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How CPQ Process Enables You To Automate Work

In the past few years, we have seen the massive adoption of CPQ products as it helps businesses to get the job done faster. The CPQ process has made it easy for them to automate routine tasks and allow teams to focus on other creative tasks.

As the demand for custom products has been increasing fast, companies need teams that can think creatively to create something astonishing for customers. It not only helps you to gain customer attention but helps you to stay ahead of the competition.

CPQ quoting tool, the most useful CPQ product, is designed to help businesses streamline their quoting and proposal process. It enables businesses to quickly create accurate quotes and proposals by automating the process of configuring products or services, pricing them based on rules and calculations, and generating a professional-looking quote or proposal document.

CPQ tools can also help businesses reduce errors, improve sales productivity, and increase revenue by providing a more streamlined, efficient, and consistent quoting process.

Some popular CPQ quoting tools on the market include Salesforce CPQ, Oracle CPQ, Kbmax CPQ, and more.

Benefits of the CPQ Process 

There are various benefits businesses can experience with the CPQ process. One of the essential parts of the CPQ process is that it enables smooth automation of redundant taste and allows team members to focus on other critical tasks. Other than this, the CPQ process helps in the following: 

Increased accuracy: CPQ process can help sales reps avoid errors in their quotes by enforcing pricing rules and calculations, ensuring that all quotes are consistent and accurate. This can help build customer trust and reduce the risk of costly mistakes.

 Improved collaboration: CPQ tools can enable sales teams to collaborate more effectively with other departments, such as product management and finance. By providing a single source of truth for product configurations, pricing, and discounts, the CPQ process can help to streamline the quote-to-cash process and reduce friction between departments.

 Upselling and cross-selling: CPQ quoting tools can suggest related products or services that may interest the customer based on their needs and preferences. This can help sales reps to increase revenue by upselling or cross-selling additional products or services.

 Better customer experience: CPQ process can help sales reps create professional-looking quotes and proposals customized to the customer's needs. This can improve the overall customer experience and help to build trust and loyalty over time.

How CPQ Quoting Tools Help Sales Teams?

CPQ quoting tools help businesses generate quotes faster by eliminating manual processes, reducing errors, and automating workflows. This can result in faster turnaround times, higher win rates, and increased productivity for sales reps.

Here are some ways CPQ quoting tools can help sales teams:

Faster quote generation: CPQ tools automate the quoting process, enabling sales reps to create accurate quotes quickly and easily. This can save them much time and effort compared to manual quoting methods, which can be slow and error-prone.

Product Configuration: CPQ tools enable businesses to configure complex products quickly and accurately. They can help sales reps choose suitable options, features, and components for each customer's needs. It helps the sales team change the real-time configuration, so clients ask for more modifications. This saves team members time and allows them to focus on closing more deals.

Pricing: CPQ tools allow businesses to set up pricing rules and discounts to ensure that the quotes generated are accurate and consistent. This eliminates the need for sales reps to calculate pricing manually.

Proposal Generation: CPQ quoting  tools can automatically generate proposals and quotes with the correct information, branding, and formatting. This eliminates the need to manual entry or edit the price data, which can be time-consuming and prone to errors.

Approval Workflows: The CPQ process can streamline approval workflows by automatically routing quotes to the right stakeholders for approval. With this, there is no need for manual follow-up, which ultimately reduces the time it takes to approve quotes.

Integration: CPQ tools can integrate with CRM, ERP, and billing systems to provide a seamless quote-to-cash process. It reduces the sales team's workload to enter the data and the risk of errors manually.

If you want to see the CPQ demo and how it can help your business, contact KBmax experts. You can also check KBMax CPQ Reviews 2023 for better clarity. 

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Select The Best CPQ For Your Manufacturing Business

The best CPQ software enables manufacturers to configure, price, and generate product quotes. CPQ software has strengthened the production process by automating the creation of quotes and proposals for potential customers. Previously it was very challenging for manufacturers to design customized products because of a lack of resources. But now, with the help of CPQ software, one can easily create complex products based on guidelines and specifications suggested by clients. Even clients can view their product while designing to give suggestions, lessening the chances of revisions. 

However, selecting the best CPQ software is not as easy as it looks. When you choose the right CPQ for your business, you can avail yourself of various benefits. 

Manufacturing CPQ software typically includes features such as product configuration tools, pricing engines, quotation management systems, and integration with other sales and customer relationship management (CRM) systems. With these tools, manufacturers can create complex product configurations, determine the pricing based on various factors, and generate accurate and timely customer quotes.

Manufacturing CPQ software holds various benefits for manufacturers, including increased efficiency, improved accuracy, and greater visibility into the sales process. By enabling a business to offer a better customer experience, it automatically increases brand value and gains new clients.

Several CPQ software vendors offer manufacturing CPQ software that can easily integrate with other business solutions. When selecting CPQ software, manufacturers should consider factors such as ease of use, functionality, integration capabilities, and cost. 

Enterprise software with CPQ

Here are a few examples:

Salesforce CPQ: Salesforce is a leading provider of cloud-based CRM solutions, and their CPQ software is designed to help sales teams create accurate quotes quickly and easily. The software can be customized to fit the needs of different industries and supports complex pricing models.

Oracle CPQ: Oracle offers a comprehensive CPQ solution that integrates with its enterprise software products. The software includes guided selling, product configuration, pricing optimization, and proposal generation.

IBM CPQ: IBM's CPQ software is part of their sales and marketing automation solutions. The software includes features such as guided selling, product configuration, and proposal generation and can be customized to fit the needs of different industries.

How To Select CPQ Software For Your Business?

Selecting the best CPQ software for your manufacturing business can be challenging. Here are some key factors to consider while selecting the best CPQ software for your manufacturing business:

Industry-specific features:  Select a CPQ solution that has features specifically designed for the manufacturing industry. Some examples of industry-specific features include product configurators, quote generation, pricing management, and order management.

Integration with existing systems: Your CPQ software should be able to integrate with your existing systems, such as ERP, CRM, and accounting software. This will avoid duplication of data entry.

Scalability: Your CPQ software should be scalable to meet your business needs as you grow. This means that it should be able to handle increasing product complexity, sales volume, and multiple sales channels.

User-friendliness: The Manufacturing CPQ software should be user-friendly for your sales team and customers. This will help to ensure a seamless and efficient sales process.

Customization: While selecting CPQ software for your manufacturing business must check if it provides customized functionality or not. This may include the ability to add custom fields or modify workflows.

Reporting and analytics: Your Manufacturing CPQ software should provide reporting and analytics capabilities to help you track sales performance, analyze trends, and make data-driven decisions.

Customer support: Ensure the vendor provides comprehensive customer support, including training, onboarding, and ongoing support.

Pricing: Finally, consider the pricing structure of the CPQ software.  Select the best CPQ software solution that offers transparent and flexible pricing options that align with your business needs and budget.

By considering these factors, you can select the best CPQ software for your manufacturing business that will help your sales team to improve efficiency and drive revenue growth.

Conclusion

CPQ software vendors like KBMax can help businesses in several ways. They can help your business streamline its sales processes by automating product configuration, pricing, and quoting tasks. This can help sales teams work more efficiently and reduce the likelihood of errors. By implementing KBMax CPQ Pricing software, you can automate the configuration, pricing, and quoting process, which reduces the number of quote revisions needed and improve customer satisfaction.

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How CPQ Solutions Help in the Telecom Industry

CPQ solutions are increasingly used in the telecommunications industry to streamline and automate sales. KBMax CPQ solutions help telecom companies to quickly and accurately configure products and services, generate quotes, and close deals more efficiently.

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How CPQ solutions help in the telecom industry

CPQ solutions are becoming increasingly important for telecom companies looking to improve their sales processes, enhance the customer experience, and increase revenue. CPQ quoting tool enables telecom companies to quickly and easily configure and price complex products and services, reducing the time it takes to generate quotes and close deals.

When applied strategically, CPQ solutions help to ensure that quotes are accurate and consistent, reducing the risk of errors and delays. It also helps businesses provide a more seamless and streamlined customer buying experience, improving customer satisfaction and loyalty.

Much research done by industry experts reveals that CPQ solutions can help telecom companies to increase revenue by enabling them to upsell and cross-sell products and services more effectively.

Let's discuss the benefits of CPQ solutions for telecom companies.

Benefits of CPQ solutions for telecom companies.

CPQ solutions can be beneficial for telecom companies in several ways. 

Faster and more accurate quoting: 

CPQ solutions automate the process of configuring products and services, pricing them, and generating customer quotes. Automating the quoting process can save time and reduce errors. Using CPQ software can also create quotes based on specific parameters or customer requirements. Standardizing pricing for different products and services makes generating quotes quickly and accurately easier. You can also create a pricing database easily accessible to sales teams.

A quote approval process ensures all quotes are accurate and meet the company's profit margins. Additionally, using an automated workflow or and customer data, such as past purchase history and behavior, makes it easier to tailor quotes to their needs. By providing real-time quoting, customers can receive accurate quotes quickly, increasing the chances of closing the deal. 

Product and pricing complexity management:

Telecom products and services can be complex, with many options and pricing variables. CPQ solutions can handle this complexity and ensure that sales reps always offer customers the correct products and pricing options.

CPQ solutions can handle complexity in the telecom industry. The telecom industry involves complex products and services requiring detailed configuration, pricing, and quotes. CPQ solutions are designed to automate the sales process and help businesses manage complex product configurations and pricing.

The CPQ quoting tool can help sales teams configure complex solutions such as voice, data, video services, hardware, software, and other components in the telecom industry. CPQ tools can automate the configuration process by ensuring all necessary components are included and compatible.

The telecom industry is known for its complex pricing structures, which can be difficult to manage manually. CPQ quoting tool can help businesses streamline their pricing strategies and ensure their quotes are accurate and consistent. Additionally, the CPQ cloud can help companies to manage prices and quotes for their products and services.

CPQ solutions can help telecom businesses improve their sales processes, increase efficiency, and provide better customer service.

Cross-selling and upselling: 

CPQ quoting tool can help sales reps identify cross-selling and upselling opportunities by suggesting additional products or services that may complement what the customer is already considering. This can increase revenue and customer satisfaction by offering a more comprehensive solution. CPQ cloud can be a powerful tool for cross-selling and upselling in the telecom industry. With CPQ, you can configure a solution that meets your customer's needs. You can gather information about their current telecom services and recommend additional services that complement their plan. For example, if a customer has a mobile phone plan, you can suggest adding a data plan or international calling package.

Once you've configured the solution, the CPQ quoting tool can help you determine the package price based on the customer's needs. This allows you to offer customized pricing that reflects the value of the additional services.

Finally, CPQ cloud can help you generate a quote for the customer that includes all the recommended services, their costs, and any applicable discounts or promotions. This makes it easy for the customer to see the total value of the package and make an informed decision.

Using KBMax CPQ  in the telecom industry can increase revenue while providing more value to your customers. Kbmax is listed as the best CPQ software - top tools 2023. By tailoring your offerings to each customer's needs, you can create a more personalized and satisfying experience that leads to higher customer satisfaction and loyalty.

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How CPQ Companies Can Benefit From CPQ Configuration

Companies that sell software products with different versions, add-ons, and pricing plans can benefit from configure price quote CPQ to create customized quotes and proposals for their clients. Telecom companies that offer a variety of products and services, such as internet, phone, and TV plans, can use configure price quote CPQ to streamline their sales processes and offer tailored solutions to their customers.

Consulting, accounting, and legal firms that provide customized services to their clients can also use CPQ configuration to automate their proposal and pricing processes, saving time and reducing errors. 

Let’s discuss who can use configure price quote CPQ

Who uses CPQ software?

Configure price quote CPQ is used by various businesses and industries to automate and streamline their sales processes. CPQ configuration helps enterprises to create accurate quotes for their products and services, configure them to meet the needs of their customers, and set the correct prices for each unique scenario.

Some industries commonly using CPQ software include manufacturing, technology, telecommunications, healthcare, and financial services. CPQ companies have designed robust CPQ software to help them sell complex products and services more effectively.

Large and small enterprises can benefit from using CPQ software, as it can improve sales efficiency, reduce errors, and increase revenue by helping businesses close deals more quickly and accurately.

How does CPQ work?

CPQ configuration helps businesses to streamline their sales processes and make it easier for their sales teams to configure products, price them accurately, and generate quotes quickly.

