Configure First, Close Fast – 3 Must-Know Strategies for Your Configurable Sales Platform
If you’re still struggling with slow quotes, pricing errors, and approval roadblocks, a configurable sales platform is your way out. Every wasted second means your competitor is one step closer to closing the deal instead.
Here’s the brutal truth: If your sales process isn’t built for speed, you’re bleeding revenue. Configurable sales platforms eliminate friction, automate pricing, and accelerate quoting—so you close more deals with zero mistakes.
But let’s be real. Not all configurable sales platforms are created equal. Too often, outdated setups become bottlenecks instead of boosters. You know the feeling—stalled deals, vanishing revenue, and those frustrated Slack messages from your sales team complaining about “the system.”
In this guide, we’ll break down three must-know strategies to configure your configurable sales platform for maximum speed and accuracy. You’ll learn how to:
- Close deals faster (without chasing approvals)
- Eliminate pricing mistakes that kill trust
- Keep customers moving forward with confidence
Ready to sell smarter, not harder? Let’s dive in. 👇
The Sales Bottleneck: Why Speed and Accuracy Matter
A configurable sales platform should make your life easier.
In theory, it helps your sales teams put together quotes quickly, customize configurations, and avoid costly mistakes. But if it’s not set up right, it can slow you down instead of speed things up.
The bottom line is that most manual processes are deal killers.
If your team still uses spreadsheets or cumbersome approval chains, you’re wasting time. Every extra step means a slower quote and a slower quote means a lost sale.
The problem is, a lot of companies will eagerly implement a new CPQ system that simply replicates their old process without actually improving it. This means they haven’t really solved anything. Instead, they’ve just moved their inefficiencies online.
The best-performing sales teams track how long it takes to go from a quote request to a final proposal. The faster you can deliver, the better your chances of closing.
Note that when we’re talking about speed here, we’re not saying you should rush through the process. Instead, you should be looking at ways to remove friction. If your platform automates the complex stuff (like pricing rules and product configurations), your reps can focus on selling instead of double-checking details.
Spending a ton of time fixing errors eats into your profit margins and shakes customer confidence. This is why speed needs to go hand-in-hand with accuracy.
A smartly configured system catches mistakes before they happen, keeps all your pricing and product data in one place, and makes sure quotes go out fast and right the first time. That’s how you close more deals.
Strategy #1: Smart Configuration for Faster, Error-Free Deals
Making a buyer wait is the fastest way to lose a sale. If your sales team has to jump through hoops, like checking with engineering, chasing down approvals, and piecing together configurations, you’re slowing everything down.
And remember: slow kills deals.
But if you use a well-configured CPQ system, that should do all the heavy lifting for you. Your sales reps won’t have to memorize complex product details. Instead, the system will walk them through the quoting process step by step, automatically applying the right rules.
“Manual product configurations and slow approvals don’t just delay sales—they kill deals. Automating your quoting process ensures speed, accuracy, and revenue growth.”
Speed Sells: How Swecon Set Up Its CPQ for Fast, Flawless Deals
At Swecon (a construction equipment seller), the challenge was clear: manual, error-prone quoting was holding back the sales process. They needed a smarter way to handle complex product configurations without bogging down their team.
Swecon turned to Experlogix CPQ, integrating it directly with their existing CRM and ERP systems. This meant that every piece of critical data—from product details to pricing and inventory—was available in real-time. Instead of switching between systems or wrestling with spreadsheets, the sales team could generate accurate, tailored quotes quickly and confidently.
As a result, Swecon significantly reduced quote turnaround times and eliminated many of the errors that once cost them deals. With a streamlined, integrated process, they could focus more on building customer relationships and closing deals, rather than getting tangled in administrative hurdles.
Strategy #2: Align Pricing and Approval Workflows to Avoid Bottlenecks
Let’s say you’ve got a buyer who’s ready to move forward. They just need a final quote. But instead of getting that quote within minutes (which is what they expect), they’re stuck waiting for someone, somewhere, to approve a price adjustment.
You can see how quickly this might create frustrating bottlenecks for both reps and customers.
When you add extra steps like this to the process, you’re adding friction and another opportunity for a buyer to go elsewhere which, obviously, you want to avoid if at all possible.
So, instead of having a manual process for approving prices, build smart pricing rules directly into your CPQ system. This way:
- Reps can instantly generate quotes that follow company pricing guidelines.
- Only exceptions need human approval—everything else is handled automatically.
- You avoid pricing inconsistencies that frustrate customers and delay deals.
AI is really helping shape this process for sales teams.
The smartest CPQ systems now predict the best pricing strategies, flag potential issues before they happen, and even auto-suggest the best discounts based on past deals. This means reps get real-time pricing recommendations and the system learns over time, which leads to faster, more accurate approvals.
