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Revealing The Secret To Top CPQ Solutions

• Posted by kb max April 26, 2023 Filed in Business #Configure Price Quote CPQ  #cpq solutions  #CPQ Tool  #best CPQ solutions  2 views
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  By changing manufacturers from digital underachievers to sector leaders, the best CPQ solutions have the potential to revolutionize their businesses. 

  While the primary purpose of CPQ is to speed up and simplify the sales process through effective product design, pricing, and quoting, several less well-known advantages positively impact the whole business, not just the sales team. In this article, we'll delve into these unsung advantages and reveal their true potential.

  Not every CPQ system will provide you with all the benefits we outline. And these advantages might not be noticeable later. But scratch beneath the surface of top CPQ solutions like Epicor CPQ, and you’ll find a treasure trove of untapped potential that can revolutionize your manufacturing operations and drive tremendous business growth.

  Let’s look at the benefits of CPQ solutions in detail. 

  State-of-the-Art CPQ Process

  Here's a brief rundown of how today's top CPQ tools operate before we get into the advantages. Today’s top CPQ solutions take a visual approach to the configure price quote cpq process and drive automation across the whole engineer-to-order cycle. Below are the key steps.

   

  • Visual Configuration: Giving Life to Your Products

   

  With the help of a visual product configurator, users can customize products. This tool enables sales representatives and consumers to build and visualize things using 3D models in real-time. 

  Manufacturers program their engineering and pricing rules into these configurators. These rules dictate the configuration and pricing process, eliminating errors.

  The functionality and users of manufacturers' configurators are entirely up to them. They can be for sales reps only or embedded into websites for customers to operate remotely in a self-serve experience. The latter is becoming the norm across many sectors.

   

  • Adaptive Pricing

   

  The best CPQ solutions compute real-time costs as users specify goods.

  This automation provides greater pricing clarity, control, and immediate feedback, enabling rapid decision-making that boosts conversion rates.

   

  • Quick Quoting

   

  Users can download quotations instantaneously, reducing the length of sales cycles to a fraction of what they were previously instead of waiting weeks for estimates and the requisite approvals.

  • Mechanize Design

   

  The best CPQ software also automatically generates CAD files, bill of materials (BOM), CNC cut sheets, additive manufacturing files, and more in real-time, routing them to engineers for approval or directly to the shop floor.

   

  • Customer Contentment

   

  The customer's product is customized to meet their specific needs and delivered earlier than planned. Everyone’s happy!

  Game-Changing Benefits of Implementing a Top CPQ Tool

  Here are a few significant CPQ advantages that some firms are unaware of.

  Improved ROI from Back-Office Systems

   

  Many organizational systems are integrated with leading CPQ solutions, such as ERP, CRM, CAD, and B2B eCommerce. They use APIs (application programming interfaces) to connect quickly and seamlessly without the risk of destabilizing the rest of the tech stack. 

  After integration, data is free to flow, allowing firms to utilize their digital resources fully. 

  As an example, The visual product configuration experience can be tailored by manufacturers that smoothly link CRM with CPQ systems. In turn, they can track user interactions with products within the configurator and incorporate this behavioral data back into the CRM. 

  As a result, when a representative wants to get in touch, they can quickly obtain information about the prospect's preferences for products and option packages, giving them a helpful head start.

  Empower Assistance for Localization and Globalization

   

  Thanks to CPQ solutions, manufacturers can customize product regulations, pricing, and customer experiences following specific user groups. These groups may encompass diverse sales channels, such as distributors, who may access different pricing structures compared to online customers. Additionally, CPQ systems enable customization for various geographic or market areas, assuring the best experiences for each segment.

  CPQ solutions allow manufacturers to localize their operations by tailoring their product lines and pricing plans to specific needs, considering regional differences in currencies, languages, laws, customs, and social mores. This ability to localize helps manufacturers globalize, expanding into new markets and competing from Day One.

  Rise Collaboration and Efficiency 

  By removing barriers and offering a single source of truth, the best CPQ systems offer collaboration across sales, engineering, and the shop floor. Teams have access to the same information, enabling seamless coordination and communication. 

  Salespeople have access to information about the whole engineering process. Reps won't need to phone through to the shop floor whenever a consumer calls for an update on their purchase.  This seamless digital thread improves efficiency, reduces lead times, and enhances customer satisfaction.

