Salesforce CPQ Implementation Guide: Tips and Tricks

Salesforce has established itself as one of the reputed CRM platforms that offer valuable customer data to assist companies in the complete handling of their business in the best possible manner. CPQ (Configuration, Price & Quote) is a sales tool that gets patronage in the B-2-B industry for making the sales process faster and easier.

Recently, it has become more relevant. Why? The answer is that innovation in combination with automation helps companies to offer accurate pricing for changing range of the products through CPQ software.

It is an enlargement of the CRM platform with a major focus on making the sales process of any organization more organized and faster than ever. What is its key role? It plays a crucial part in putting one’s sales cycle away from spreadsheets into automation mode to deliver the customers with error-free quotes.

With Salesforce CPQ at the helm, sales reps can control discounting to sell their products with the right combinations with successful approval from the automation system. Why does Salesforce implementation services provider consider CPQ a crucial aspect in their functioning? It is because of three reasons:

• Offers helpful assistance to sales reps for faster closing of deals
• Companies have a firm grip on offering and product sold
• Enable organizations to focus on launching new revenue resources

What is Salesforce C-P-Q?

Salesforce CPQ is software that permits the sales team to generate quotes for complex procedures. Each part signifies essential components of the modern sales systems:

Configuration Features:

• Approval of real-time configuration of bundles through hiding/adding product’s components  
• Setting-up of minimum and maximum limits for bundle modules
• Addition of rules and constraints for every creation of bundles

Pricing Features:

• Support for multiple pricing strategies
• Support for account-based contract pricing
• Offering real-time pricing to meet the target price

Quote Features:

• Provision of quote generation tool
• Provision of e-signature tools for high integration capability

Why CPQ Software is the Need of the Hour?

The major challenge for a sales team is to reduce dependence on spreadsheets. It is crucial because they need a solution to avoid wasting their time in getting their contact approved, and even managing the price of their products. In comes Salesforce CPQ that permits sales reps to have full data access by speeding up even the most composite quote.

If one is considering taking the help of a Salesforce consulting partner who is experts in implementing CPQ in any system, then first go through this Salesforce CPQ implementation guide. With its help, the organization can cover everything to create a seamless transmission of their services into the automated CPQ software. Moreover, it will also be useful for the sales department to notch-up their performance to the next level.

As Salesforce CPQ is powerful enough to meet all the business requirements, opting for it will be the best suitable option for those yearning for the given solution. In fact, a study has revealed that organizations opting for the Salesforce CPQ platform have found:

• More than 30% generation of the quote at a faster pace
• Less than 27% errors in invoicing
• Enhancement in up-selling by 20%

Quick Approach to Effective Salesforce CPQ Implementation

Ready to implement CPQ software successfully? Then consider some of these tips and make the whole procedure an innovative one:

A.      Establishing Well-Defined Goals

Before commencing the operation, one must understand the requirements of the sales process and then set some measurable goals to achieve successful CPQ implementation. Furthermore, if one wants a real ROI, then it will be crucial to consider some of the essential KPIs:

• Greater accuracy in the generation of quote
• Sufficient increase in order value
• The surge in renewable and win rates

Therefore, it is prudent to select the most priority goals and then focus on plotting for new CPQ procedures. When an organization achieves these goals, it will eventually result in improvement in the overall workflow.

B.  Pick Out New Ideas from the given Opportunity

When there is a proper implementation of CPQ software, then there is a great possibility of customers getting access to the better UX irrespective of the use of the devices. Besides, automating the whole procedure of sales processes saves the crucial time of the employees.

So, to make the whole journey look wonderful, one must understand various aspects of the businesses to handle the given automation procedure an easy one. How to make it possible? It is done through:

• Offering guidance to the functionality of selling
• Making the approval process successful one
• Effective generation of proposal documentation

Why there is a need to create such functionalities? The answer is to improve the speed of the sales cycle from the beginning till the end.

C. Laying more Focus on Business-Generating Ideas

Just knowing about business is not enough. One must be open about accepting new ideas. Why so? It is because being open-minded increases flexibility in the business strategy and ticks all possible points for successful CRM implementation.

If one wants to know the whole functioning of the business, then they need to understand its following factors:

• Existing Processes: It includes info about pricing and quoting system and configuration
• Present Customers: It includes complete info about the current customers
• Lead Opportunities: It comprises deep insight about products and price associated with it
• Business Requirements: It includes acceptance and needs criteria for implementation

D.  Get to Know where CPQ is Positioned in Business Procedure

If one is focusing on implementing Salesforce CPQ with billing, one needs to consider where to fit the given sales tool into the current business procedure present in an organization. Furthermore, one has to ensure that there is a presence of data at all crucial stages so to begin the implementation prospect without much difficulty.

Besides, it will be appropriate for the organization to see the impact of Salesforce CPQ on the existing platforms so that there shall not be an issue when new applications and systems will be incorporated.

Moreover, it also permits that there is no obstruction in one’s business procedure and if one issue comes out, then one can choose the best of the Salesforce consultants who will help them to concentrate on the right direction.

E. Designing the CPQ

Most of the customers opt for the implementation of CPQ with the main motive of automating the whole procedure. But there is a point of caution! One must ensure employing persona-based design for the CPQ tool to solve all the challenges associated with the sales team.

Besides, there should be a presence of the team of experts that works with the sales team in tandem to redesign models of the products for creating two things:

• Better configurations
• Re-configuration of the quotation process and pricing methods

It is done with the sole reason of keeping consistency across interactions with the clients!

