If your quoting feels slow, your CRM is the real bottleneck.
Today’s manufacturers have an ever-increasing level of complexity when it comes to product configuration and quoting for their products, especially for those traditional Make-to-Stock (MTS), Make-to-Order (MTO), or Configure-to-Order (CTO) manufacturers. They have customer relationship management systems to help with managing relationships, pipelines, and sales activities, but the CRMs, such as Salesforce, struggle with the intricacies of configurable products. From variant logic to dynamic pricing, CRMs lack the product intelligence needed to handle sophisticated quoting scenarios.
This blog will discuss the reasons why CRM alone cannot handle variant-based quoting and why combining automated pricing with CPQ, or configuration platforms, is critical for manufacturing success.
CRM Quoting Works for Static SKUs
CRM quote modules are created with a simple process: one product, a price, and a quantity. This does not work for manufacturers who sell variant-driven products.
- CRMs work on the assumption of a fixed product and a fixed price.
- They cannot handle dependencies like “if I pick A, I cannot pick B later.”
- They cannot manage attributes such as color, voltage, or capacity.
This is why CRM quoting is inappropriate for modular product structures and options-based configurations
CRM Systems Can’t Encode Configuration Logic
Complex product configuration depends on defined rules, relationships, and option restrictions. In Configure-to-Order (CTO) situations, every selection may have engineering or pricing implications.
Unfortunately, CRM systems do not provide..
- Configurator engines.
- Rules modeling or logic checks.
- Dynamic BOM creation.
As a result, quotes that are generated in the CRM are prone to errors, data omissions, or configurations that cannot be built.
Configuration Management Cannot Handle Variant BOMs or Option Structure
Manufacturers who use modular design use common platforms and family-level BOMs, meaning that CRM systems cannot represent:
- Multi-level variant BOMs.
- Option code combinations.
- Material differences between variants.
They treat everything as a single product and ignore the complexity behind the configurable structure of the product.
CRM Does Not Have A Dynamic Pricing Engine
In a variant-based pricing model, pricing has to be responsive to configuration choices, and these systems simply do not have this capability.
Typical CRM quote systems are limited to:
- Static price lists.
- Manual entry of discount amounts.
Advanced quoting requires dynamic rules, for example:
- Price modifiers based on options.
- Price changes based on configuration attributes.
- Accessory add-ons and conditional discounts.
This limitation often results in inconsistent quotes with less control over margins.
CRM Systems Separated from Manufacturing Information
This requires being connected to real-time manufacturing data, which is held in ERP systems that operate independently of CRM systems.
Consequently, sales cannot answer the following questions:
- Is a variant able to be built?
- Do the selected configurations adhere to engineering constraints?
- How does lead time vary based on configuration?
Disconnected data causes inaccurate quotes and slows down order processing.
CRM Reporting Lacks Insight at the Variant Level
Manufacturers need analytics that indicate configuration trends, margin performance, and popular combinations. But CRMs report on items, not variants or attributes.
This prevents insights such as:
- Top configurations that perform well.
- Demand differences by region.
- Profitability by option.
Variant reporting requires data structures beyond what CRMs can provide.
CRM Systems Struggle to Scale Configuration Complexity
As product portfolios expand, maintaining every possible variant as an SKU overwhelms CRM systems. Handling rules and selecting choices from dropdowns is quickly unmanageable.
Manufacturers are grappling with:
- Exponential growth in the number of SKUs.
- Error-prone manual workflows..
- The time to quote on complex families is too long.
So, to help manage complexity, businesses evaluate the use of CPQ systems or product configuration tools to automate and scale variant logic.
The Function of CPQ and Configuration Tools
CPQ solutions address the shortcomings of CRMs. They integrate deeply with ERP and manufacturing data, offering:
- Enhanced rules-based product configuration.
- Automated BOM and cost rollups.
- Dynamic pricing and feasibility assessments.
When the CPQ platform is connected to a CRM system, sales can quote complex products while maintaining organization visibility across the customer lifecycle.
Conclusion
CRM systems are effective for managing customers and opportunities, but they do not provide support for product intelligence or configuration management. In MTS, MTO, CTO, or ETO spaces, variant quoting requires configurable logic, dynamic pricing, and integration to BOMs, features only possible in CPQ or configuration platforms.
When integrated with CPQ solutions, like IEHUB, manufacturers can create a complete quoting environment that combines the customer focus of CRM with the precise engineering of configurations, resulting in faster and validated sales outcomes.
Don’t let your CRM limit your configurations. Upgrade to a rules-based quoting platform that handles variants, pricing logic, and smart BOMs.
With nearly two decades of experience in engineering, I bring deep expertise across both EPC (Engineering, Procurement, and Construction) and product-based OEM environments. My core strengths lie in engineering standardization, process optimization, and technical leadership. I have consistently driven excellence through the development and implementation of robust engineering frameworks, delivering value across global industrial projects and complex product lifecycles.
