In the HVAC industry, making your reps and distributors have to wait for a quote from the factory causes opportunities to not close to sales. That is a fact I have heard over and over again in my 20 year experience from independent sales reps.
Last week, Tom, a VP of Sales for a very large independent manufacturer’s rep firm (they represent over 40 manufacturers products in 3 offices) shared with me that they picked up a new line of products with a manufacturer. They like the products and the manufacturer, but their sales reps have to call the manufacturer to get pricing and selections. They usually get the quotes within 2-3 days from the manufacturer.
Tom told me that if they have to wait even 24 hours for a quote from the manufacturer, that is too late. Tom’s customers, typically contractors, expect a price the same day and sometimes the same hour – or they start asking others for pricing.
In the HVAC business and in other industries, time is critical because people have choices. And in today’s world, people don’t like to wait.
In Tom’s case, the sales rep’s quoting activity for this product line has diminished to minimal because they know they can’t respond timely. This one Rep firm could add 40% more sales to this manufacturer this year alone – and that is only one rep firm!
eRep CPQ solves this problem by putting the product selection, quoting and submittal tools in the hands of sales reps so selecting the right product and providing a quotes get done in minutes – not days. This translates to win for the sales rep and huge wins for the manufacturer.