Coming Soon: 9 New Salesforce CPQ and Billing Changes
Salesforce release notes show 9 improvements on the way for Configure Price Quote and Billing tools. Get the full scoop here.
Salesforce recently published its Spring release notes (all 485 pages of them). It took a couple pots of coffee, but I was able to hone in on the #1 concern of Salesforce users – Salesforce CPQ.
Instead of having you slog through all 485 pages of release notes, I’ve pulled the most relevant CPQ news together in the post below.
An Expanding Market
Most people in the SFDC ecosystem know that Salesforce acquired SteelBrick for $360 million. This is a clear signal from the SFDC powers that be that Salesforce CPQ is a key area of opportunity for the company. Both users and analysts seem to agree. Gartner predicts the CPQ market will continue to increase at a compounded annual growth rate of 20% through 2020. If those numbers hold true, you’ll be hard pressed to find a company not using a CPQ tool in a couple years.
Ever looking to round out its company-wide utility, Salesforce also revealed enhancements to Salesforce Billing. These updates will provide SFDC users with “flexible invoicing, custom reports, and simplified payments.”
By automating both quoting and billing, Salesforce is leading the way in providing companies with a full quote-to-cash solution. Why is that important to SFDC users? The sooner you can provide a quote or send out a bill, the sooner you’ll be able to realize revenue from customers (and the sooner your customers will realize the value of your services, of course!).
If you’re interested in tapping into this CPQ revolution before you end up labeled a laggard, read on to learn more about the 9 Salesforce CPQ and Billing changes launching this spring.
Salesforce CPQ: Improved Line Selection and Contract Status Visibility
Create and manage your quotes and orders with Salesforce CPQ. These changes apply to both Lightning Experience and Salesforce Classic.
1. Choose Multiple Lines in Salesforce CPQ Visualforce Pages
Your sales reps now have an easier way of selecting several options in certain Salesforce CPQ Visualforce pages. Users can shift-click to select several lines at the same time.
2. Track Contracting Job Status
You can now track the status of background contracting jobs. The spinner provides visibility by showing your contracting job progress. Add this component to your existing order page layouts.
3. Use the Prorate Multiplier for Order Products
Salesforce CPQ order products now show the prorate multiplier field. This field inherits its value from the quote line and is used to calculate the order product’s total price.
Other Changes in Salesforce CPQ
Changes made to order product fields and line-level contracting
4. Line-Level Contracting on Related Orders Products Is Retired
You can no longer create a contract from percent of total, covered, or bundle products at the order product level. Instead, create a contract with these objects through the order record.
5. Customize Billing with Dynamic Invoice Plans
Dynamic Invoice Plans offer more flexibility for how and when you bill customers. Define dates, service periods, or project milestones that are outside the standard monthly, quarterly, and annual billing cycles.
For example, you can bill 10% of an order product’s total amount upon activation, 25% on first delivery, and the remainder after final delivery.
6. Manage Tax for Your Credit Notes and Debit Notes
Our tax calculation process lets you estimate tax for your credit notes and debit notes before you apply it. If you need to change fields that factor into tax calculation, you can do so before you commit tax to the credit note or debit note record.
7. Use Improved Reporting Tools
Useful reporting tools and out-of-the-box templates show snapshots of your accounts and transactions, and provide examples of how Salesforce Billing can help you work better.
8. Manage Invoices and Payments Seamlessly in the New Payment Center
The updated Payment Center offers a more intuitive and faster process for settling accounts. Customers have more flexibility for paying all or part of an invoice, crediting an account, changing credit card or bank details, and tracking payments in a simplified, intuitive user interface.
9. Added Flexibility with Prerated Usage for Order Products
If you have usage ratings that are defined by another source, or charges not covered by standard usage ratings, you can include them as prerated usage.
So what do these changes mean for Salesforce customers?
Salesforce.com’s CPQ and Billing is an offering that will only continue to get better. With an automated, end-to-end, quote-to-cash-solution, expect your business to see accelerated sales cycles, more closed deals, and quicker revenue recognition.
Are you struggling to get the most out of your Salesforce instance? Learn how we can help match you with a Salesforce CPQ expert to help you get the most out of your investment.