Strategy #3: Integration is Everything – Syncing Your Sales Tech Stack
A CPQ system on its own won’t fix your sales process. If it doesn’t sync seamlessly with your CRM, ERP, and ecommerce tools, you’re just creating a new set of problems.
Too many companies treat CPQ as a standalone tool, which means data gets duplicated and sales teams often work off outdated information. If reps have to pull pricing from one system, check inventory in another, and manually enter quote details into a third, they’re wasting valuable time and increasing the risk of expensive mistakes.
The best CPQ setups are fully integrated with:
- CRM: So sales reps always have up-to-date customer data when creating quotes.
- ERP: So pricing, inventory, and order details are automatically pulled into quotes.
- Ecommerce platforms: So online buyers get the same seamless experience as direct sales customers.
This is precisely what Wenger Manufacturing did. The company initially struggled with its sales process because its products were super complex. Their previous system forced sales reps to manually configure products and generate quotes, which led to a ton of errors and lengthy delays.
After one too many delays, Wenger Manufacturing implemented Experlogix CPQ integrated with Microsoft Dynamics 365. The integration meant their sales team could accurately configure products within the familiar Dynamics 365 environment, ultimately cutting out errors and the need for manual data entry.
Real world example: From frustration to acceleration—Wenger Manufacturing knew they had a problem. Sales were constantly delayed, bogged down by slow, manual product configurations. Every quote required multiple approvals, each step adding another layer of inefficiency. Data entry errors crept in, frustrating both the sales team and their customers. Deals that should have closed quickly stalled instead, slipping through the cracks as competitors moved faster.
Something had to change. The company turned to Experlogix CPQ, integrating it seamlessly with Microsoft Dynamics 365. Suddenly, what once felt like an uphill battle became an effortless process.
Quotes that used to take hours or even days were now generated in minutes. Pricing errors became a thing of the past, and approvals no longer created roadblocks. The entire system worked as it should—fast, accurate, and intuitive.
The impact was immediate. With a streamlined, automated quoting process, Wenger’s sales team no longer had to wrestle with inefficiencies. Bottlenecks disappeared, customers received accurate proposals without delay, and revenue grew as deals moved forward without unnecessary friction.
As soon as the integration was in place, sales reps had up-to-date product information, pricing, and inventory levels in real-time so they could generate precise quotes in minutes. The result was a huge drop in the time it took to generate quotes, but it also improved customer satisfaction because the sales team was delivering timely, accurate proposals.
The Secret to Speedy, Error-Free Quotes
Look, a well-configured CPQ system doesn’t just automate quotes. It actually removes sticky frustrations from the sales process so customers get accurate quotes quicker.
Here’s a quick recap of the three key strategies that will help you get there:
- Smart configuration for faster, error-free deals. Your CPQ system should do the heavy lifting for your sales team and guide them through complex configurations without mistakes.
- Align pricing and approval workflows. Instead of making buyers wait while pricing adjustments crawl through multiple approvals, smart CPQ systems use built-in pricing rules and AI-driven recommendations.
- Sync your sales tech stack. Your CPQ is only as powerful as the data behind it. If it doesn’t seamlessly connect with your CRM, ERP, and ecommerce platforms, your sales team will spend way too much time bouncing between systems (and rack up mistakes in the process).
As AI and automation continue to evolve, CPQ systems will become even more intelligent, helping sales teams predict the best pricing strategies, auto-suggest configurations, and proactively flag potential issues before they become roadblocks.
The companies that invest in a fully integrated, automated, and AI-powered CPQ today will gain a serious competitive edge in the years ahead.
Ready to transform your sales process? Book a demo to see Experlogix CPQ in action.
Configurable Sales Platform FAQs
What is a sales configuration system?
A sales configuration system (often part of CPQ software) allows sales teams to customize and configure product or service offerings based on customer needs, pricing rules, and business guidelines. It automates the creation of accurate quotes and proposals.
What is a sales enablement platform?
A sales enablement platform provides tools and resources to help sales teams improve their performance. It typically includes content management, training materials, analytics, and CRM integration to help reps engage customers, close deals, and track performance more effectively.
Which platform is best for sales?
The best sales platform depends on your business needs, but popular options include Salesforce for CRM, HubSpot for inbound sales, and CPQ systems like Experlogix for automating quotes and configurations. It’s important to choose a platform that integrates with your existing tools and scales with your sales process.
What are the major features of a sales configurator?
A sales configurator typically includes features like product selection, configuration rules, pricing automation, quote generation, and integration with other business systems (CRM, ERP). It helps sales teams quickly create accurate, customized proposals without errors, saving time and reducing friction.
