How to Use a Salesforce Product Configurator for B2B Guided Selling

Procurement team making purchases through a Salesforce product configurator

Guided selling is a highly effective sales tool. Combining the strategy with a Salesforce product configurator also helps cut down on confusion and inefficiencies.

With the complexity of the sales process growing exponentially, your sales team may be overwhelmed with details. Be it B2B or B2C sales, the number of steps for driving the purchase through is constantly increasing.

To improve sales enablement, businesses of all sizes are leveraging a variety of tools. From a standard CRM system to complex CPQ (Configure, Price, Quote) software, your sales reps need all the help they can get.

A Salesforce product configurator with CPQ functionality is an excellent guided selling tool that can help your eCommerce company reach B2B purchasers. Let's see how it can be done.

What Is Guided Selling?

When it comes to B2C and B2B sales, customers rarely have a clear idea of what they need exactly. In the best-case scenario, they have specific parameters in mind but don't see a full picture.

While regular customers often have some time for browsing the internet for their ideal purchase, B2B decision-makers are often in a rush. They come and go, leaving sales teams limited time to drive the sale through.

Guided selling is the process of guiding, advising and supporting customers through their buying journey. With the sales cycle for B2B procurement teams being longer than the traditional B2C cycle, guided selling tools for B2B companies are especially important.

According to Gartner's survey, 51% of sales organizations have already implemented or plan to implement algorithmic-guided selling in the next several years. A Salesforce product configurator is one of the tools that many eCommerce businesses already use for guided selling.

The simple model of guided selling involves asking shoppers questions and using answers to evaluate their needs and offer suitable products. 

In an eCommerce B2B environment, it's more complicated. You need to collect as much information about the purchaser as possible in order to provide highly personalized offers.

That's where a Salesforce.com product configurator and Salesforce CPQ come in.

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Guided Selling in B2B Ecommerce

In the next five years, 75% of B2B procurement spending is expected to happen online. While some companies handle large accounts personally, a small business can only provide a limited amount of assistance to numerous customers.

Visual product configurators allow B2B buyers to assemble products in real-time by leveraging all the options provided by the seller. Access to a 3D visual representation instead of a complex product catalog pushes the buyer down the sales funnel.

While a Salesforce product configurator is helping your sales reps drive a purchase through, it also automates data gathering.

Click here to learn more about our Salesforce product configurator.

Gathering Data With Salesforce Product Configurator

A visual product configurator is an excellent source of data for your sales needs. Even by having the customer configure just one product, you can understand what their needs are.

1. Configuration preferences

'Personalization’ is basically the marketing word of the year, so it's imperative to understand exactly what your customers' needs are. Once you do, you can make a valuable offer to your B2B purchasers.

Real-time product configuration allows you to gather data about which product variations and add-ons consumers choose the most. A configuration tool makes it possible to get information about numerous consumers simultaneously.

2. Pricing choices

Whatever pricing models you may use for your products, they may not always work for the target audience. As the market fluctuates and the economic situation in the country changes, so does the market’s willingness to pay.

By analyzing which prices consumers usually settle for, you can then adjust your sales and marketing strategy. Meanwhile, this information can help you craft a more personalized offer for your B2B customers.

A Salesforce product configurator doesn't just provide data about current buyers. It also allows you to gain valuable insight into their future purchasing behavior and streamline the entire sales strategy.

3. Trends

When customers configure products, they provide valuable insights into general industry trends. By offering various customization options, you can figure out what customers prefer the most. The longer you offer the customization functionality, the faster you can predict shifts in preferences. 

By using this data, you can personalize your offer even further. This can be highly helpful when working with large accounts.

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Making Laser-Precise Offers With Salesforce CPQ

A high-tech CPQ solution makes guided selling for B2B offers much easier. This user-friendly functionality is specifically designed to simplify the sales process and improve the customer experience.

The tool asks the customer questions based on product availability. Next, CPQ analyzes the answers and provides a list of products that match their responses.

Complex products with a dynamic pricing structure can be hard to handle. On-the-spot quote generation is the key to driving a sale through without complex in-person guidance.

Product visualization makes it easy for the B2B customer to make a quick choice. The pricing automation makes it easy to make a quick purchase.

B2B customers are well-known for their lack of time. A long and complex product selection process is often out of the question. 

Even when you need to handle individual accounts, CPQ functionality helps you make a precise offer faster.

Delivering Valuable Products to B2B Customers

Professional optimizing guided selling processes with a Salesforce product configurator

Developing an expensive product only to find out that it doesn't suit a customer's needs is a significant waste of time and money. 

With a Salesforce product configurator and Salesforce CPQ, you can find out what B2B customers need in advance. Then, you can create a highly personalized product that will sell well.

If you are catering to the B2B segment, then you know how important it is to speed up the sales cycle. Without a large sales team and proper tools, it's nearly impossible. A Salesforce product configurator makes it easy for a small business to reach B2B purchasers and drive the sale through faster.

Our Salesforce Product Configurator Reaches B2B Customers

A Salesforce product configurator with CPQ functionality is an excellent way to gather data, provide timely quotes and bring value to B2B customers.

At Threekit, we help you take full advantage of Salesforce product configuration and CPQ options. Learn more about streamlining your B2B sales right here.