Here is how CPQ works:

Configuration: The first step is configuring the product or service the customer wants. This involves selecting the right components, features, and options that meet the customer's requirements. CPQ companies have simplified this process by presenting a user-friendly interface that guides the salesperson through the configuration process.

Pricing: Once the product or service has been configured, the CPQ configuration calculates the price based on the selected components, features, and options. It considers any discounts, promotions, or unique pricing rules the company has set up.

Quoting: Once the price has been calculated, the CPQ configuration generates a quote that includes a detailed description of the product or service, the price, and any other relevant information. The quote can be customized with the company's branding, terms and conditions, and further details.

CPQ software can also integrate with other systems, such as CRM, ERP, and billing systems, to ensure a seamless sales process. Thanks to some reputable CPQ companies like Kbmax, companies can also generate reports and analytics to help companies optimize their sales strategies and pricing models.

The benefits of implementing CPQ software

CPQ (Configure-Price-Quote) software is a type of software designed to help companies streamline and automate their sales processes by configuring, pricing, and quoting products and services. Here are some of the benefits of implementing CPQ software:

Increased productivity: CPQ software can help increase sales productivity by automating manual processes and reducing the time it takes to generate quotes and proposals.

Improved accuracy: CPQ software can help reduce errors by ensuring that all configurations, pricing, and quotes are accurate and consistent, which can help improve customer satisfaction and reduce the risk of order cancellations or returns.

Enhanced customer experience: CPQ software can provide a better customer experience by enabling sales teams to quickly and accurately generate quotes and proposals and allowing customers to configure their own products and services.

Greater sales visibility: CPQ software can provide sales managers with greater visibility into the sales pipeline, enabling them to identify bottlenecks and opportunities for improvement.

Improved collaboration: CPQ configuration can help improve collaboration between sales teams, product managers, and other stakeholders by providing a centralized platform for managing product and pricing information.

Reduced costs: CPQ software can help reduce costs by eliminating manual processes, reducing errors, and enabling sales teams to sell more effectively. 

In conclusion 

The CPQ industry has completely transformed the way businesses work. Implementing configure price quote CPQ software can help companies increase sales productivity, improve accuracy, enhance the customer experience, gain greater sales visibility, improve collaboration, and reduce costs.

Contact KBMax for CPQ configuration for faster implementation. You can also check KBMax CPQ reviews 2023-Capterra to see how businesses are working strategically with KBMax CPQ.

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How CPQ Technology Transforming Vehicle Manufacturing

Vehicle manufacturers can enhance their sales processes and customer experiences by using CPQ technologies. CPQ systems are employed throughout several sectors, including the production of automobiles. By automating the design of car choices, pricing, and quotations, CPQ systems are utilized in the production of vehicles to speed up the sales process.

To help their sales teams rapidly and adequately configure a car to a customer's unique needs and then provide a quote that represents the cost of the configured vehicle, automakers employ CPQ Technology. Moreover, CPQ systems can interact with other systems, such as CRM and ERP systems, and manage sophisticated pricing structures, such as volume discounts. 

By generating a faster and more accurate quotation, CPQ systems can boost customer satisfaction, increase sales efficiency, and eliminate quote mistakes and inaccuracies. CPQ software can also offer insights into consumer trends and preferences, which can help with product development and marketing plans.

The manufacture of vehicles is changing in numerous ways thanks to CPQ technology. These are a few instances:

Customization: With CPQ technology, buyers can make their cars exactly how they want them. This has become a necessary feature for automobile customers who wish to customize their vehicles and has become an essential consideration in their choice-making process.

Enhanced Efficiency: Vehicle manufacturers can streamline their processes and spend less time and effort configuring, pricing, and quoting their goods thanks to CPQ technology. As a result, the manufacturing process becomes more efficient, which speeds up production and lowers expenses.

Customization: With CPQ technology, buyers can make their cars exactly how they want them. This has become a necessary feature for automobile customers who wish to customize their vehicles and has become an important consideration in their choice-making process.

Enhanced Efficiency: Vehicle manufacturers can streamline their processes and spend less time and effort configuring, pricing, and quoting their goods thanks to CPQ technology. As a result, the manufacturing process becomes more efficient, which speeds up production and lowers expenses.

Improved Sales Performance: Sales teams can deliver accurate and fast estimates thanks to CPQ technology, resulting in more sales. Also, it enables them to provide clients with customized choices, which can facilitate the closing of more transactions.

CPQ technology is revolutionizing the automobile manufacturing sector by giving consumers more choices, improving the customer experience, boosting productivity, and improving sales performance.

Future of CPQ in vehicle manufacturing

Manufacturing companies are using CPQ software more often, especially in the production of vehicles. By enabling sales personnel to precisely and rapidly configure and price complicated items, such as automobiles, trucks, and other vehicles, CPQ software helps to simplify sales.

Integrating CPQ by more manufacturers to enhance their sales process and boost productivity bodes well for the future of CPQ in the automobile industry. The following are some future advancements that could take place in the upcoming years:

Integration with other technologies: 3D modeling and simulation software are two examples of other technologies that are anticipated to be increasingly closely connected with CPQ software. This would enable salespeople to provide clients with more precise and thorough settings, increasing customer satisfaction and reducing manufacturing-process mistakes. Read KBMax CPQ Software Reviews, Demo & Pricing - 2023, and learn about our avant-garde integrations to fuel your growth. 

Usage of AI and machine learning: CPQ software might use these technologies to offer even more precise pricing and configurations since AI and machine learning are increasingly used in production. For instance, the program can gather information from previous transactions and utilize it to advise sales personnel more intelligently.

More customization: Integrating CPQ software will play a bigger role in offering these possibilities as customers seek more vehicle customization options. Manufacturers can provide more options and customizations with CPQ software while maintaining accuracy and speed.

Improved mobile capabilities are necessary for simple configuration and pricing as more sales reps operate remotely or in the field. Features like mobile applications or cloud-based software that are available from any device might be included in this.

The future of CPQ in vehicle manufacturing looks bright, with continued technological advances expected to make the sales process more efficient, accurate, and customer-focused than ever before. If you want to integrate CPQ, contact KBMax now!

