Revenue Cloud
7 Must-Know FAQs About Moving from CPQ to RCA
Salesforce CPQ stopped being sold to new customers in early 2025, officially entering End-of-Sale status in March–April 2025. Existing custo...
Read More→
Back to Blogs
Revenue Cloud, Salesforce
Salesforce CPQ – The Ultimate Guide
Sales representatives often find themselves overwhelmed by administrative tasks, leaving limited time to focus on what truly matters: selling. Much of their day is consumed by generating quotes, proposals, and obtaining approvals, all of which take time away from building customer relationships and closing deals.
The answer to this challenge lies in Salesforce Configure, Price, Quote (CPQ). CPQ automates the quoting process, eliminating the need for manual data entry and reducing the risk of errors. CPQ empowers sales teams to focus on building relationships and closing deals by providing accurate pricing, streamlining product configurations, and automating approvals.
This guide offers a comprehensive look at Salesforce CPQ, covering every topic you need, from the fundamentals to the future advancements you’ll find here.
What is Salesforce CPQ?
Salesforce CPQ is a powerful sales tool designed to provide precise pricing for any product configuration. It automates quotes based on pre-defined rules and delivers error-free pricing while it manages quantities, discounts, customizations, multiple revenue types, and product incompatibilities.
When CPQ is deployed and used correctly, businesses have reported benefits such as:
- 10X faster quote generation
- 95% reduction in approval time
- 30% faster onboarding for new sales reps
What are the three components of Salesforce CPQ?
Features of Salesforce CPQ
Enable your sales representatives to generate quotes swiftly with CPQ.
| Feature | Description |
|---|---|
| Product catalog management | Store, manage, and organize product information, which includes attributes, pricing, and availability. |
| Guided selling | Provide interactive tools to guide sales reps through complex product configurations. |
| Real-time pricing | Automatically calculate prices based on product configurations, discounts, and promotions. |
| Discount controls | Empower sellers with discount flexibility on quotes or products and use volume-based and proportional discounts to drive buyer incentives. |
| Quote generation | Create customized quotes with detailed product information, pricing, and terms. |
| Product configurator | Easily organize product bundles using a configurator that displays product features and the available options for each feature.
|
| Contract renewals and amendments | Amend contracts anytime, boost upsells, and cross-sells with flexible quoting. |
| Contract management | Manage contract creation, approval, and execution. |
| Proposal document generation | Generate proposal documents directly from the quoting process, configure products and pricing, and send deals from the CRM. |
Benefits of Salesforce CPQ
Salesforce CPQ offers many benefits to businesses across various industries. Here are some of the key advantages:
- Boosts sales: CPQ boosts sales performance by providing accurate quotes, which leads to a smoother sales process.
- Accelerates deal closure: CPQ helps sales representatives close deals faster, streamlining the process from configuration to final agreement.
- Increases profitability with CRM integration: When CPQ is integrated with CRM systems, businesses see significant returns on their investment.
- Enables new revenue models: CPQ enables businesses to create new revenue streams, which boosts adaptability to market changes.
- Allows creation of personalized quotes: CPQ provides clear and transparent pricing information to customers. With automated quoting, customers can receive quotes more quickly.
“Salesforce CPQ provides the foundation for businesses to transform their sales operations, which enables them to quote with confidence, close deals faster, and foster long-lasting customer relationships.”
– Tim Feng, Head of Revenue Cloud Practice | LevelShift.
Salesforce CPQ Implementation
Salesforce CPQ implementation sets up a system that helps businesses automate and simplify their sales processes. Here are the key considerations and steps involved in CPQ implementation:
A Step-by-Step Guide to Successful Salesforce CPQ Implementation
1. Define goals: Set clear objectives for what you want to achieve with CPQ.
2. Focus on key features: Start with built-in features such as product catalog and guided selling, which can quickly address your immediate business needs.
