Quoting Process in Manufacturing

The quoting process in manufacturing is a high-wire act. You’re perched on a precariously thin cable of opportunity. Below, the chasm of lost deals and eroded margins yawns wide. In your hands, the quote. Strike the perfect balance between expectations and execution, and you seal the deal. 

A single misstep, however, like an irrelevant feature or a pricing error, can throw you off balance and cost you the deal. 

Fear not! In this blog, our manufacturing experts share how to strike this perfect balance. And transform your quoting process into a magnet for manufacturing revenue.

Manufacturing Quotes

Sales quotes aren’t born from product and services portfolios and price lists. They bloom from understanding your buyer’s needs. Ask insightful, open-ended questions that help you explore their pain points from their perspective. Prepare a crystal-clear, customized quote that demonstrates your value proposition. And deliver it fast to beat your competition to the table.  

Only then can you balance expectations with execution and seal the deal.  

Manufacturing Quoting Process

So, your buyer needs something, and you understand their needs and expectations. You have the perfect product at the right price. And a little discount to sweeten the deal. From here, executing a winning manufacturing quote is simple.

Or is it? Imagine the high-wire act. Not with glittering costumes and gasps from the crowd. But with product and services and spreadsheets, and price lists and manual price calculations.

Approval delays stall buyer interest, and delays their purchase decision. Are they talking to your competitor?

Manufacturing Quoting Process Challenges

The reality is, the quoting process in manufacturing is complex and littered with obstacles. 

• Step One and Two is where manufacturing companies lose their balance. Complex products and services require in-depth understanding and technical knowledge to configure. Manual calculations based on outdated price books lead to pricing errors.
• Step Four and Five is where they spend most of their time; making more corrections than approvals. This drives up your internal costs and stalls your sales process.
• By the time you get to Step Seven and Eight, sluggish turnarounds have frustrated buyers. Sending them fleeing into the arms of your competition.

Best Practices for Accurate Manufacturing Quotes

In today's fast-paced marketplace, delays in receiving a sales quote can be the kiss of death for a deal. Buyers expect prompt, efficient responses, and any lag sends up a red flag fluttering their way. This hesitation can quickly morph into frustration, leading them to explore alternatives.

How do you successfully navigate these obstacles and close more deals?

Best practices to improve manufacturing quoting include: 

Conquer Complex Quotes 50% Faster

Imagine that tightrope again. But this time, your offering complexity is transparent. Your price books are up-to-date. It’s so easy to understand and configure and price that your quotes sail through approval. Faster than delighted buyers can say, “Sold.”

Meet XaitCPQ; the specialist solution for quoting complex manufacturing products and services in minutes.

• Create error-free quotes with guided selling, automatic calculations and workflow that eliminate the need for expertise.
• Eliminate rework with accurate quotes that sail through approval and reduce your cost per quote.
• Increase revenue with automated upsells and cross-sells that boost opportunity value. 

Unlike other Configure-Price-Quote software that forces you to choose between out-of-the-box functionality and custom development, XaitCPQ achieves your goals by tailoring industry functionality to your complex business. Making it faster and less expensive to implement and maintain.

“Using XaitCPQ has significantly eased the workload within Fabtek and improved speed of delivery of compelling quotes to buyers.” - Mike Chesnutt, President at Fabtek

Global manufacturing companies like Fabtek use XaitCPQ to quickly deliver 100% accurate quotes. It replaces configuration and pricing errors with accuracy. It replaces time-consuming reviews and revisions with speed. Two factors that help you secure more orders and scale for growth.

Don't let sluggish quote turnaround sabotage your sales; prioritize responsiveness. And ensure your quotes land swiftly in eager hands before the competition swoops in for the steal. 

Learn how XaitCPQ can help streamline your manufacturing quoting process and deliver complex quotes 50% faster. 

Related Article: How CPQ Helps Manufacturers Accelerate Quoting