services. Yes, it’s about the right pricing. Yes, it’s about a speedy but professional reply. But the perfect RFP response is as much about the language as it is about anything else.

Long gone are the early dot.com days when you could bowl over prospects with a word salad like “ vertically integrated vortals disintermediate competitive synergies.” Such pitches were deviously designed to bewilder and make a prospect think, “Wow… I have no idea what that means, but it sounds impressive so it must be good… I think…”

The language in your RFP response should be succinct. E.g., don’t say “utilize” when “use” will do. And it should be benefit-focused rather than feature-focused. The old adage “features tell; benefits sell” is firmly in place at the RFP stage of any sale.

The perfect RFP response is built with CPQ

Last but in no way least is the way you create, deliver, and track your RFP response, and there’s no better application than configure, price, quote (CPQ).

With professionally designed proposal templates, a drag-and-drop (and centrally administered!) product and pricing configuration engine, a host of sales quote tracking tools, and seamless integration with CRM (customer relationship management) systems, CPQ has every RFP response tool baked in.

Not only does CPQ enable any sales rep–regardless of experience level–create a pro quote in minutes, but it also provides critical insights on what products/services are selling best and which reps are performing best.

Integrated with your CRM solution, CPQ helps present an even clearer picture of the customer lifecycle, delivering business-critical data from the most business-critical process: the RFP response, when a deal is closed and a prospect becomes a client.

For more information on creating the perfect RFP response, download our whitepaper, or contact us.

Quote software benefits, modular housing trends: One and the same!

Flexibility. Customization. Cost savings. Convenience. Efficiency. These are some of the trends happening in the modular housing space. They are also some of the benefits derived from using quote software in the modular housing business.

Most companies (and, by extension, their blog writers) wouldn’t make this connection, but iQuoteXpress (IQX) has deep ties into the modular housing industry, providing some of its biggest players with sales quoting software that has helped them close more sales more quickly.

Here’s a little side-by-side of what our friends in modular housing mean by flexibility, customization, cost savings, convenience, and efficiency and how those are also benefits realized through quoting software.

Flexibility

In modular housing, flexibility typically connects to modification of a modular home, such as adding a new kitchen, new appliances, etc., which can be done rather easily and without the huge expense connected to “stick-built” homes.

With IQX, flexibility is in usage: you can use the software as a standalone solution or integrate with your CRM or ERP system. Additionally, as it’s cloud-based, it’s flexible enough to be used from anywhere.

Customization

Modular homes provide a wide array of customization options prior to the build. Most manufacturers offer the choice to rearrange room layouts, upgrade building materials, go green, and much more.

Included with quoting software, you’ll usually find a series of sales proposal templates that you can easily customize to match both your brand and your prospects. Additionally, you can customize the interface to match how you and your sales team work.

Cost savings

Cost savings are often the first thing people think of when they consider a modular house, and it’s true. Running anywhere from 10% to 40% less than stick-built, modular homes are surefire cost-savers.

As far as sales proposal automation software like IQX goes, we can’t speak for other providers. But we know that our customers typically enjoy time and cost savings in the creation, delivery, and tracking of sales quotes in the neighborhood of 50% - 70%.

Additionally, compared to other providers, IQX quote software delivers massive savings up front. Whereas some providers require clients to buy 10 or even 20 seat minimums, IQX is available for as little as $39 per seat. Surefire savings all around.

Convenience

In modular housing, convenience often applies to how just about everything you require is included. Rather than having to go through one contractor for plumbing, another for wiring, still another for painting, etc., etc., etc., you enjoy the convenience of having all you need built right in.

We hit upon quote software being cloud-based as one driver for flexibility, and the same goes here: sales reps can conveniently create and send quotes from anywhere with a web connection. As importantly, sales leaders can track and manage quotes from anywhere, too. No more “waiting until tomorrow” to get a stuck quote moving forward. A manager can jump in and help out from anywhere and on-the-fly.

Efficiency

Finally, the bedrock benefit of efficiency. The efficiency of building a modular home is one thing (faster, always, than stick-built, and time = money). But there’s also energy efficiency to consider, and today’s modular homes are (for the most part) being designed with energy efficiency as the foundation: improved insulation, water-saving fixtures, and more. 

In quote software, efficiency is also a key driver for users. The time it would take to create a quote from scratch can be reduced exponentially. What once took hours now takes minutes. And in sales–in modular housing sales, specifically–getting a quote into the right hands quickly is a cornerstone of closing the deal.

