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Sales reps spend just 40% of the week actually selling. The rest goes to manual quote creation, pricing lookups across distributor portals, approval back-and-forth, and data re-entry between systems.
85% of B2B buyers experience frustrations when ordering online due to outdated systems and inaccurate data. For VARs, that inaccuracy often starts at the quote.
CPQ software addresses these issues directly. It automates complex configurations, enforces accurate pricing from live distributor feeds, and integrates with the systems your team already uses. This blog covers what CPQ actually does for a VAR business and how to know if your operation needs it.
Key Takeaways:
- CPQ software structures complex product and service configurations so reps can build valid solutions without deep technical expertise.
- Centralized pricing and discount rules in CPQ help protect margins so deals remain profitable even under pressure.
- Automated quote generation with professional templates improves buyer perception so your brand appears more credible.
- CPQ integrated with CRM and eCommerce keeps product and price data insync so customers get consistent offers across channels.
- Analytics from CPQ highlight which bundles, options and discounts close more deals so you can refine your sales playbook.
- For VARs working with multiple distributors, CPQ with live distributor feeds prevents stale pricing from eroding margins at fulfillment.
CPQ defined for VAR Businesses
CPQ is a specialized tool that automates configuring complex products, services, and custom solutions tailored to individual client needs. It produces clean, well-formatted quotes backed by accurate price calculations. It manages intricate bundles and handles the varied and often customized offerings.
Even though CPQ software has been around for many years, the newest updates have greatly improved sales processes by working closely with ERP software, CRM applications, and other business management tools, bringing together different systems and ensuring that data is accurate and consistent.
CPQ software for VARs can be preprogrammed with a set of price rules based on your business policies and customer pricing to automate price calculations for configurable products.
For distributor-driven VARs specifically, the most important capability is whether CPQ connects to live distributor feeds. A CPQ tool that uses prices from a static internal catalog will always be slightly behind reality in a market where distributor costs shift daily.
How Does CPQ Software Work?
CPQ works in three steps: first, it configures by creating valid product and service combinations based on what the customer needs; next, it prices by using automated rules to calculate accurate costs without needing to look things up manually; and finally, it quotes by producing a clear, professional document to send to the buyer.
For VARs, the critical differentiator is whether that pricing step connects to live distributor feeds rather than a static internal catalog.
The Main Advantages of CPQ Software for VARs
1. Boosts Collaboration
CPQ helps sales, procurement, accounts, and finance work together by:
- Connecting all systems and processes so teams operate from the same data
- Enforcing integrated rules that stop sales from quoting products that cannot be delivered logistically, financially, or legally
- Providing ERP integration that breaks down information silos and benefits all departments, not just sales
2. Increases Productivity
CPQ increases productivity in several ways:
- Less Time on Admin Work: Automation reduces time spent on manual tasks, allowing reps to focus on customers and close deals faster.
- Access to Customer Data: With CRM-integrated CPQ software, sales reps can view customer history, past orders, preferences, and buying patterns for more meaningful conversations.
- Faster Sales Pipeline Movement: Automated pricing rules and approval workflows speed up the quoting process, helping customers move quickly through the sales pipeline.
- Higher Sales Efficiency: CPQ software allows sales teams to spend more time selling instead of dealing with manual tasks.
For VARs, productivity gains from CPQ are most significant when the tool connects to live distributor pricing. Reps stop switching between portal tabs to check costs and can build accurate quotes from a single interface.
3. Create Quotes Confidently
- Build Sales Team Confidence: CPQ gives reps the confidence to meet customer needs accurately, even for complex configurations.
- Handle Complex Pricing Easily: Manually pricing configurable products takes time and leads to errors. CPQ simplifies this.
- Reduce Pricing and Configuration Errors: Automated pricing and product rules prevent mistakes like wrong prices, incorrect products, or incompatible configurations.
- Protect Margins and Revenue: CPQ follows margin rules, ensuring profitability while offering the best solutions.
- Accelerate Deal Closures: Integrated approval workflows speed up the sales cycle.
- Boost Professionalism and Credibility: Automation produces professional-looking quotes that increase customer trust.
Pro Tip:
Use CPQ configuration rules to steer reps toward higher margin bundles instead of leaving them to pick components at random.
Does your VAR Business Need a CPQ Tool?
If the quoting process is slow, messy, and missing key details, it’s time to consider CPQ software. Let’s take a look at the common problems of a VAR business, which indicate that it is high time to go for a CPQ solution.
1. Missed Opportunities
Without product suggestions, sales reps overlook items that could increase order value. New team members struggle to learn complex products, bundles, and configurations, raising the risk of pricing and configuration errors.
| Solution: CPQ provides built-in guided selling that intelligently suggests cross-sell and upsell opportunities based on customer needs and product compatibility. |
Pro Tip:
Continuously harvest successful configurations from closed deals and turn them into guided selling templates so new reps ramp faster.