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6 Tips To Work Toward CPQ System Implementation

CPQ implementation is the process of tailoring a CPQ system to fit the specific demands of the business. However, implementing CPQ solutions can be challenging for you. It interacts with several other systems and flows across the company. If you're looking for tips to work toward CPQ system implementation? Here is a quick guide for you.

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6 Tips To Work Toward CPQ System Implementation

 

Generating immediate and precise quotations can be a constant challenge for most manufacturers without CPQ software. This is because the data required to prepare accurate quotes are frequently dispersed across multiple siloed teams that use different systems. 

However, you can drastically optimize your sales cycle by implementing robust CPQ software that automates sales, links departments to gather data throughout your business, and eliminates mistakes.

As great as this sounds, CPQ systems are only as good as their integration, implementation, and application. For a successful CPQ software implementation, you will need the right:

Product design

Set-up

Project strategy

Here are some recommendations for implementing a highly successful CPQ system in your business.

1. Effectively Outline Your project Objective with CPQ Vendor

In pursuing business success, you must first clearly define your goals.. One of the main reasons business owners buy a CPQ tool is to improve the sales process, streamline communication bottlenecks between manufacturing and sales, or simply connect with their clients better by giving them access to certain features such as 3D product configuration.

CPQ  software has all the essential features that can help you achieve objectives, but it works more efficiently when you implement it correctly. The best way to do that is to start by clearly defining your goals and the desired outcomes. For example:

More rapid sales cycles

Reduced quoting errors

Improved sales productivity

Superior customer satisfaction

These goals or objectives must be SMART: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-Bound.

2. Select the Best CPQ Software with the Appropriate Features

There are several robust features in high-end CPQ software, including but not confined to the ones that follow:

Visual product configuration

Pricing management

Automated quoting

Guided selling

It could be tempting to implement all of the available product features at once, but doing so would be a big mistake. For one thing, your team will find it difficult to manage them all. Secondly, your business might only require a limited number of features–anything more will only increase complexity.

The ideal strategy is to concentrate on the required product features to fulfill your specified project objectives. Once you are clear about what you want to achieve as an organization, it's easier to prioritize the CPQ software features that will help you get there faster.

It's also wise to stick with the pre-built features of the product rather than altering it. The best strategy would be to use the built-in features first and ensure everything runs smoothly and effectively before adding any customizations.

3. Compile Your Data

The ability to concentrate your data is one of the most significant advantages of implementing CPQ solutions into your business processes. As such, the system you choose will require data from several different sources. 

If you want to do this effectively, you must ensure that your CPQ system connects with other organizational strategies, such as ERP and CRM, whether on-prem or in the cloud. This will keep teams in sync and enable the automation of cross-functional workflows.

4. Set Up The Authorized Functionalities

Once the required information has been gathered and the CPQ package has been installed, then you can move forward and customize your desired features. While these features will vary from one implementation process to another, a few are paramount to each CPQ system. These include:

Regulations for Products and Prices: The configuration, cost, and sale of items are governed by these regulations. The best CPQ system, like Epicor CPQ, have no code rule engine, enabling non-technical business users to configure solutions.  

Approvals: A complete and accurate quote may go through several departments, depending on your organization. It’s essential for every party involved to understand how the quote process progresses from one approval level to another and to automate approvals where possible.

Quote templates: It is a technique to assure consistency throughout the process and increase productivity in the format of your quotation templates. You can customize your quote templates with your company name, logo, and terms and conditions. 

Properly configuring these features creates well-defined rules, making the right CPQ environment for your teams to output accurate quotes quickly and efficiently.

5. Proactively Manage the Change and Get Buy-In

The entire organization ought to participate in the CPQ implementation process. Involving every stakeholder in the implementation process will help shed some light on the following:

The necessary features

User experience

Desired outcomes

All stakeholders should concur on what constitutes a vital component of the CPQ solution and what should not be included in the initial deployment phase. Remember to consult customer support. They may not use the CPQ system but interface with customers daily and understand their perspectives and pain points.

6. Test and Monitor Performance

"User Acceptance Testing" is one of the most important phases of the implementation process. This is where employees and customers are trained on the CPQ tool, test it out, and see if it meets spec and their expectations. At this point, most issues are discovered and fixed before the system is implemented across the business. 

Here are some steps you can follow when testing the implemented CPQ system:

Timelines and the testing plan should be made very clear.

Identify testing scenarios

For each feature, create a relevant test case that needs to be explored.

Confirm whether the system met business objectives

It's essential to set up a "sandbox" where you will be conducting all the necessary tests on the newly implemented CPQ system. This guarantees that day-to-day activities will be undisturbed and crucial production data is protected. You can also use this sandbox during demos and training sessions.

Lastly, conducting several user satisfaction surveys is important throughout the testing phase. These will show you whether or not the new CPQ tool has a positive impact.

It's vital to remember that the user acceptance process is an equally crucial implementation stage as any of the ones listed above. If the intended users find the CPQ system challenging, not only will it slow down the return on investment, but they may resist embracing the change altogether. To prevent this, ensure adequate user adoption assistance through training materials, specific case studies illustrating the advantages of CPQ adoption, and proactive user interaction.

Concluding 

CPQ implementation can be challenging and frequently calls for the assistance of a technical CPQ installation specialist. However, by following the six best practices above, you can achieve systematic implementation quickly and efficiently, experiencing rapid time-to-value and adoption.

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Using A Visual Configuration Tool To Design Complex Products

Designing complex products can benefit greatly from visual configuration, which enhances adaptability, flexibility, and design efficiency. Designers and engineers can provide a graphical interface for customers to customize a product by choosing different choices and features using visual configuration. 

Designers can design highly complex products suited to specific consumer demands and preferences using CPQ software for product configuration. Users will be able to develop a product that satisfies their particular needs, which can assist in boosting customer satisfaction.

What Is Visual Configuration

Using a graphical user interface to build a product or service, a process known as "visual configuration" allows users to choose and arrange product features, choices, and components graphically. Customers can design a unique product by choosing different options or characteristics from a preset list of possibilities, including colors, materials, sizes, forms, and functionality.

Visual CPQ tools are frequently used in manufacturing to create complicated goods with several variations or alternatives. Customers can now customize the product to meet their unique demands without advanced technical knowledge or design experience.