Want to make your modular housing business practices more flexible and efficient? Contact us for a demonstration of IQX. 

What CPQ means, how it works, and how it works for you

The way most every website out there details the meaning of CPQ (configure, price, quote) is about the same: it’s software that helps sales people make sales quotes for complex and/or configurable products and services.

YAWN.

Here at IQX, we rarely explain it that way, because it’s not about that dry definition: it’s about the business benefits CPQ delivers. The benefits CPQ delivers to businesses–from mom & pop shops, to SMBs, to enterprise–create a far more interesting way to define the solution.

For us and our clients, the true meaning of CPQ is tied to the distinct business benefits of improved efficiency, flexibility, and scalability.

We know: you’ve heard most of these words used so many times in B2B sales and solutions that they may have lost their meaning. But here is exactly how we define these benefits as they’re connected to CPQ.

The meaning of efficiency connected to CPQ

Most of our clients say that they reduce the time it takes to create and send a professional sales proposal by 50% or more. FIFTY PERCENT. Any efficiency increases are welcome in the sales process, but 50%? That means additional hours every day that a rep can spend working new leads, doing demos, upselling existing customers and more.

Additionally, there’s a more esoteric definition of efficiency at play here. And it’s understood through the sheen of professionalism in each quote.

By using a series of professionally designed proposal templates, your sales quotes look cleaner and leaner, and demonstrate to a prospect that you’re running a tight ship, where everything is in its place and clarity and consistency reign, where efficiency is simply the daily course of action.

The meaning of flexibility connected to CPQ

Like most CPQ solutions, IQX is cloud-based, which provides extensive flexibility in where and when your team can do its job. All the standard “cloud benefits” apply: easy integrations; simplified, predictable costs; remote access; improved security; etc.

With IQX, however, there’s a slightly different meaning of flexibility connected to our solution as we have clients using it standalone (an app on a phone!), as part of a larger CRM and/or ERP platform, and even as a mini-CRM in itself.

Current CPQ-CRM integrations include single sign-on for both Zoho CRM (and Zoho Books), and Microsoft Dynamics, with most every other integration (Salesforce, Oracle, HubSpot, and more) available as well.

Additionally, some of our smaller clients (e.g., with two or three sales reps) lean on IQX as a de facto CRM as it can store critical account and contact information alongside every product and pricing configuration, every sales proposal, and every sliver of sales and proposal tracking analytics.

Meeting each client where they are is what we’re all about, and flexibility is central.

The meaning of scalability connected to CPQ

This is where the competition doesn’t stand a chance against IQX. Whereas most other companies in the space force a customer to license a minimum of 10 or sometimes 20 seats, IQX allows clients to start with as few as ONE (and for as little as $39 a seat: check out CPQ pricing here). 

The meaning of scalability goes in two directions. Typically, it’s all about growth: “you can easily add seats (scale) as your business grows!” Yes, you can. But for some companies, scalability starts before the minimum 10 or 20 seats. They may be scaling from 3 seats to 5 seats.

Unlike some other providers, IQX doesn’t put a limit on where your own “scalability journey” begins. Like most other providers, we also don’t limit where it ends either.

We have watched clients double their licenses in just a few months. Why? Probably due to the increases in efficiency and improved flexibility outlined above. The meaning of these words and the benefits they deliver, the meaning of CPQ and the benefits it delivers… it’s all connected, and that’s a very good thing indeed.

Quoting software instead of quitting software

Don’t give up. There’s hope. We know that a new solution can be a pain in the a** to figure out, let alone use to its fullest extent. And sometimes you just feel like quitting. But with iQuoteXpress (IQX), you have a quoting software that’s so easy to use, it’s almost… dare we say… fun?

With an easy-to-use drag-and-drop interface, a seasoned sales professional instantly becomes a seasoned proposal creator.

The interface is intentionally colorful and engaging as, in many cases, it’s replacing spreadsheets as a means for building quotes. And we want every IQX user to know they’re miles away from Excel when they’re using IQX.

Even if you’re not using IQX (not sure why you’re here if you’re not, but…), you’ll want to look for the following functionality and feature sets in your quoting software…

• Custom and customizable proposal templates

• Easy to use product and pricing configuration engine

• Actionable reporting on sales quote progress

• Centralized administration of pricing and discount structures

• Seamless integration with CRM systems

• VALUE

And here’s why…

Custom and customizable proposal templates

Why start from scratch with each sales quote? Quoting software should come pre-loaded with dozens of templates to make building a professional looking proposal a snap, something literally done in just a few minutes.

