Empowering 600+ dealers with self-service ordering and eliminating configuration errors with Experlogix CPQ
Benefits
Invalid configurations eliminated at point of entry
30-minute dealer onboarding to full productivity
Increased online orders from previously offline dealers
Full lead-to-order traceability across channels
Automated bill of materials in Business Central
Challenge
Venturous Truck Tops is one of the top three manufacturers of fiberglass truck caps in the United States. Every truck cap the company builds is a custom order, configured to a specific year, make, model, and bed size, with dozens of options for windows, doors, lighting, toolboxes, and accessories. There is no standard part number for what Venturous makes; each bill of materials is unique.
As the business grew through acquisitions and brand consolidation, the team recognized that its legacy proprietary ERP system could not scale. The decision was made to migrate to Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central as the primary ERP. However, Business Central is optimized for part-number-based selling, not complex, rules-driven product configuration. The team needed a CPQ solution to bridge that gap.
Venturous initially attempted to implement a different CPQ tool but quickly discovered it could not handle the complexity of their configuration requirements, particularly once the company introduced Salesforce as its CRM and the engine behind a new dealer-facing portal. The challenge was clear: find a CPQ that could power both internal order entry in Business Central and external dealer self-service through Salesforce, while enforcing configuration rules that prevent invalid orders.
“We started down the process a long time before we actually went live,” says Jennifer Collins, VP of Marketing. “When we brought in Salesforce as our CRM and the engine behind our dealer portal, we knew we needed something that could tie everything together.”
Solution
Through conversations with industry colleagues, the Venturous team learned about Experlogix CPQ and requested a demo. Collins was on the very first call.
“The demo was on one of the big truck manufacturers, and it was like, yes, exactly, that’s what we need,” Collins recalls. “You just can’t get the possibilities you can see with Experlogix. With other solutions, you’re going to hit a boundary really soon. With Experlogix, those limits never came up.”
The implementation connects three core systems through a middleware layer called Soligo: Experlogix CPQ handles all product configuration and pricing logic, Salesforce powers the dealer portal and CRM, and Microsoft Business Central manages ERP, inventory, and production. When a dealer logs into the Salesforce-based portal, they launch Experlogix CPQ directly, build out a fully validated truck cap order, and submit it. That order flows through to Business Central, where Experlogix automatically generates the bill of materials, ready for production.
“It is truly one of the easiest CPQs I’ve ever dealt with.”
Internally, the Venturous customer service team uses the same Experlogix CPQ launched from within Business Central, ensuring a single source of truth for configuration rules, pricing, and product availability regardless of the order channel.
The Experlogix user experience is built around the way a truck cap is physically assembled: front to back, outside in. Tabs guide users through windows, doors, lighting, interior features, and accessories in a logical sequence. Dependency rules ensure that selecting one option automatically adjusts what is available downstream. For example, choosing a side slider window automatically disables toolbox options that require a different door type. A running price total updates in real time as options are added, reflecting dealer-specific pricing tiers and any active promotions.
That order flows through to Business Central, where Experlogix automatically generates the bill of materials, ready for production.
Result
Since launching the Experlogix-powered dealer portal, the impact on Venturous’s business has been immediate and measurable across several dimensions.
Rapid dealer adoption with minimal training.
Venturous onboarded an initial pilot group of dealers who validated the experience before the broader rollout. The feedback was unanimous. Dealers completed a single 30-minute training session and were immediately placing orders on their own. Of the company’s 600+ dealer base, approximately 250 are now active on the portal, and that number continues to grow as previously offline dealers begin ordering online for the first time.
“The dealers have all said the exact same thing: it’s super intuitive,” says Collins. “I’ve yet to have really any dealer give me a complaint about Experlogix.”
Configuration errors eliminated at the source.
Every order that flows through the configurator is validated against Venturous’s complete set of product rules. Dealers cannot accidentally order a combination that the factory does not produce. Year, make, model, and bed size filtering ensures that only compatible cap models appear, and selecting one option dynamically adjusts what remains available.
“Every once in a while, I’ll get an email from a dealer that says, ‘I tried to order this and it won’t let me,’” Collins laughs. “And I say, ‘That’s because we don’t do that.’ And they go, ‘Well, then I guess it’s not broken.’”
Full lead-to-order traceability.
Because the dealer portal is built on Salesforce, every consumer lead that arrives through the Venturous website carries a unique ID. When a dealer creates a quote from that lead and converts it to an order, the ID stays attached all the way through to Business Central. For the first time, the marketing team can trace whether a lead generated by an Instagram ad, Google campaign, or website visit resulted in an actual sale, closing the loop on marketing ROI.
A competitive differentiator in a crowded market.
As the number-three player in its market, Venturous competes against significantly larger, well-funded rivals. The Experlogix-powered dealer portal has become a point of differentiation, with dealers noting that they prefer the Venturous ordering experience over the competition.
“With other solutions, you’re going to hit a boundary really soon. With Experlogix, those limits never came up.”
Looking Ahead
Venturous is already in development on the next phase of its dealer portal, with plans to extend Experlogix CPQ to handle parts ordering for replacement components and a forthcoming modular truck cap product line. The team is also exploring Experlogix’s 3D visualization capabilities for a future phase, along with building a data warehouse to give dealers real-time order tracking from placement through production to delivery.