Visual CPQ tool is frequently employed in industries where clients desire individualized and customizable items, such as automobiles, furniture, home appliances, and electronics. It can also be used in software programs like website builders, which let users visually design and manage their websites by selecting various page layouts, fonts, graphics, and colors.

Benefits Of Visual CPQ Tool

Visual CPQ tools can offer several benefits to businesses, including:

The sales process can be automated using CPQ resources, making it more rapid and effective. Salespeople can rapidly and accurately provide quotations based on customer needs without laborious manual data input. This can lower mistakes, speed up sales, and boost client happiness.

Customers' purchasing experiences can be enhanced by using CPQ software, which enables consumers to view and personalize their items in real-time. Before deciding to buy, customers can experiment with various product settings and choices to see how the changes would appear. Increased engagement, contentment, and loyalty can result from this.

Rules-based setup is used by visual CPQ resources to guarantee the accuracy and completeness of quotations and orders. This can improve the accuracy of the sales process by lowering mistakes and preventing misunderstandings between sales representatives and clients.

By automating the design and quotation processes, CPQ software can assist organizations in bringing new goods to market more quickly. As a result, firms can adapt to customer wants and market trends more rapidly. This can shorten the time needed to develop new goods and get them to market.

By giving customers a more exciting and dynamic shopping experience, visual CPQ technologies can assist businesses in growing their sales. Products that satisfy customers' requirements and preferences are more likely to be bought. Sales representatives can find and recommend suitable product alternatives and configurations that consumers might not have considered using CPQ resources.

Functionalities Of Visual Configuration

Visual configuration tools can offer a range of functionalities depending on the specific product or service being configured. Some of the key functionalities of visual configuration tools include:

Visual CPQ software allows users to select and configure products visually, using 3D models or other graphical representations. 

Visual configuration tools use rules-based configuration to ensure that product configurations are valid and consistent. 

Visual configuration tools can calculate the price of a configured product in real-time based on the selected options and features. 

Visual configuration tools can validate product configurations against predefined rules and requirements, ensuring that the final product will meet the required standards and specifications. 

Visual configuration tools can integrate with other systems, such as CRM, ERP, and CAD, to streamline the design and production process. 

Visual configuration tools can provide realistic visualizations and renderings of the configured product, enabling users to see how it will look. 

Summing Up

The visual configuration enables users to develop distinctive and customized goods that match their particular requirements, streamlining the product creation process, shortening lead times, and boosting customer satisfaction.

CPQ software can speed up a company's sales process, improve customer satisfaction, increase accuracy, shorten time-to-market, and boost revenue.

Users can configure and personalize items quickly using visual configuration tools, which can provide various features. By streamlining design and manufacturing procedures, firms can improve accuracy, decrease mistakes, and boost customer satisfaction. Contact KBMax for the successful implementation of CPQ software.

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Visual Product Configurator For Your Furniture Business

Using a visual product configurator has significantly accelerated the evolution of the furniture industry. Staying up-to-date with innovative ideas, production techniques, and product presentation is essential for success in this sector. We'll talk about how this 3D configurator can help your company in useful and significant ways.

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Visual Product Configurator For Your Furniture Business

The technique of producing accurate, three-dimensional representations or animations of items is known as 3D product visualization. Before an item is built or constructed, consumers may view how it would appear in real life through a digital depiction of the physical object.

With 3D visualization, designers may build virtual versions of their items to test and improve them before making real prototypes. This not only saves time and money but also enables designers to identify design issues early on and make improvements.

Furthermore, 3D product visualization may be applied to marketing. Businesses may use 3D graphics or animations to highlight their products on websites, social media, or advertising, providing customers with a more immersive and engaging experience.

Using a sophisticated technology called 3D product visualization, designers and businesses can build appealing and realistic representations of their products, which helps them improve their design choices and draw in more consumers.

Why use a 3D configurator in furniture design?

A 3D configurator is a powerful tool that allows designers and customers to create and customize furniture products in a three-dimensional environment. It allows designers and customers to visualize furniture products in three dimensions, which provides a more accurate and realistic representation of the final product. This helps identify design flaws or issues before the product is manufactured, saving time and money.

Visual product configurator also enables customers to customize furniture according to their preferences, such as size, color, and design. This provides a personalized experience that enhances customer satisfaction and loyalty.

3D visualization of products can also streamline the design process, as designers can make changes and adjustments in real-time. This saves time and reduces the need for physical prototypes or mock-ups, which can be costly and time-consuming. When furniture businesses use a 3D configurator, it eliminates the need for physical prototypes and reduces the risk of errors and design flaws. This leads to a more efficient and cost-effective design process. Moreover, when you use 3D product visualization software, it provides a unique selling point for furniture businesses, as it offers a personalized and interactive buying experience. This can give businesses a competitive advantage over competitors not offering this feature.

Benefits of a visual product configurator for your furniture business

A visual product configurator is a tool that allows customers to customize and visualize their furniture products in real-time. It provides an interactive and engaging experience that enhances the customer's buying experience and increases sales. Here are some of the benefits of using a visual product configurator for your furniture business:

Personalization: A visual product configurator allows customers to customize furniture products according to their preferences, such as color, texture, and design. This personalized experience increases customer satisfaction and loyalty as they feel more connected to the product.

Increased Sales: By providing a more interactive and engaging experience, customers are more likely to purchase. A visual product configurator has been shown to increase sales by up to 30%, as customers can visualize the product and make more informed decisions.

Cost Savings: By allowing customers to customize their products in real-time, businesses can save on producing and storing large amounts of inventory. Instead, they can produce products based on customer demand, reducing the risk of overproduction and excess inventory.

Time Savings: A visual product configurator can save the customer and the business time. Customers can quickly and easily configure their furniture products without a salesperson's assistance. Businesses can also save time by reducing the number of customer service inquiries and returns.

Competitive Advantage: By offering a visual product configurator, businesses can differentiate themselves from competitors and provide a unique selling point. Customers are more likely to choose a business that offers a personalized and interactive buying experience.

Summing Up

A visual product configurator is essential for any furniture business looking to enhance its customer experience, increase sales, reduce costs, and save time. It is a valuable investment providing a competitive advantage and driving business growth.