Your templates should be easy to customize, too: add a prospect’s logo, change-up the color scheme or font, add infographics and other value-adds that help better sell your products and services.

Easy to use product and pricing configuration engine

Drag and drop is the name of the game. Choose a template and then simply populate it with the product and pricing configurations that make the best fit.

The challenge can sometimes be creating or uploading those configurations, but not with IQX. As part of every engagement, we help clients build configurations and populate their instance with them. Yes, it’s because we care… care about clients being able to use IQX immediately rather than spend time getting configs loaded.

Actionable reporting on sales quote progress

Analytics is the heart of every business process. For truly accurate sales forecasting, you need analytics to extend to the individual quote level, and IQX provides that as well. CRM systems, for example, typically don’t get into individual quote metrics beyond “sent” and “signed.” But IQX gives you the granular proposal tracking data–in a colorful dashboard–to understand and fuel each quote's progress.

Centralized administration of pricing and discount structures

Part of the product and pricing configuration engine is the administration of products and pricing. IQX can help ensure all reps are working off pricing specific to their geo, their lines-of-business, and experience.

You can control discount structures as well through your quoting software, empowering your more seasoned reps with more latitude, and putting up some guardrails around your rookies.

Seamless integration with CRM systems

Through an API, most any business app can be integrated with most any other one. But when you add IQX to leading CRMs such as Dynamics and Zoho, you enjoy single sign-on functionality that essentially embeds the sales proposal tools into the CRM system your reps use every day all day.

Keeping all your tools in the same tool box just makes sense. But it’s also important to make dollars, which is where our next point comes in…

VALUE

Value isn’t just what you pay up-front (your per-seat costs… though starting at just $39 a seat, it’s hard to beat IQX). It’s about TOC, total cost of ownership, and ROI, return on investment.

One way IQX delivers a lower TOC is through unlimited, free support, something very few companies provide in the quoting software industry. And it delivers ROI by 1) reducing the time it takes to create and send sales proposals by as much as 70% and 2) helping increase close rates by as much as 24%.

So if you’re ready to quit software (“Not another app! Please! My phone is full!”), we ask that you get quoting software before you do… and make it iQuoteXpress.

Selling fitness equipment with quoting software: a weight is lifted!

If you think selling fitness equipment is easy, you may be a dumbbell. It’s a hyper-competitive space, and it ain’t just gyms: hotels, hospitals, community centers, wellness retreats, physical therapy clinics, sports team club houses… behind the doors of every major facility, you’re sure to find ellipticals, rowers, weight benches, medicine balls, and more.

The (plain? ugly?) truth of the matter is that many – but certainly not all – of the people managing these facilities don’t know or care too much about what brands or kinds of stuff they have in there, which makes fitness equipment practically into a commodity. And when you’re selling commodities, the early bird almost always gets the worm.

Which is where quoting software makes all the difference for salespeople in this dog-eat-dog (or, as stated, bird-eat-worm) space. Getting a slick looking, accurate, on-brand quote into a prospect’s hands quickly is the cornerstone of closing a sale–whether it’s a pallet of Pelotons or a truckload of treadmills or even just a box of barbells.

For fitness equipment sales pros, there’s no better way to build a compelling quote quickly than with iQuoteXpress (IQX), the sales quoting software that makes creating custom proposals as easy as 1-2-3:

1. Select and customize a template

2. Drop in products and pricing

3. Send, track, close

Professionally designed sales quote templates

It all starts here. With a professionally designed sales proposal template, the work is half done. Your template can and should include elements of your branding that will resonate with your prospect.

Better still, it should include a way for you to easily drag/drop elements of your prospect’s branding. There’s nothing people like better than their own reflection.

IQX includes many templates ready to roll right out of the box. But if you really want to make a lasting impression, make a small spend on a graphic designer and create quote templates that are unique to your line of business. This is a minor investment that goes a long way.

Product and pricing configurations

In terms of quoting software, “configurations” is often just a more fancy way of saying bundles–how you put products and pricing together for a given market or specific customer. And in the fitness equipment space, the ways you can configure your deliverables are endless as there are literally thousands of components.

With IQX’s drag and drop product and pricing configuration tool, however, you can quickly add the right products for the right customer at the right price. More importantly, from an administrative angle, you can ensure that salespeople are accessing the products you want to move most.