F. Verticalizing the Design of CPQ

Many Salesforce experts persuade the sales team to opt for verticalizing the Salesforce CPQ system. Why so? It is because they have expertise in working in numerous fields such as retail, CPG, manufacturing, etc., and knows minute changes that occur in the expectations and behaviors of the customers.

In this way, any subtle drift in the desire of the customers can be noted by the organizations. What’s more, it also makes them capable enough to deliver a personalized experience in the best possible manner.

Major Mistakes a Company do while Implementing Salesforce CPQ

So, learning few tips to enhance effectiveness is not what a company requires. They have to also identify potential difficulties and ways to overcome them for mitigating the rate of risks.

        I.  Lack of Collaboration

The first challenge in implementing the CPQ tool is to get access to the support of all departments present in the company with full cooperation from their employees. It will be a daunting task for CPQ to collect all crucial info that makes it’s functioning harder. What does it indicate? It shows that for a successful CPQ implementation, the involvement of all departments is the only sure way to avoid failure.

      II.  Utilization of Irrelevant Data

The use of relevant data is what makes the implementation of CPQ a successful one. Nevertheless, most of the time, getting access to precise, updated, and highly maintained data is not possible. The same is also applicable for configured data as info is available for the previous year. This makes the data look less reliable from the company’s perspective.

    III.  Misconception about Idea for Product

Equating the complete product with sold one is not a good idea. In-fact if one thinks that a good CPQ consists only of its pricing and a detailed description of the product, they might be wrong. It includes a payment plan, product delivery, and services post-sales. One must focus on delivering the value, otherwise, they risk losing the trust of their customers.

Stages for Salesforce CPQ Implementation

Stage 1: Discovery

Before moving towards the implementation of CPQ, one has to realize that the solution they are trying to create should convey everything about their customers. What does it comprise?

1. Item Search: One moves towards finding correct items
2. Need Analysis: Number of inquiries as per the needs of the clients
3. Backend Inquiries: Prerequisites about the business of the clients

Stage 2: Configuration

In the given section, there is the inclusion of several items such as establishments, administrations, and other components that have the capacity to impact the record of the products. One must remember an important point: Do not forget to dump the trash! Besides, make sure in taking care of some crucial perspectives:

• Customers should be banned from accessing invalid choices
• Full support to the product’s complexity
• Must cross-check processes and configurations of the products before their approvals
• Make UI of the product more convenient
• Pay attention to the development of configurators especially for products

Stage 3: Delivery & Deployment

If one thinks that the delivery process after CPQ implementation is easy, then give it a look! Many things might occur like the sudden jumping of minor bugs at every stage that cannot be avoided. Moreover, a solid change management process results in the delivery of a successful solution.

In addition, there will be a need for daily updates, tracking the changes, preparing a training program for employees to make the given complicated solution look more proactive. Not to forget to perform a constant test to ensure the smooth functioning of the solution.

Brief Outline of Crucial CPQ Aspects

Before proceeding further for obtaining Salesforce consulting services for acquiring a perfect CPQ software, it is better to understand a few important and crucial steps:

Step 1: Outline objectives and collect vital data

Define Salesforce objectives concerning your business as it will help you to chart out clearly- devised a plan to carry-on with customer-oriented strategy. Not forget to collect all essential info from sales reps as, without it, all the planning to meet customers’ needs will turn futile.

Step 2: Get in acquittance with customer’s needs

Focus on assessing the needs of the customers on numerous parameters such as their buying habits, geo-location-based shopping, most frequent purchases products. Also, you must focus on speeding-up the approval procedure.

Step 3: Develop a well-planned product vision

Develop a user-friendly product by envisioning it beforehand to gain trust from the customers. To make it real, create a proposal, sell products in the bundle, and offer a discrete selection of products to avail advantage.

Step 4: Maintain consistency in product’s prices

Device pricing strategies that do not create resentment among the customers. There should be consistency in factors associated with keeping the price of the product constant. Make sure that during interaction with customers, pricing must not change frequently.

Step 5: Understanding your software is a must

Implementing CPQ software and knowing nothing about it is a perilous act. So, do not compromise with customization and maintenance of the software. Find out those solutions from the existing features that must be implemented. If opting for extra development to save time and money, do not hesitate to get advice from Salesforce experts.

Step 6: Define the selling procedure of the product

Before venturing, find out which selling strategy you will implement in your product. It can be upselling or cross-selling and leverage the best one to find out about the products that will arouse interest among the customers. Moreover, it is easy to adjust the selling strategy as per the customer’s responsibility.

Step 7: There must be complete automation of the operating procedure

One must pay significant attention to the designing of the CPQ automation. If it is done properly, not only there will be minimum flaws, but you will also ensure successful sales with high revenue growth. Besides automation, employees can also avoid wasting time on mundane tasks.

Step 8: Do not neglect integration of systems

One reason behind implementing Salesforce CPQ is to integrate both internal and external systems to avail them all information that will in the smooth functioning of the operation.

Step 9: Test, Test, and Test

You should give high priority to testing as a system infected with bugs will move customers away from your services. So, continue constant testing of the system to maintain its efficiency.

Step 10: Organise a training program for employees

No software will work to its fullest until there is denial among the employees about its usage. The given sales tool will be found acceptance only when there is awareness among the customers. If they use it well, then customers will be offered better services.

Thus, keeping these steps in the mind, one is likely to implement Salesforce CPQ most efficiently.

Originally published at - https://blogs.emorphis.com/salesforce-cpq-implementation-guide/