Using a 3D configurator in furniture design provides several benefits. Investing in a 3D product visualization tool can enhance the customer experience, improve the design process, and drive business growth. If you want Product Configurator Software for your business, connect with KBMax experts now!

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6 Best Practices for Implementing CPQ Systems

For most manufacturers operating without CPQ software, generating instant and accurate quotes can be a real struggle. This is because the data required to prepare accurate quotes are frequently dispersed across multiple siloed teams that use different systems.

You can, however, significantly improve your sales cycle by implementing robust CPQ software that automates sales, connects departments, collects data from across your organization, and eliminates errors.

As great as this sounds, CPQ systems are only as good as their integration, implementation, and application. For a successful CPQ software implementation, you will need the right:

Product design

Set-up

Project strategy

Here are some best practices for implementing a highly effective CPQ system in your organization.

1. Clearly Define Project Goals Internally and with Your CPQ Vendor

To achieve an objective in business, you must start by clearly defining it. One of the main reasons business owners buy a CPQ tool is to improve the sales process, streamline communication bottlenecks between manufacturing and sales, or simply connect with their clients better by giving them access to certain features such as 3D product configuration.

The right CPQ tools have all these key features and can help achieve these objectives if implemented correctly. The best way to do that is to start by clearly defining your goals and the desired outcomes. For example:

Faster sales cycles

Reduced quoting errors

Enhanced sales productivity

Increased customer satisfaction

These goals or objectives must be SMART: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-Bound.

2. Choose Top CPQ Software with the Right Features

High-end CPQ software has a lot of powerful features, including but not limited to the following:

Visual product configuration

Pricing management

Automated quoting

Guided selling

Implementing all the available product features at once can be tempting, but this would be a mistake. For one thing, your team will struggle to master them all. Secondly, your business might only require a limited number of features–anything more will only increase complexity.

The best approach is to focus on the product features you need to meet your defined project goals. Once you are clear about what you want to achieve as an organization, it's easier to prioritize the CPQ software features that will help you get there faster.

Sticking to the stock features built into the product is also advisable instead of customizing your own. The best strategy would be to use the built-in features first and ensure everything runs smoothly and effectively before adding any customizations.

3. Collate Your Data

One of the most significant advantages of implementing CPQ tools into your organizational operations is that it helps to centralize your data. As such, the system you choose will require data from several different sources. 

To get this right, you must ensure that the CPQ system you implement integrates seamlessly with other organizational systems, such as ERP and CRM, whether on-prem or in the cloud. This will keep teams in sync and enable the automation of cross-functional workflows.

4. Configure the Approved Features

After collating the necessary data and installing the approved CPQ package, it's time to configure your chosen features. While these features will vary from one implementation process to another, a few are paramount to each CPQ system. These include:

Product and Pricing Rules: These rules determine how products can be configured, priced, and sold. The best CPQ systems, like Epicor CPQ, have a no-code rules engine, enabling non-technical business users to configure the solution.

Approvals: A complete and accurate quote may go through several departments, depending on your organization. It’s essential for every party involved to understand how the quote process progresses from one approval level to another and to automate approvals where possible.

Quote templates: Formatting your quote templates is one way to ensure uniformity throughout the process and enhance efficiency. You can customize your quote templates with your company name, logo, and terms and conditions. 

Properly configuring these features creates well-defined rules, making the right CPQ environment for your teams to output accurate quotes quickly and efficiently.

5. Proactively Manage the Change and Get Buy-In

The CPQ implementation process should involve the entire organization. Involving every stakeholder in the implementation process will help shed some light on the following:

The necessary features

User experience

Desired outcomes

Stakeholders should all agree on what is an essential part of the CPQ solution and what is considered non-essential and unnecessary for inclusion in the initial implementation phase. Remember to consult customer support. They may not use the CPQ system but interface with customers daily and understand their perspectives and pain points.

6. Test and Track Project Progress

One of the most critical parts of the implementation project is the "User Acceptance Testing" phase. This is where employees and customers are trained on the CPQ tool, test it out, and see if it meets spec and their expectations. Most issues are identified and corrected at this stage before the system is rolled out organization-wide.

Here are some steps you can follow when testing the implemented CPQ system:

Clearly define the testing schedule as well as the timelines 

Identify testing scenarios

Use a corresponding test case for each feature that needs to be explored

Confirm whether the system met business objectives

It's essential to set up a "sandbox" where you will be conducting all the necessary tests on the newly implemented CPQ system. This ensures data-to-day operations are unaffected and vital production data is safeguarded. You can also use this sandbox during demos and training sessions.

Finally, as part of the testing phase, it's necessary to conduct several user satisfaction surveys. These will show you whether or not the new CPQ tool has a positive impact.

You should note that the user adoption process is just as important an implementation step as any mentioned here. If the intended users find the CPQ system challenging, not only will it slow down the return on investment, but they may resist embracing the change altogether. To avoid this, ensure adequate user adoption support regarding training materials, real-life case studies on the positive impacts of CPQ adoption, and user involvement from the beginning.

The Bottom Line: Implementing CPQ Software Solutions Doesn’t Have to Be Challenging

As you can see, CPQ implementation can be complicated, and it often requires the help of a technical CPQ installation expert. However, by following the six best practices above, you can achieve systematic implementation quickly and efficiently, experiencing rapid time-to-value and adoption.

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How Can Configure Price Quote Software Help Thrive In 2023?

Configure, Price, Quote software integration automates the sales process, which can save your sales team time and improve accuracy. Integrating CPQ software with your CRM (Customer Relationship Management) system lets you quickly generate accurate quotes and proposals based on customer needs, preferences, and budget. This can result in faster sales cycles, increased productivity, and higher conversion rates. 

In days gone by when businesses struggle to set coordination within their team and quickly generate product quotes based on customers' preferences. But now, these things are just a matter of a few minutes as configure price quote software allows them to provide a personalized experience for your customers. 

By capturing customer data and preferences, CPQ software can recommend products and services that meet their needs and enable you to create customized quotes and proposals. This can help you to win customer loyalty and increase customer satisfaction. Also, CPQ integration can reduce the risk of errors and omissions by automating the sales process. The software can perform complex calculations, generate quotes based on predefined rules, and ensure accurate pricing and discounts. This improves your profitability and reduces the risk of customer dissatisfaction.

