Andreas Näsman
A deal always consists of a number of promises and commitments. Your sales person knows which ones, but does everyone know them, all the way from sales to production, engineering and after-sales services?
Do you have a good way or system in which you can check that all the requirements that the sales person and your customer have agreed on are actually met? If the answer is NO, there is a risk that you’ll be delivering something that the customer doesn’t think they have actually ordered. And this can turn the desired customer experience quickly into dissatisfaction.
One way to solve such issues and reduce the risks is a PLM system that supports your company's specific needs throughout the sales process and simplify the communication between sales, R&D and production.
With predefined templates and processes, you will have the right solution to:
I'm working in sales, so I know that it’s nicer to spend time with your customers and less time in producing quotations, - the right PLM solution should support you also here. For example sales configurator can support sales in the quotation production that contain concept drawings, quotation texts and cost calculation. This reduces the time spent on producing quotations – time, as stated above, you would rather spend talking to your customers.
The clever thing about a smart PLM solution is also that you can extend and expand that in stages, with the same pace as your business grows. Start by focusing on one problem, for example ensure that all the requirements sales and customer agree on are actually met. When this is solved, you can tackle the next challenge areas you might have identified.
Next time I'm looking into the after-sales and service part, i.e. how to have full control of what has been delivered to a specific customer? Follow me here on the Symetri blog or check my LinkedIn profile where I'm also sharing my thoughts and experiences.
If you are interested to look for more information about PLM, download the free eBook or check the Symetri web page to learn more about PLM and what benefits it can bring to your company.