3. Choose the right team: Assemble a team of experts to lead the project.
4. Optimize processes: Evaluate and refine your sales processes to align with the new system.
5. Manage data: Prepare and consolidate data for integration with the CPQ system.
6. Plan change management: Develop a strategy to manage change and train users across departments.
7. Document processes: Create detailed documentation for user training and system configuration.
8. Ensure support: Arrange for post-implementation support to handle any issues.
Life of a Sales Rep Before and After CPQ Implementation
| Before CPQ implementation | After CPQ implementation |
|---|---|
| Manual quoting process | Automated quoting |
| Limited product knowledge | Centralized product data |
| Customer dissatisfaction | Improved customer satisfaction |
| Complex manual pricing calculations | Real-time, automated pricing |
Best Practices for CPQ Implementation
Salesforce CPQ Configuration
CPQ configuration involves defining product catalogs, pricing rules, quote templates, and other essential components to optimize the sales cycle.
Core Components of CPQ Configuration
- Product catalogs: Organize products, define attributes, and create hierarchies.
- Pricing rules: Set up pricing rules and discounts and handle complex pricing scenarios.
- Quote templates: Design templates, incorporate dynamic elements, and automate generation.
- Contract management: Automate contract creation, management, and renewals.
- Order management: Configure usage pricing, set up dynamic usage quantity, and create a usage standard cost for a product.
Salesforce CPQ Integration
Salesforce CPQ integration connects with existing systems (CRM and ERP) to enhance the sales performance. The integration ensures real-time data synchronization and accuracy in pricing and inventory management.
| Application/System | Integration Points | Benefits |
|---|---|---|
| Billing | Order processing, revenue recognition. | Streamlined billing. |
| ERP | Inventory management, order fulfillment.
|
Accurate product availability and optimized order processing. |
| SAP | Sales integration, finance integration. | Improved sales and precise financial reporting. |
| NetSuite | Order management, inventory management. | Refined order processing and product availability. |
| DocuSign | E-signature, workflow automation. | Reduced paperwork, faster contract execution. |
| Oracle | Finance integration, supply chain integration. | Valid financial reporting, improved supply chain productivity. |
LevelShift redefines the CPQ architecture of a leading daily American newspaper leader to improve operational efficiency in their Quote to Cash process.
CPQ Customization
Salesforce CPQ customization tailors the CPQ functionalities to meet business requirements. Typical customizations include creating custom discounts, modifying pricing rules, and automating quote generation.
CPQ Support and Maintenance
Salesforce CPQ support and maintenance focus on ensuring correct quote generation and pricing configurations. This includes regular updates to product catalogs, pricing rules, discounting structures, approval workflows, and troubleshooting issues related to quote-to-cash processes.
Salesforce CPQ Industry Use Cases
Salesforce CPQ provides a versatile solution for businesses across various industries. Let’s focus on some of the key sectors.
High Tech
- Complex product configurations: CPQ can handle intricate configurations with multiple options and dependencies, common in high-tech products like computers, servers, and software.
- Subscription management: For subscription-based products, CPQ can track subscription terms, renewals, and upgrades, providing a seamless customer experience.
We help high-tech companies exceed their revenue and sales goals with our strategic Salesforce CPQ implementation, customization, and continuous support.
Manufacturing
- Bill of Materials (BOM) integration: CPQ can integrate with manufacturing systems to ensure BOM calculations and pricing.
- Lot tracking: CPQ can track products to ensure compliance with regulations and quality standards.
Financial Services
- Loan product pricing: CPQ can calculate loan interest rates, fees, and repayment schedules.
- Customized loan offers: CPQ automates and personalizes loan offers based on client profiles, credit scores, and loan types.