Let's discuss how configuring price quote software can help you design complex products.

Configure Price Quote Software  To Design Complex Products 

CPQ software can help you design complex products more efficiently and accurately, improving collaboration and customer satisfaction. There are several ways configuring price quote software can help design complex products, including: 

Configurability: CPQ software allows you to configure complex products with ease. You can define rules, dependencies, and options for each product component, ensuring all the pieces fit together correctly.

Visualization: CPQ software often comes with built-in visualization tools that allow you to see your product in 2D or 3D, making it easier to identify design errors or inconsistencies easier.

Collaboration: Integrating CPQ allows multiple teams to collaborate on the design of a product, ensuring that everyone has access to the latest design and pricing information.

Automated pricing: CPQ software can automatically calculate the price of a complex product based on its components, ensuring that the price is accurate and consistent.

Customization: CPQ software can also help you offer customized products to customers by allowing them to select the features they want in their product. This can help you offer your customers a more comprehensive range of products and increase customer satisfaction.

How Configure Price Quote Software Help Streamline The Product Design Process

Configure price quote software can help streamline the product design process, improve accuracy, and deliver a more engaging customer experience. 3D CPQ solutions provide a comprehensive way to configure, price, and quote a product by using a 3D visualization of the product.

With 3D CPQ solutions, companies can create and customize product configurations in real-time, allowing for quick and accurate product design. This enables sales representatives to visually demonstrate products to customers, helping them understand how the product works and how it can be customized to meet their needs.

By integrating 3D modeling and visualization technologies into their CPQ systems, companies can create a more interactive and immersive customer experience. 3D CPQ solutions can help design products by:

Allowing for visualization: By creating 3D product models, companies can visualize the product from different angles and test different configurations to see how they look and work.

Reducing design errors: Integrating CPQ allows companies can automate the product configuration process, reducing the risk of human error and improving accuracy.

Improving collaboration: 3D CPQ solutions allow teams to collaborate and share their work in real-time, enabling quicker feedback and decision-making.

Reducing time-to-market: 3D CPQ solutions can help companies bring products to market faster by enabling faster design, quoting, and ordering processes.

Summing up 

Integrate CPQ to get real-time visibility into the sales process. It allows you to track sales performance, identify areas for improvement, and optimize pricing and discounting strategies. Contact Epicor CPQ experts to make data-driven decisions and ensure your sales team follows best practices. 

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Why Does Every CPQ Need CPQ Software Implementation?

Previously, sales orders had to pass from desk to desk and department to department before entering production and, eventually, arriving at the customer's door. The salesperson would have to manually prepare a quote for the client, who would then send it back signed after finding the proper pricing in the price lists. The order was then processed through the back office to be entered into the accounting and/or manufacturing systems.

The shipping department had to prepare a shipment notice and ship the items to the end user after the order had been validated and moved into production. Such a sales procedure would be exceedingly time-consuming, prone to inaccuracy, and frequently cause production problems. This flow has been digitalized with CPQ implementation to increase efficiency inside businesses. A CPQ cloud system, also known as a configured price quote system, is one of these digital solutions. Internal staff members and external parties like clients, partners, installers, or distributors can utilize it.

The initial system in the sales pipeline is a CPQ platform, which gathers all the data required to complete the order digitally. However, customer relationship management (CRM) platforms and enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems are only two examples of digital tools that are employed in the sales process in addition to configuring price quote solutions. Therefore, these systems must be able to exchange information and communicate with one another. Integrations are, therefore, an essential component of every CPQ implementation.

The importance of integrations

A Configure Price Quote solution needs master data to develop configurators, which can be obtained from the Product Information Management software or the ERP program. After the product configurators are set up, the CPQ also has to have customer data added to it. Users can access their configurators through the CRM by pulling this information from the CRM. Then, an automatically created quotation will be submitted to both platforms. You can avoid having to manually enter data, which is a time-consuming and error-prone procedure, by integrating all these software systems. Data that uses integrations always remains current and consistent.

How can systems communicate with one another?

Plugin-based integrations

There are several techniques for creating integrations. Using plugins is one technique to link platforms together. These are designed primarily for connectivity to SaaS, software as a service, solutions like Salesforce and Microsoft CRM, or ERP programs like SAP and Microsoft Dynamics. Building plugins is a process that calls for solid programming skills. CPQ Software Implementation often comes with standard integrations, enabling a plug-and-play configuration between the CPQ cloud and other SaaS systems. In this way, Epicor CPQ reduces the burden for the integrator.

Webhook-based integrations

Combining webhooks with a low-code platform is a second approach for creating connections across platforms. A SaaS app's events or changes can trigger a webhook, a callback URL. If, for example, a company's address is changed in the CRM, a webhook will distribute this update via a low-code platform, guaranteeing that the CPQ solution will likewise use the most recent address. This technique enables the development of third-party app connections based on specific events.

Integrations using low-code platforms

Finally, low-code platforms can be used to create integrations. These platforms link plugins or webhooks to third-party applications. Given that it employs common integration patterns that everyone participating in the integrations can quickly grasp, this approach considerably decreases effort. It improves communication inside and between the IT department and other departments. 

Conclusion

Thanks to several digital solutions, the sales process is effective and digitalized in today's world. The ability of these systems to communicate and exchange information is crucial. Therefore, integrations are essential to any CPQ implementation to prevent data re-entry, mistakes, inconsistency, and a challenging master data management process. Webhooks, plugins, and low-code platforms can all be used to create integrations. 

Are you interested in learning how your systems could be linked to our CPQ solution? You can reach us to access a detailed CPQ implementation guide at your fingertips. 

Feel the difference in your quoting mechanisms. Contact KBMax CPQ experts to learn more about our CPQ software implementation. 

[cpqsolution]

Why Does Every CPQ Need CPQ Software Implementation?

Previously, sales orders had to pass from desk to desk and department to department before entering production and, eventually, arriving at the customer's door. The salesperson would have to manually prepare a quote for the client, who would then send it back signed after finding the proper pricing in the price lists. The order was then processed through the back office to be entered into the accounting and/or manufacturing systems.