  Rapid Decision-Making Based on Data

   

  For manufacturing and associated data, a single source of truth offers a plethora of knowledge to help decision-makers make well-informed choices. Manufacturers can analyze how customers interact with visual product configurators, which options are best-sellers, and what messaging is most effective. Using this information to recognize trends, create more effective products, and provide sales representatives with the knowledge they need to enhance win rates.

  Increase cross-selling and upselling opportunities

   

  By looking into customer preferences, past purchases, and configurator usage, CPQ and CRM integration can aid manufacturers in identifying upselling and cross-selling possibilities. This analysis enables manufacturers to offer targeted recommendations, increasing deal sizes and improving customer satisfaction.

  Improved Compliance and Governance

   

  Through product rules, manufacturers can integrate internal and industry norms into their configurators, guaranteeing that all items and quotations follow the rules. This reduces the risk of non-compliance, which can result in penalties and reputational damage. It can also avoid rework costs and minimize warranty claims.

  Enhance  Operation In Less Effort

   

  With shifting demand, rising costs, and supply chain disruption, the industrial sector has recently seen disruption. The modern manufacturer has to be agile. Without sacrificing quality, they must ramp up production quickly and lower fixed costs to safeguard against downtime.

  Best CPQ systems automate the tedious procedures in the engineer-to-order process, enabling manufacturers to scale back operations during lean times and increase operation during good times—all without needing to employ or fire personnel or spend money on new infrastructure or software.

  More Sustainable Environment

   

  The automated capabilities of CPQ provide higher accuracy and consistency, which reduces errors and inefficiency. Poor configurations (often the fault of new hires) lead to wasted materials, energy, and carbon emissions. 

  Advanced CPQ solutions assist businesses in lowering their environmental footprint, paving the way for a more sustainable future. But it’s not just the environment that benefits. The business does too. Here’s how:

  • Governments are enforcing stronger environmental laws, particularly those related to emissions. Failure to adhere can lead to fines and additional tax liabilities. Manufacturers can gain an advantage by lowering their carbon impact.
  • It has become harder to find top industrial personnel. The industry needs more qualified candidates, as younger generations are less drawn to manufacturing careers while the Baby Boomer majority approaches retirement. To stand out in this cutthroat labor market, sustainability must be a top priority for manufacturers. Working for a company committed to sustainability is paramount for the younger generation.
  • Businesses want to collaborate with suppliers who share their commitment to the environment and can help them build their brand as ethical enterprises. 
  • Sustainability is a priority for consumers as well. Your green credentials might be a key selling factor and differentiation as end users turn away from unsustainable products.

  Enhanced Engineering Effectiveness

   

   

  Transactional work bogs down engineers. This is particularly true for businesses that provide complicated customizable items. The engineering team must produce drawings and CAD files whenever a sales rep needs a quote. Since the settings they receive from the sales team are frequently rife with mistakes and inconsistencies, this is tremendously tedious, time-consuming, and infuriating. Fewer people talk about how top CPQ solutions make life easier for under-pressure engineering teams. Much of the focus on CPQ is on how these solutions improve sales performance and efficiency. However, the technical impact is frequently the largest gain for many businesses, resulting in quicker launches of better-quality, more inventive goods.

  Top CPQ solutions supercharge engineering efficiency in two ways:

  • Sales-generated configurations are certainly error-free since the configurator has previously verified them using the technical knowledge stored in the system as product rules. 
  • CPQ auto-generates CAD files for every configuration, saving a tremendous amount of time.

  Engineers can focus on more vital duties like inventing better products that increase their company's competitiveness and encourage consumer loyalty when liberated from the monotony of constant CAD development.

  Delightful  Employee Satisfaction and Retention

   

  In a highly competitive labor market, the only way to retain your best employees is to reduce repetitive work, allowing them to focus on higher-value jobs and the freedom to realize their full potential.

  Engineers become more inventive, and sales representatives become more productive and engaged because of CPQ software's automation and streamlining. Reps can focus on building customer relationships instead of struggling through complex configurations and pricing calculations. 

  By integrating CPQ with your other back-office systems, a lot of the tedious back-and-forth that slows down everything and makes everyone crazy is eliminated!

  Speed up Onboarding of New Hires

   

  New recruit onboarding is more complex and time-consuming than ever. Customers want more customization options, which strains the engineering and sales staff. Moreover, products are becoming more technical, further steepening the learning curve.