By moving your product and pricing lists from, say, a spreadsheet (which likely differs from rep to rep) into a centralized engine, you have more complete control over your inventory, pricing, and even your discount structures. And you create a more even playing field for every rep in your organization.

And… they’re off! Sending, tracking, closing quotes.

Interesting fact: in the time it has taken you to read this blog, you could have built a proposal in IQX. We have more than a few clients in the fitness equipment space, and they pump out an average of 5,000 quotes a month. That means speed.

You can send quotes right out of IQX (or Outlook or Gmail or ______–whatever system you prefer) and, unlike with a standard CRM system that tracks “sent” and “won/lost,” our quoting software enables you track a sales proposal at every critical step along the way, empowering you to improve your overall sales process. Knowing what closed/what didn’t, and when and why and who was involved? Crucial details for improving your process.

In fitness equipment sales, only the strong survive. And the strong only get stronger using IQX.

PRESS RELEASE: IQX re-launches with new UI and more

“TUNED-UP, TRICKED-OUT, AND GOING GLOBAL”

iQuoteXpress re-launches with new UI, new integrations with Microsoft and Google,and new localizations for Asia, Europe, and South America

Los Angeles, CA, August 9, 2022 – iQuoteXpress (IQX), a pioneering configure, price, quote (CPQ) company has released a new version of its flagship sales proposal automation and quote-to-cash solution.

The revamped CPQ solution features a new user interface, seamless integrations with Google Gmail and Microsoft Outlook, and is available in most major localized languages: English, Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, Japanese, German, French, and many more.

“Our solution has come a long way in a very short time,” said IQX General Manager, Martin Spritzer. “What started nearly 15 years ago as an easy, affordable sales proposal tool has transformed over time into a full-featured sales enablement system that empowers our clients to reduce sales proposal processing times by as much as 70% and improve closing rates by as much as 25%.”

The solution (available at www.iquotexpress.com) has an open API, and pre-built integrations for Zoho CRM, Zoho Books, Microsoft Dynamics, and Salesforce, and is also widely used alongside leading CRM and ERP platforms such as HubSpot and Oracle. It includes a variety of professionally designed proposal templates, a flexible product and pricing configuration engine, contact management tools, and a wide range of sales reporting tools and dashboards.

“The new UI was essentially designed by our customers,” said Spritzer. “It was based on how we saw they were using [IQX], and on their feedback as well. We soft-launched it about six months ago, fine-tuned it based on usage data, and are now delighted to introduce the new IQX to the whole world."

IQX allows administrators to centralize control over discount structures, product bundling, pricing, and a host of other business needs and rules. The solution can be customized at both the macro and micro (individual user) levels. The extensive customization options set IQX apart as a leader in its space and the company serves most every market: commercial fitness, security, furniture, HVAC, agribusiness, manufacturing, IT, and more.

“We’ve been saying how with all these updates and new languages, IQX is now ‘tuned-up, tricked-out, and going global,’” said Spritzer. “The only thing we didn’t change was the pricing. Starting at just $39 per user, IQX remains one of the absolute best values in the market.”

The challenge with proposal software and HubSpot

Everyone loves HubSpot, and with good reason.

It’s the CRM/marketing automation/email/social tool for “the rest of us,” those of us small/mid-sized business owners that don’t have half-a-million dollars to spend on Salesforce or Microsoft.

Not only that, but it’s probably one of the easiest tools to use, too. But… (yes, there’s almost always a “but,” a catch of some kind) it doesn’t do sales proposals all that well.

While it has CPQ (configure, price, quote) functionality, it 1) only comes with the paid professional version, and 2) it can be quite a heavy lift to get started (as you essentially have to build all your product/pricing configurations and handle other implementation requirements).

Which is why, if you’re looking for proposal software that integrates with HubSpot, it’s probably best to look outside the solution for a sales quote tool that 1) costs less and 2) requires less of a heavy lift on your part.

(Side note: if you’re using the free edition of HubSpot and want to add CPQ to it, we can help!)

Here are a few more things to look for when picking the ideal proposal tool for HubSpot…

Proposal templates

Don’t settle for Word docs or Excel spreadsheets. Your quote is usually going to be one of many being reviewed by someone who puts out an RFP. You need to stand apart from the crowd with professionally designed–and easily customizable–sales proposal templates. Ensure your solution has them!