The shipping department had to prepare a shipment notice and ship the items to the end user after the order had been validated and moved into production. Such a sales procedure would be exceedingly time-consuming, prone to inaccuracy, and frequently cause production problems. This flow has been digitalized with CPQ implementation to increase efficiency inside businesses. A CPQ cloud system, also known as a configured price quote system, is one of these digital solutions. Internal staff members and external parties like clients, partners, installers, or distributors can utilize it.

The initial system in the sales pipeline is a CPQ platform, which gathers all the data required to complete the order digitally. However, customer relationship management (CRM) platforms and enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems are only two examples of digital tools that are employed in the sales process in addition to configuring price quote solutions. Therefore, these systems must be able to exchange information and communicate with one another. Integrations are, therefore, an essential component of every CPQ implementation.

The importance of integrations

A Configure Price Quote solution needs master data to develop configurators, which can be obtained from the Product Information Management software or the ERP program. After the product configurators are set up, the CPQ also has to have customer data added to it. Users can access their configurators through the CRM by pulling this information from the CRM. Then, an automatically created quotation will be submitted to both platforms. You can avoid having to manually enter data, which is a time-consuming and error-prone procedure, by integrating all these software systems. Data that uses integrations always remains current and consistent.

How can systems communicate with one another?

Plugin-based integrations

There are several techniques for creating integrations. Using plugins is one technique to link platforms together. These are designed primarily for connectivity to SaaS, software as a service, solutions like Salesforce and Microsoft CRM, or ERP programs like SAP and Microsoft Dynamics. Building plugins is a process that calls for solid programming skills. CPQ Software Implementation often comes with standard integrations, enabling a plug-and-play configuration between the CPQ cloud and other SaaS systems. In this way, Epicor CPQ reduces the burden for the integrator.

Webhook-based integrations

Combining webhooks with a low-code platform is a second approach for creating connections across platforms. A SaaS app's events or changes can trigger a webhook, a callback URL. If, for example, a company's address is changed in the CRM, a webhook will distribute this update via a low-code platform, guaranteeing that the CPQ solution will likewise use the most recent address. This technique enables the development of third-party app connections based on specific events.

Integrations using low-code platforms

Finally, low-code platforms can be used to create integrations. These platforms link plugins or webhooks to third-party applications. Given that it employs common integration patterns that everyone participating in the integrations can quickly grasp, this approach considerably decreases effort. It improves communication inside and between the IT department and other departments. 

Conclusion

Thanks to several digital solutions, the sales process is effective and digitalized in today's world. The ability of these systems to communicate and exchange information is crucial. Therefore, integrations are essential to any CPQ implementation to prevent data re-entry, mistakes, inconsistency, and a challenging master data management process. Webhooks, plugins, and low-code platforms can all be used to create integrations. 

Are you interested in learning how your systems could be linked to our CPQ solution? You can reach us to access a detailed CPQ implementation guide at your fingertips. 

Feel the difference in your quoting mechanisms. Contact KBMax CPQ experts to learn more about our CPQ software implementation. 

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How to Increase Sales for Your Manufacturing Business?

Thanks to CPQ for SAP, the manufacturing industry has witnessed some astonishing transformations. CPQ software solutions enabled businesses to steam line their process and collectively focus on increasing sales. In this blog, we've bundled some advice to help you boost sales once again. Follow along!

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How to Increase Sales for Your Manufacturing Business?

In the past few years, the manufacturing market has seen significant changes due to the continued influence of global competition and B2B buyers rising demands. Therefore, increasing manufacturing sales are more complicated than other businesses. However, CPQ for SAP solves this challenge to a large extent. 

Long and complex sales procedures are a common problem for manufacturers, making it difficult to boost sales. This is due to the complexity of the products and the need for collaboration among numerous stakeholders in B2B sales. Now with the help of CPQ Technology, the manufacturer is dealing with product complexity with automation. 

Suggestions to boost manufacturing sales.

1. Invest in an online presence.

Online marketing is the first step in growing sales in the modern digital age. Manufacturers frequently ignore their internet presence, but buyers must quickly locate you and your products. With CPQ for SAP and digital marketing, you can bring new leads and direct current clients to your sales platform. 

You need to invest more in your internet presence if your responses to these questions are unfavorable. Although it takes effort, online marketing has several advantages. To further boost your sales, keep in mind that your website should also effortlessly direct visitors to your online store or e-commerce platform. 

2. Create a simple sales process.

Put your client's needs first when creating your sales process. Lower sales volumes might arise from customers finding it challenging to purchase from you. Customers can buy from you more efficiently if process barriers are removed, differentiating your business from rivals and fostering brand loyalty.

Nearly every step of the purchasing process is fraught with challenges. Finding the correct items and the corresponding product information is one of the consumers' most significant sources of irritation. CPQ for SAP help you replace your paper product catalogs with an online shopping platform suited to your client's demands.

Waiting days or even weeks for a quote is another barrier for clients. This gives them too much time to think things over and research the products and services of your rivals. Using the CPQ integration platform helps you generate product quotes in no time with more precision. 

3. Automate the way you do business.

Automating your sales chores and procedures with CPQ & ecommerce to boost manufacturing sales. Understanding time management for sales personnel is necessary to comprehend why automation is so important. They only spend a third of their time selling, with administrative work taking up most of the remaining time. Imagine how much more time you could devote to marketing if you had automated these processes.

CPQ software solutions are crucial to the success of your manufacturing sales. Your sales reps may use the time saved by automating tasks like lead generation, email campaigns, pricing, and invoicing to forge lasting connections and assist clients with more challenging projects. This positions your company for more sales and steady growth.

4. Increase product expertise to increase your order size.

Increasing the order size is another technique to boost sales. Product knowledge is a critical element of this. Product knowledge increases the desire to spend, providing the ideal cross-selling and upselling setting. Customers are more likely to purchase when viewing all available alternatives or materials and comparing items or comparable components.

Instructing your consumers about what they're buying could be challenging if you're selling on an online self-service platform. Advise employing CPQ Technology and a list of preset questions to steer clients on the proper path to make your complicated items simple to grasp. This kind of improvement in product knowledge can significantly increase your sales.

These are the four strategies for increasing sales while considering client behavior. These recommendations can help you develop and preserve your long-term connections with clients in addition to helping you grow volume.

Want assistance boosting sales in manufacturing? Have you given CPQ product configurator any thought? Contact us to learn more about CPQ for SAP.