Speed up quote cycles to boost sales
Faster quote cycles improve business performance
Quote cycle times impact key business metrics. Quotes are a crucial step in the sales process, and quote turnaround times are often a decisive factor in winning business. Research shows that businesses that respond first win 50% more deals. Slow quote cycles lead to missed sales opportunities, bottlenecks, and lower customer satisfaction.
What is a quote cycle?
A quote cycle is the length of time from the point a customer first makes contact through to the point of quote delivery. For manufacturers of complex custom products, quote cycle times can be a significant challenge. The sheer volume of product variations makes it difficult for sales teams to create accurate quotes quickly. The process often involves lots of back-and-forth communication between sales and engineering, resulting in delays in quote turnaround times.
The impact of long quote cycles
Long quote cycles can affect several business areas. Not only are they frustrating for sales, engineering, and customers, but they can also harm your business goals.
Lost deals
B2B customers increasingly expect their B2B purchases to replicate their B2C experiences. An increasing number of B2B customers want to self-serve online, and those dealing with sales representatives expect the buying process to be smooth.
Long quote turnaround times can lead to customer frustration. When faced with quote delays, they may look for quotes with alternative suppliers, and if they receive competitor quotes ahead of yours, that can lead to lost sales opportunities.
Competitor pressure
Longer quote cycles give competitors the opportunity to win your customers. The wider impact of competitor pressure can lead to price wars, quote errors, and lower profit margins.
Drain on resources
When the quote process involves sales and engineering teams, it can be resource-heavy for both. Sales teams spend large amounts of time on sales admin tasks, putting complex quotes together. As a result, they have less time to focus on selling. This can not only lead to lower sales, but job satisfaction can also be negatively impacted.
Similarly, for engineering teams working on complex custom products, the quote workload can be intensive. This can lead to bottlenecks in the design process, and means that engineers have less time to spend working on new designs and product innovation.
Business benefits of faster quote cycles
Shortening the length of time from the initial quote request to quote delivery can have positive business benefits in 3 key areas.
Improved sales closure rates
Shorter quote cycles lead to increased sales. This is due to several factors, including quote completion ahead of competitors, fewer customer objections, and improved customer confidence.
Competitive edge
When competing against multiple vendors, the ability to provide quotes quickly can be advantageous. Customers often consider speed to quote as part of their vendor selection process, so your ability to deliver accurate quotes faster is key.
Customer trust
Providing timely, accurate quotes for complex products helps to build customer trust and confidence. Businesses want to work with manufacturers who demonstrate speed and accuracy. This can also have a longer-term impact on customer retention rates.
Quote metrics to measure
When reviewing quote cycle performance, there are some key metrics to consider:
- Average quote turnaround times: This tells you the average number of hours/days/weeks it takes to respond to quote requests. The shorter the time, the better.
- Quote win rate: This measures the percentage of quotes that lead to sales. The higher the percentage, the better.
- Quote volume per sales rep: This gives an indication of how quickly quotes are processed. Faster sales cycles enable sales reps to generate a higher volume of quotes.
How CPQ accelerates the quoting process
Implementing a CPQ (Configure, Price, Quote) solution optimizes pricing and quoting processes, enabling businesses to manage complex configurations without compromising accuracy, efficiency, or customer satisfaction.
CPQ solutions automatically generate accurate quotes in minutes so salespeople can configure products, calculate prices, and generate proposals in real-time. Delivering accurate custom quotes with quick turnaround times gives manufacturers the competitive edge to win more deals.
Learn more about improving sales of complex products with CPQ
How can CPQ improve your business?
Five sales challenges that CPQ eliminates
Boost your sales cycle with CPQ: A step-by-step guide
Faster quote cycles with DriveWorks CPQ for Manufacturing
DriveWorks CPQ for Manufacturing enables manufacturers to quote complex products faster and with greater accuracy.
For a wide range of businesses in the custom manufacturing sector, DriveWorks CPQ for Manufacturing has streamlined workflows and enabled them to produce more designs, quotes, and orders in less time.
Manufacturers using DriveWorks CPQ for Manufacturing solution have achieved: