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Quotation Management

Your team writes quotations like there is no tomorrow? But your closing rate still has room for improvement? Read here about how you can increase your sales with professional quotation management.

How do I lead more quotations to a closing?

There can be different reasons for low conversion rates. Many branches of industry are not lacking demand but implementation in B2B sales. Sometimes the goal is not defined clearly. Sometimes too much effort is invested in the “wrong” customers. Sometimes it is not followed up.

However, with an efficient quotation management and consistent quotation tracking, you can tremendously increase your conversion rate at little effort. You define a clear process through this, which will take you from drafting the quotation to the closing of the contract. Then, your quotation champions will also become sales champions.

THIS IS HOW YOU MASTER

THE BALANCING ACT!

Your goal is getting the contract!

Even if you are happy about many requests, think about it: not the number of quotations but the number of contracts will decide your success in B2B sales. This is why it is worthwhile to pursue consistent quotation tracking for quotations, which are important to your sales targets. It’s like in soccer: not the ones controlling the ball for the longest time but the ones scoring more goals win the cup.

Who gets a quotation and why?

Ask yourself: Do I even have a chance at all to win this contract? You, too, have limited time and cannot do everything for everyone. Neither should you! Find out whether it is worth it, best before drafting the quotation. No quotation at any price! So keep an eye on your chances of success as shown in the graphic below.

Model chances of success in quotations

You should be sure to avoid these mistakes in quotations:

  • Quotations that are overly complex, e.g. written in very technocratic language. The recipient is to consider your quotation after all.

  • Calculation errors in the quotation

  • Missing contact options in the quotation, e.g. contact with extension, mobile number, email address, etc.

  • No preparation for potential questions or objections of the customer, e.g. price discounts

Successful quotation management

From the quotation to the contract in B2B sales

Conversion rate in B2B sales: with quotation management 30% is attainable!

Calculation and potential of conversion rates

In B2B sales, the average quotation rate is at 10% unless there is a follow-up. This means: out of 10 quotations, your team converts only one into a contract.

But is that good? No, it is average at best. This is why professional quotation management has a particularly high value here. After all, who wants to be happy with 10% when 30% is possible, too?

What can be the reason for your conversion rate not being satisfactory?

  • You have lost the focus on “winning the contract”.
  • Your quotation was merely standard or too imprecise for the customer and has not led to a quick decision on the customer’s side. This can be fixed by following up.
  • The B2B customer does not have an acute purchasing requirement and forgotten about you. Stick to it!
  • The decision in the customer’s business takes a few days, weeks or months. This is when it is about staying in touch!
  • The B2B customer currently does not have a budget.
  • The B2B customer does not want to buy now but only at a later point in time.
  • Your customer does not respond on his own to a quotation, because he wants to check how good your customer relationship management is compared to that of your competitors. This is precisely when it is worthwhile to follow up.
  • However, based on our experience, the most frequent reason is: sales employees in the B2B sales organisation write quotations and then... nothing happens! Nobody sees to track quotations. You are waiting on the contract and it does not come.

You see: the central switching point for more success with your quotation management is in the consistent follow-up process

Improve your conversion rate by consistent quotation tracking

Your switching point for a better conversion rate in B2B sales: following up on quotations by telephone

Many employees, especially of the sales office staff, like to write quotations but do not like to talk on the phone. A fatal combination! Because writing soon becomes an alibi function: “Whoa, I’ve been writing quotations for hours again!” And still, hardly anything was reached. The reason is obvious: who invests too much time in writing nearly always has a reason not to follow up on his quotation. Meanwhile, especially the consistent follow-up on a quotation shows who can sell. Unfortunately, often it is not enough to show off the quotation. Instead it is about sticking to it and following up.

Consistent quotation tracking in 3 steps

You have concerns about following up on your quotation? Depending on the industry or volume, you have invested too much time and work into the quotation. It is therefore your good right to follow up. You should even consider this to be your obligation.

As shown in the following graphic, determine a process for the quotation tracking in B2B sales – with clear deadlines and responsibilities!

3 Steps of quotation tracking

Pay attention to these factors of success in the quotation tracking in B2B sales

  1. How high is the conversion from stage to stage in the quotation process; e.g. how many quotations are won after the first follow-up?
  2. Where do you lose quotations in the process?
  3. Are the intervals between the individual follow-up stages well chosen?
  4. Which parts of the process can be automated, if applicable, e.g. by automated emails at set intervals?
  5. Are there different conversion rates among your employees? What do the best ones do differently?
  6. Formulate best practices and ensure that your employees exchange thoughts about them. Especially the analysis of a lost contract is revealing but done rarely.

In what industries or customer strategies is quotation management particularly sensible?

The topic of quotation management or quotation tracking is particularly relevant to companies that write many or very many, perhaps several thousands of quotations per year. Therefore, these are frequently industries that also have a large number of B2B customers.

Examples of industries for a sensible use of quotation management are:

  • Manufacturers of products for crafts businesses: potential customer base = more than 40,000
    electrical installation businesses, plumbers, painters, etc.
  • Manufacturers of products for industrial businesses: potential customer base = more than 25,000 suppliers in mechanical engineering
  • Sales of technical components, e.g. retail, wholesale, e-commerce, procurement platforms
  • Software providers

Conclusion: stick to it until the closing!

Only who sets the goal of acquiring every contract as a customer has a chance of achieving the maximum conversion rate with his quotations. You can track quotations in different ways. But: make consistently following up on quotations the rule. If you decide for follow-ups by phone, ensure that the “right” employees do it – the ones with the “sales gene.”

And your target customer? He will thank you for it. Because this is how you show him that you are interested in working with him. Plus, he can clarify open questions with you and be assured of working with the right partner.

Do you need external support in quotation tracking?

There are many opportunities resting in the professional and targeted quotation tracking. Through an active sales role of the office staff for the quotation tracking, the effectiveness of sales can be raised tremendously. But often it is lacking the necessary know-how or manpower than to arrange the processes for drafting and tracking quotations optimally. Here, outsourcing of this sales task can take over the follow-up process for you. No follow-up call will be forgotten and your customers and prospects will be managed according to need.

Have we stirred your interest?

Then, you are welcome to contact me!



Sales Consultant Christian Soller

Christian Soller

Sales Consultant
Vertrieb

Tel.: +49 911 6602 147
E-Mail: christian.soller@suxxeed.de