Salesforce CPQ Pricing Models
| Edition | Description | Key Features | Pricing Model |
|---|---|---|---|
| CPQ | Accelerate deal execution with a scalable sales process. |
|
$75
USD/user/month USD (billed annually)
|
| CPQ+ | Automate cross-functional workflows for increased sales process control. |
|
$150
USD/user/month USD (billed annually)
|
Source: Salesforce
Enhance Sales Accuracy and Customer Experience with AI-Powered CPQ Solutions
In Salesforce CPQ systems, AI and generative AI enhance sales quoting by providing deeper insights into products, enabling sellers to convey their value to buyers. AI automates pricing by analyzing sales data and market trends, which ensures error-free quotes. Generative AI provides configuration suggestions personalized to customer needs, saving time. Predictive analytics offers insights into successful product configurations, which guides sales teams to make informed decisions quickly.
| Benefits | Before AI Integration | After AI Integration |
|---|---|---|
| Quote accuracy | Manual calculations prone to errors. | AI-driven precision in pricing and discounts. |
| Configuration speed | Time-consuming manual configuration. | Automated, faster configuration suggestions. |
| Pricing strategy | Static pricing models. | Dynamic, AI-optimized pricing strategies. |
| Sales insights | Limited insights from historical data. | Predictive analytics for better decision-making. |
| User experience | Complex and time-intensive process. | User-friendly interface. |
| Approval process | Manual approval workflows. | Automated, AI-assisted approval processes. |
LevelShift CPQ Expertise
LevelShift, a trusted Salesforce Summit Partner helps elevate your CPQ system. We drive revenue growth by refining sales procedures, improving quote accuracy, and boosting productivity.
Discover what our CPQ services can do for you:
With the right CPQ solution in place, your business can optimize its entire revenue lifecycle and accelerate growth.
Ready to maximize your revenue operations? Contact us to discover how our expert team can deliver a customized solution.
FAQ
1. Is CPQ a CRM?
No, CPQ is not a CRM. CPQ is a sales tool that helps businesses create accurate quotes quickly.
2. Is Salesforce Revenue Cloud the same as Salesforce CPQ?
Salesforce Revenue Cloud and Salesforce CPQ are related but not the same. Revenue Cloud includes CPQ, billing, and other revenue management tools, offering a more comprehensive solution for managing the entire revenue lifecycle.
3. Does Salesforce CPQ require coding?
No, Salesforce CPQ does not require coding for basic implementation and usage.
4. What are the key features of Salesforce CPQ?
Salesforce CPQ offers automated quoting, pricing, proposal generation, guided selling, and contract management to streamline sales processes.
5. What are the benefits of Salesforce CPQ certification?
Certification in Salesforce CPQ validates your expertise in Salesforce CPQ, increases your marketability, and leads to career advancement within the Salesforce ecosystem.
6. What does a Salesforce CPQ implementation partner do?
A Salesforce CPQ implementation partner configures, integrates, customizes, and deploys the CPQ tool to optimize sales processes and ensure accurate quoting. LevelShift CPQ solution helps simplify your product catalog management so that you can experience consistent sales quotes and proposals.
Talk to our Experts today!
Recent Blogs
How LevelShift Helped its Clients Improve Revenue Recognition with Salesforce Revenue Cloud Implementation
...
Shaping the Future of Manufacturing: Why Salesforce CPQ Can Be Your Competitive Edge
In manufacturing, staying ahead isn’t just about what you make—it is about how q...
Upgrading CPQ to Revenue Cloud Advanced: A Complete Guide
Salesforce CPQ sets the stage for efficient quoting. Revenue Cloud Advanced take...
Relevant Blogs
Salesforce
Make the Most of Dreamforce ’24: Your Trailblazing Checklist
Are you preparing for Dreamforce ’24, the world’s largest and most trusted AI event? As the anticipation builds for this groundbreaking conf...
Read More→
Salesforce
Salesforce TrailblazerDX (TDX) 2025: Event Recap
Salesforce TrailblazerDX (TDX) 2025 showcased groundbreaking innovations across AI automation, developer productivity, and governance. This ...
Read More→