  The best CPQ solutions automate sales, accelerating the learning curve for new employees. They also have guided selling capabilities, which help sales reps or customers navigate the complex sales process by providing prompts and scripts that guide them through.

  Efficient Product Lifecycle Management

   

  Modern CPQ technologies allow firms to launch new goods and remove outmoded ones quickly. The product catalog can be updated centrally, disseminating updates throughout the organization using configurators. 

  Immersive 3D images make it simple to add new product possibilities since they do away with the need for laborious explanations and extensive product descriptions. Manufacturers can swiftly adapt to evolving customer preferences, competitor dynamics, and changes in the broader economic landscape, ensuring maximum agility and competitiveness.

  Deployment of Industry 4.0 Technologies Made Simple

   

  Manufacturers who have access to digital tools are integrating several kinds of Industry 4.0 technologies into their tech stacks. Top CPQ solutions can ease the implementation and adoption of the most impactful of these technologies. Below are some examples.

  Augmented Reality

  With several applications in the industrial sector, such as assembly, maintenance, training, quality control, and compliance, augmented reality has had a significant influence. Top CPQ solutions can easily incorporate augmented reality capabilities, enhancing customer engagement by providing interactive product demonstrations and enabling customers to visualize configurations in real-world situations.

  Virtual Reality

  Up until now, virtual reality hasn't influenced the industrial sector much. Still, things are changing as the requisite VR headsets become more widely available and reasonably priced. VR configurators let customers configure and experience products in a virtual environment, identifying potential issues before production begins and changes become expensive. 

  Mixed Reality

  The next big thing in immersive technology is predicted to be mixed reality, a system that combines components of VR and AR. Apple CEO, Tim Cook, wants to build his legacy on his mixed-reality headset, with other B2B and B2C’s sure to follow suit. With APIs, cloud-based CPQs like Epicor CPQ can effortlessly interface with emerging mixed-reality platforms, giving you an advantage over the competition.

  Cloud Computing

  The best CPQ solutions use a SaaS (Software-as-a-Service) approach to run in the cloud and provide various benefits.  These include:

  • Reduce Initial Costs: Cloud-based CPQ solutions feature cheaper upfront expenses because you don't need to buy pricey gear to use them. The pay-as-you-go pricing model keeps costs more manageable and predictable.
  • Minimize TCO: Compared to on-prem, cloud CPQ has a much cheaper total cost of ownership (TCO).  The vendor manages and maintains your solution, updating and fixing bugs. This is a significant advantage for smaller businesses with constrained IT resources.
  • Quick Implementation: Without the requirement for hardware installation, your company can begin operating immediately, cutting down on time spent creating value.
  • Improved Scalability: Scalability of cloud CPQ systems is simple. You can expand or contract usage on demand and pay as you go.
  • Enhancing Capacity: Cloud CPQ solutions often provide higher levels of security due to companies' investments in cutting-edge security technologies, including data encryption and stringent access restrictions. Automatic backups and disaster recovery protect your business in case of system failures, ensuring business continuity.
  • Accessibility: Employees can access the solution in fields using any internet-connected device thanks to cloud-based CPQ solutions, which are accessible in your browser.
  • Future-proof: New upgrades and features constantly evolve to cloud-based CPQ solutions, allowing for continual evolution. This helps you adapt to technology trends and provide your customers with cutting-edge digital experiences. Improved interaction with other cloud apps enables you to build and integrate new solutions as they become available.

  Additive Manufacturing

  The best CPQ solutions can automatically create files for additive manufacturing and route them to 3D printers on the shop floor. This enables true end-to-end automation, whereby the customer configures a product remotely, places their order, and their product is manufactured immediately, all without a human touch.

  Raise Profit by Improving Pricing Strategy

   

  Dynamic pricing in CPQ systems calculates prices in real-time, giving customers immediate pricing feedback to make well-informed on-the-spot decisions. But top CPQ solutions do more than calculate prices fast; they price them intelligently. 

  The most effective CPQ software incorporates labor rates, shipping costs, material costs, and competition activity into their stated prices. This lets manufacturers adjust to market fluctuations, provide timely promotions, and maximize margins from every deal without sacrificing sales volume. 

  The Verdict: CPQ Solution Offers Much More

  Everyone is familiar with CPQ's ability to simplify product setup, pricing, and bids. Only some people are aware of the benefits that lie beyond these core functions. Moreover, these hidden features are equal potential to improve staff retention, product lifecycle management, and environmental sustainability.