Overview
The ECS WebQuote 2.0 product helps businesses that need to generate and track quotes to customers for their sales process. WebQuote makes quote generation easy. Using WebQuote, Sales Reps and Sales Managers manage the entire sales cycle, from “Quote Creation” to “Revenue Recognition”, resulting in accurate forecasts and metrics that can be used to improve the sales organization.
ECS WebQuote and the Sales Cycle
Using WebQuote can greatly improve the productivity of your sales force. A lead comes in, and is routed to the Sales Rep. The sales rep converts the inquiry into a quote. After contacting the customer, the Sales Rep adds items to the quote, edits the text appropriately, and generates a proposal for the customer. The proposal is now part of the official record, part of the dialogue with the customer. Once the customer accepts the proposal, the quote is then converted to an order and processed into the ERP System. The Sales Rep's numbers are updated automatically, and the Sales Team (managed by the Sales Manager) has their forecasted and actual revenue goals updated.
ECS WebQuote Sales Cycle
The table below describes the WebQuote sales cycle .
| Actor | Step | Description | Images |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marketing | Distibute Lead to Sales Manager | The marketing department recieves leads as a direct result for the various campaigns they run. The awareness and demand they generate for the products or services sold cannot be understated. | |
| Sales Manager | Distribute Lead to Sales Rep | The Sales Manager has the ultimate responsibility for the organization's quota. By setting up their sales teams and doling out the leads strategically, a good Sales Manager can fine-tune the organization's operation to achieve maximum performance. | |
| Sales Rep | Follow up on lead. | The Sales Rep recieves the lead, and follows up accordingly. The Sales Rep will call the customer, and begin creating the quote in the process. | |
| Sales Rep | Creates the Quote | The sales rep determines that a quote needs to be created and creates the quote using the appropriate template. The template describes the text template for the proposal. The model number of the quote and the forecast dates are recorded for posterity, and later merging into the proposal. The Sales Rep is compelled to record the Marketing Information that drove the lead at quote creation time. | |
| Sales Rep | Adds Items to the Quote | The items are added and edited. Discounts, subscriptions with recurring payments, and product groups are all supported by our basic catalog. | |
| Sales Rep | Organize Quote | The quote template comes with a pre-defined list of proposal sections that are "merged" with Customer, Sales Rep, and Sales Organization data. Some templates, like the Introduction can be modified, while others, like Terms and Conditions are immutable. Additionally, other sections can be added to the quote, as well as marketing materials. | |
| Sales Rep | Edit Proposal Text | The quote template is broken up into sections. Each section is designated as editable, containing products, and as having totals or sub-totals. The editable sections can be edited using an on-line HTML editor. | |
| Sales Rep | Send Proposal to Customer | Once the Sales Rep has finished the quote for the customer, they should view the PDF proposal, and then send the proposal to the customer using the "Quote Status" page. The quote status page forces the quote to follow a state maching during the sales process. The proposal and attachments can be e-mailed or printed and mailed out. | |
| Customer | Accept or reject the proposal. | Usually, a proposal contains a sign-off section and terms and conditions. By printing and sending back the proposal, the customer can acknowledge their intent. | |
| Sales Rep | Win Quote | The sales rep now goes back and sets the status of the quote to "won". Internally, this "closes" the quote and "exports" the quote to an "Order". The order processing system will communicate with the ERP System. | |
| Sales Manager | Forecast Revised | After the quote is won, the forecast totals for the sales team are automatically revised. The sales manager dashboard, with the new tachometer displays, keeps the management team apprised of the sales team's activity and success. | |
| Billing Ops | Order Processing | The Billing operations team takes over after the Sales Rep's job is done. This team is responsible for moving the quote and quote items into the appropriate ERP system, ultimately billing the customer. |