And you’ll need more than one as, for example, the look/feel of a proposal sent to a trucking company should be quite a bit different than one sent to a florist. Different templates for different markets!

Product & pricing configuration

This is the big one, the functionality that makes a proposal tool into a productivity tool. Being able to centralize and easily manage product and pricing configurations means being able to both empower and control your sales reps.

Yes, that sounds like a dichotomy, but it’s not. As a sales manager, you want to ensure your reps are empowered to quickly make sales proposals. But you also need to to ensure they’re selling the best possible product configurations at the best possible price across any possible market. This means controlling those configurations. So you’re not really controlling the reps themselves, but ensuring they can’t take control of pricing and more.

As for building and uploading those configurations into your HubSpot sales proposal tool? That brings us to the next thing to look for…

Support, ideally FREE support

Support is typically in the eye of the beholder. Some only need an FAQ, whereas others need an embedded resource, 24/7. For adding CPQ functionality to HubSpot, you will most likely need something in the middle.

While uploading templates likely won’t cause you much trouble, building and importing your initial product and pricing configurations is a different story. You’ll want a provider that will do all or most of that for you (like these guys).

Reporting and analytics

Finally, ensure that the proposal software you add to your HubSpot instance has granular tracking for every quote you send. There are far too many opportunities for a quote to get derailed between the “sent” and “signed” steps (typically, the only quote tracking metrics most CRMs offer). It’s critical to track every step and keep every proposal moving forward, or at least know why it didn’t.

More questions about building, sending, and tracking sales proposals in HubSpot? We can help.

Quote software: It’s not about “poetry.” It’s about proposals.

Once in a while, you simply have to toot your own horn. What’s quoting software? iQuoteXpress is. It’s right there in our name.

We’ve been in the business for nearly twenty years. When we first got started, it seemed that everyone who found us online was looking for inspirational quotes, a tool that would automatically generate the perfect inspirational quote from an historical figure, writer, movie, star, athlete, or (ugh) “influencer.”

But times have changed and most people now know that quoting software is usually (but not always) an extension of a larger sales and marketing system (Zoho CRM, Dynamics 365 Sales, Salesforce, Oracle, HubSpot, and more) that lets anyone make professional sales quotes in minutes.

That’s the basic definition. But real-world uses? Real-world meanings? Different. WAY different.

Today’s real-world applications of quoting software

Like most business applications, quoting software – also called a configure, price, quote (CPQ) or quote-to-cash solution – changed as it was put into use.

Originally created as more of a sales quote template system (professionally designed proposal templates a rep could easily add products and pricing to, and further customize for a sale), quoting software has become an essential tool in the day-to-day of both sales representatives and managers as it enables granular tracking of (and reporting on) a proposal’s progress… for starters.

Sales analytics 

If you’ve been in sales for even a hot minute, you know how critical sales reporting is to stakeholders. Knowing which quotes are where in the closing process easily enables more accurate forecasting, and forecasting is fundamental. Quoting software uncovers and presents these specific datasets and helps improve sales analytics almost immediately after deployment.

But it’s another feature of the solution that is currently being put to use in unexpected and highly effective ways.

Product pricing configuration

The backbone of your CPQ system is the product and pricing configurator, which is how sales people, as stated above, add products to proposals.

It allows for:

• central administration of available products and services (keyword: available – it also prevents reps from adding products to proposals that may be out of stock);

• easy assembly and presentation of bundles, upsells, and upgrades;

• geo-targeted (and even rep-specific) pricing, and

• easy management of discount structures.

Product and pricing configurators are also now a major piece for traditional B2B businesses as they reluctantly or happily embrace ecommerce. By essentially embedding product and pricing configuration into a customer-facing portal, they empower customers to self-serve.

With this core functionality of quoting software made available to customers, they can search through products and pricing on their own, explore all upgrade options, and even (with the addition of a shopping cart, such as Shopify) buy what they need – without ANY help from a sales rep.

It’s important to state that this in no way replaces sales reps. For most B2B companies, the initial sale and future upgrades have too many moving pieces, or too many revenue opportunities, to be “passed off” to the customer.

However, adding ecommerce functionality to B2B systems and processes does make customer purchases such as restocks (which typically take more of a rep’s time than they’re worth) as easy and point and click for your customers.

Less time wasted by reps, self-satisfied, self-serving customers, easy revenue. It’s a no-brainer for most B2B companies.

What’s next for quoting software? That’ll be up to its users to discover.