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In our previous post on Deal Transformation, we shared the challenge of managing risks in sales deals while not slowing the deal down. Time truly does kill all deals, so increasing sales velocity not only reduces selling costs and improves efficiency, but it also results in higher top line revenue.  You may be wondering then, what are some practical ways to increase sales velocity in the quote-to-order process? Below are our top three steps for increasing sales velocity in your quote-to-order process.

1. Create a self-service model for sales representative to create quotes

Companies that can deliver accurate quotes quickly to customers have an advantage in the sales cycle.   A fast quoting process communicates to the customer that they are important and that they are buying something that the company has expertise in.  Today’s CPQ solutions, like Salesforce CPQ, are easy to use and are an extension of the CRM that sales representatives use every day.   By standardizing product bundles, pricing rules, and approvals processes, sales representatives  can easily create customized quotes for their customers that do not require waiting in line for a sales support team to assist.

2. Develop pre-built financial analysis models

Analyzing and conducting profitability analysis on a deal can be cumbersome. Many finance analysts copy data out of quotes and into highly customized Excel files that are difficult to adjust and error prone. Modeling platforms like Anaplan can ingest data automatically from quotes and create a standard set of financial outputs that allow finance analysts to quickly review and analyze quotes proposed by sales.

3. Automate contract creation and negotiation

Your customer has agreed to your proposal, but contracts are where sales deals often dramatically slow down.   The process of creating agreements, analyzing and red-lining can take weeks or months. Contract Lifecycle Management (CLM) solutions like DocuSign CLM, automate this process by taking data directly from Salesforce to create intelligent contracts with the right terms based on the customer, the products and services they are buying, and information on the deal.   Redlining can be moved off of Word documents and email, and into the cloud for a fast and effective negotiation.

These practical steps speed up sales cycles by automating the passing of data and information through the quote creation, financial analysis, approval, and contracting process.  It allows different stakeholders across sales, finance, and legal to rapidly engage in the quote to cash cycle with a focus on winning profitable deals.   Companies who do this create better customer experiences that increase win rates and drive breakthrough sales productivity.

In our next post on Deal Transformation, we will address the most asked questions around Deal Transformation. In the meantime, remember that an on-demand Deal Transformation webinar, including a demo, is available below and contact Spaulding Ridge at [email protected] for more information.

Founded in 2018, Spaulding Ridge is a top management consulting firm, dedicated to client success and helping organizations implement and adopt best-in-cloud technology to solve their most pressing challenges. We provide the office of the CFO financial clarity to Sales and Operational complexity by integrating financial and sales SaaS Platforms.

We help:
• Finance gain control ” Increasing financial effectiveness, insight and impact
• Sales increase Productivity ” Hitting quota more quickly, consistently and efficiently
• Operations increase Competitiveness ” Through productivity rates, customer service outcomes, and efficiency

A headshot of Kevin Josephson smiling.
Kevin Josephson
Senior Managing Partner, Chief Delivery Officer, Spaulding Ridge
About the Author

Kevin Josephson is the Chief Delivery Officer at Spaulding Ridge. He has spent 20+ years in the management consultant field helping companies of all sized with their sales performance management and sales effectiveness. Responsible for scaling our delivery teams globally, Kevin focuses on consistent, quality results for clients. He has deep expertise in tech, life sciences, and manufacturing and distribution industries.