Bold Predictions on How GenAI Will Disrupt CPQ Sales Process
By Calvin Chow
As I learned more about generative AI (GenAI) at this year’s Dreamforce, I got the chance to really think about how it’s going to disrupt CPQ and the sales process.
To clarify, GenAI involves AI models and systems that generate new content from data. It does this by analyzing patterns in existing data and using that knowledge to create new, similar data. Companies are increasingly investing in GenAI, with a 58% increase in investments in the first half of this year compared to last year.
Here are my bold predictions on how GenAI is going to influence CPQ.
1. Customer-centric configuration process
Imagine this scenario: you have a complex product catalog featuring hundreds, if not thousands, of products with various options and attributes that prompted your CPQ license purchase. Additionally, your IT department developed essential bundles and product rules per business requirements. Unfortunately, your sales team hesitates to utilize the system due to its intricate configuration process, resulting in low adoption rates and an unfulfilled investment goal.
How GenAI can help:
Your sales reps enter customer requirements into a GenAI prompt. GenAI uses past data and market trends to suggest suitable configurations for your customers. Sales reps review and adjust these suggestions based on customer interactions and then confirm the quote. This process saves time on configuration and allows sales to prioritize relationship-building, potentially reducing the need for deal desk involvement.
2. Dynamic price setting and guidance
The pricing step often causes CPQ delays. Sales reps rely on instincts for pricing, and the pricing team spends significant time reviewing to ensure margins. Complex approval rules and multiple levels of approval further slow down the quote process. Even with a well-implemented CPQ, you must reactively adjust prices due to market changes like material cost increases.
How GenAI can help:
Instead of configuring price rules in CPQ, GenAI uses historical sales data and predictive analytics to suggest a price range for sales reps to negotiate within. GenAI also provides explanations for price adjustments, giving sales reps insights into why changes were made. This speeds up pricing on quotes and reduces the need for approvals.
3. Guided selling
Guided selling in CPQ often goes unused because it doesn’t make quoting faster right now. Typically it involves setting up a list of questions to guide sales in product selection. However, it’s rule-based and these questions can quickly become outdated. It’s also challenging to create intuitive questions that engage users, so even if it’s set up, it’s seldom used.
How GenAI can help:
Users can interact with GenAI chatbots in a humanlike manner, asking questions to guide them through the CPQ process. This interaction meets customer needs and preferences, ensuring they find the most suitable products and services. If customers have questions about products, sales can use GenAI to provide product information promptly.
Closing thoughts
In conclusion, using GenAI with CPQ would enhance the sales experience, speed up quote generation, and boost adoption. To maximize GenAI’s benefits, ensure you have a large, high-quality dataset for training and choose the right AI model to increase success rates.
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