2. Quoting Takes Time
If reps take too long to send quotes or make frequent mistakes, manual pricing and quoting is the likely cause.
| Solution: CPQ automation cuts documentation time so your team creates accurate quotes quickly and avoids costly mistakes. |
3. Long Approval Time
Back-and-forth approvals slow the sales process, frustrate clients, and cost deals to competitors who respond faster.
| Solution: CPQ tools like VARStreet automate approval workflows. CPQ automates approval workflows, routing quotes to the correct stakeholders automatically so managers can review and approve deals faster. |
4. No Revenue Growth
If growth has stalled, the quoting and pricing process may be the bottleneck. Manual operations leave little bandwidth for business development.
| Solution: CPQ integrated with ERP and CRM automates time-consuming tasks, freeing your team to focus on leads, deals, and customer relationships. |
What to Look for When Buying CPQ Software?
CPQ should simplify complex quoting, not make it harder. Here is what to evaluate when choosing a solution for your VAR business.
1. Rich in Features
Look for automation in quote creation, ready-to-use templates, easy customization, powerful product search, guided selling, and strong training and support resources.
2. Software Compatibility
The CPQ tool should integrate with all your business systems including CRM, ERP, PSA, accounting, eCommerce, and eProcurement. Integrations with shipping carriers, tax calculators, and payment gateways help automate pricing, payments, and logistics.
3. Mobile-Friendly
Your sales team is often on the move. A mobile app lets them create, edit, and send quotes anytime, anywhere, avoiding delays from waiting to get back to a desk.
4. Reporting and Analytics
Reporting and analytics help you analyze your sales process and pipeline, enabling data-driven decisions to improve quoting performance over time.
5. Distributor Integration
For VARs, this is non-negotiable. A CPQ tool should connect to your distributor network with live pricing and inventory feeds. A platform that relies on manually updated pricing will produce quotes that are out of date before they reach the buyer. Look for real-time connections to multiple distributors and the ability to compare prices across sources within the quoting workflow.
What You Get With VARStreet’s CPQ Software?
VARStreet’s CPQ is built specifically for IT and office supplies VARs. Here is what makes it different from a generic quoting tool.
1. Distributor-Connected Catalog and Pricing
VARStreet connects to 50+ IT and office supplies distributors with over 7 million SKUs available for quoting. Real-time pricing and inventory from distributors, including Ingram Micro and TD Synnex, feed directly into the quotation workflow. Reps see live costs, compare across sources, and build accurate quotes without switching between portals.
2. Product Configuration and Bundle Building
A robust product configurator supports bundles, kits, assemblies, and complex multi-component configurations. Guided selling walks reps through product selection step by step, surfacing upsell and cross-sell suggestions automatically. Configuration rules ensure only valid, compatible combinations reach the buyer.
3. Pricing Rules, Margin Control, and Approvals
The pricing engine applies rules based on customer price structures, discount hierarchies, and product configurations. Margin is visible at the line item level during quote creation, not discovered at reporting time. Integrated approval workflows automatically route quotes that fall outside margin thresholds to the right stakeholder.
4. Professional Quote Output and Delivery
Quotes are generated from pre-designed templates with all product details, pricing, and terms populated automatically. Reps can send via email, share a URL, or make the quote available through the customer portal. eSignature integration with DocuSign allows customers to approve and sign digitally without delays.
5. CRM Integration and Customer Context
Seamless integration with VARStreet’s CRM gives reps access to customer history, past orders, open contracts, and buying patterns directly from the quoting interface. All data stays in sync across systems automatically. The mobile app extends full quoting capability to field reps on the go.
6. Analytics and Reporting
VARStreet CPQ tracks quoting cycle time, quote acceptance rates, close percentages, and revenue generated. These metrics give sales ops leaders the visibility to identify bottlenecks, refine pricing strategies, and improve win rates over time.
Conclusion
A perfect CPQ solution works quietly behind the scenes without interrupting your workflow. It automates complex tasks like product configuration, pricing, and quoting. This saves your team valuable time and reduces costly errors. Your sales reps can spend less time on admin work and more time connecting with customers. With faster quote turnaround times and fewer errors, your business can respond to opportunities more effectively. The entire sales process becomes quicker, easier, and more efficient, leading to more satisfied customers and higher profits.
VARStreet offers a CPQ to add great value to the VAR business. It helps you quote faster and win more deals. Get a FREE demo of VARStreet’s CPQ solution today!
FAQs
What are the must-have features for VARs in a CPQ software?
Look for features like guided selling, product configurator, pricing rules engine, approval workflows, CRM/ERP integrations, analytics, mobile support, and eSignature.
How does CPQ software increase the productivity of sales teams?
By automating repetitive tasks like quote creation, pricing, and approvals, CPQ allows reps to focus more on customer relationships and selling, instead of admin work.
Can CPQ software help reduce pricing and configuration errors?
Yes. CPQ uses predefined product and pricing rules, ensuring quotes are always accurate, profitable, and error-free.
How does CPQ software help close deals faster?
Integrated approval workflows and instant quote generation mean sales reps can respond to buyers faster, boosting customer satisfaction and increasing the likelihood of closing deals.
Does CPQ software offer reporting and analytics?
Yes. You can generate detailed reports on quoting cycles, acceptance rates, revenue, and more to make smarter, data-backed decisions.
Does CPQ software work with multiple distributors?
Yes. A VAR-specific CPQ tool like VARStreet connects to 50+ distributors simultaneously, pulling live pricing and inventory into a single quoting interface. Reps can compare costs across sources without switching between portals, and quotes always reflect current distributor pricing rather than stale catalog data.
