CPQ and CLM eBook: solve common issues and discover the benefits

Having tools that can integrate with each other when moving from securing the sale to completing the sale is crucial for customer satisfaction, deal success, and employee satisfaction.  

Common issues that indicate the need for CPQ-CLM integration 

The customer lifecycle is long and complex, so it’s only natural that you hit a few bumps in the road. But when those bumps turn into serious problems that affect your growth, change is necessary. Below are some of the most common problems in the marketplace today for companies lacking an integrated system. 

• Slow contracting cycle times: Contracting processes with a plethora of manual steps slow things down big time—with the average B2B sale taking 17 weeks (Gartner). 
• Lack of contract visibility: Stuck in contract status blackout? Most teams don’t know what’s initially quoted and ultimately sold as part of the deal, which is why 73% of sales teams are monitoring outside sales activity (Salesforce). 
• Rogue contracting: 70% of companies report issues with over-discounting because they lack the necessary oversight tools (SAP). 
• Poor experience: 89% of B2B customers say experience is as important as the products and services (Salesforce). 
• Increased corporate risk: Fewer than 10% of companies have consolidated their contract data, like their contract claims or disputes (IACCM). 
• Billing and collection: 47% of suppliers are paid late for their products or services (Deloitte). 

A solid integration between CPQ software and CLM software is important for maintaining consistency, ensuring compliance, and increasing sales productivity within your organization. It can also increase customer satisfaction—and who doesn’t want that? When your CPQ and CLM are talking to each other properly, your team will see an increase in growth, ease, and control. 

Benefits of combining CPQ and CLM 

With your CPQ and CLM tools fully integrated on a single data platform, you can manage your order, billing, and revenue all from one source of truth. A combined system can support the complete revenue lifecycle, where your pipeline, orders, invoices, and revenue always match because they are all from the same data source. 

• Streamlined sales and contract processes. Manage the entire customer lifecycle from quote through renewals with increased speed and fewer errors. A combination of CPQ and CLM helps lower your risk of data inconsistency between quotes and contracts by storing your data in a single repository. 
• Better visibility and control over the sales pipeline. With a unified data model, you can create a one-stop-shop that goes beyond quotes and agreements to include pipeline, orders, invoices, billing, and revenue—with visibility into contract stages for every team. 
• Increased collaboration between sales and legal teams. Faster time to quote plus shorter contract cycle times equals more wins for everyone involved in the process. Get an accurate billing forecast upfront during the quoting process to build your pipeline more efficiently. 
• Improved customer experience and satisfaction. Enable your teams to build the best customer relationships with efficiency—and without wrangling multiple systems or missing out on important communications between each side. 

The benefits of integrating your CPQ and CLM systems can be measured in increased sales productivity throughout the entire sales process. An integrated system provides the sales team with a single-user experience, which means greater adoption rates. Sales and contract teams will benefit from spending less time duplicating processes or information searches, fewer manual errors, and less frustration overall. By automating sales processes through an integrated CPQ and CLM system, you can set your sales team up for greater success than you would by using just one system or keeping the two separate.