Time is money. If you're still spending hours crafting quotes manually in 2025, you're hemorrhaging both.

Let me share something that might sting: Most businesses waste 5-7 hours per week on quote configuration – almost a full workday lost to inefficient processes.

Meanwhile, your competitors who've streamlined their systems close deals faster.

Quote configuration shouldn't be the bottleneck in your sales process. Not when proven tools exist that can transform your quote creation time from hours to minutes.

Imagine if your business could:

• Generate accurate quotes in less than 10 minutes

• Eliminate approval bottlenecks that delay deals

• Let customers create their own interactive quotes on your website

• Stop losing sales to faster, more responsive competitors

Manually configuring complex quotes is a whole mission - gathering data, creating spreadsheets, getting approvals. But with automation, you can deliver personalized quotes while your competitors are still booting their laptops.

Here are 6 ways to help you configure quotes faster and stay ahead of the competition.

1. Use Sales Quoting Software for Efficiency

Sales quoting software has become a staple for businesses looking to maximize their quote creation process. The trend is clear: Interactive quote calculators are replacing manual methods.

Using the right sales quoting software makes your quote process significantly faster and more efficient. But how do you choose?

Select the Right Software

Finding the perfect sales quoting software involves an evaluation of your specific needs. For instance, many users come to us because other software isn't powerful enough to handle their complex pricing structures.

Start by creating a detailed map of your current quoting process. Answer questions like:

• Which steps consume the most time?

• Where do errors typically occur?

• What aspects of the process frustrate your team?

These insights will guide your selection criteria.

You may also develop a list of must-have features (that Convert_ delivers) based on your business requirements. For most organizations, these include:

• Customizable quote templates that reflect your brand

• Automated calculations for dynamic pricing

• Interactive digital signature capabilities

• Seamless integration with your existing systems

• Mobile access for responsive quoting

• Comprehensive analytics and reporting dashboards

Looking out for these features helps you narrow your focus and choose the best software for your needs.

Evaluating Compatibility with Current Systems

Compatibility with your existing systems captures our attention as a critical factor. A quote tool that doesn't connect with your CRM will create barriers rather than efficiency.

During your evaluation, think about these questions:

1. Does the software integrate directly with your current CRM system?

2. Can it automatically pull customer data from your database?

3. Will it sync with your inventory management system for real-time pricing?

4. Does it connect with your email platform for engagement-focused communication?

5. Can it provide streamlined invoice creation?

Fun fact: Convert_ does all of that and more.

Assessing Automation Capabilities

The power of quoting software lies in its ability to generate automatic workflows for repetitive tasks. Look for software that can:

• Calculate pricing based on quantity, discounts, and taxes

• Generate professional-looking documents from user input

• Track quote status and send interactive reminders

• Route approvals based on customizable rules

User Experience Considerations

Even the most powerful software will underperform if your team finds it difficult to engage with. During your evaluation:

1. Have actual users test the interface

2. Check if the software is intuitive or requires extensive training

3. Evaluate the mobile experience for field sales teams

4. Assess customization options for different user roles

5. Check if the dashboard provides data-driven insights into important metrics

2. Leverage CPQ Tools for Faster Quotes

Configure, Price, Quote (CPQ) software represents the next step in quote automation. While basic sales quoting software helps organize the process, CPQ tools add intelligent rules, pricing logic, and approval workflows that dramatically speed up complex quotes.

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Understanding CPQ Benefits

CPQ tools transform quoting from a manual, error-prone process into a streamlined, automated system. The key advantages come from three main areas, directly addressing common quoting bottlenecks.

1. Customization features

These significantly reduce manual input requirements. Modern CPQ platforms include product configurators that guide users through option selection, automatically eliminating incompatible choices.

This prevents a scenario where users inquire about invalid configurations, only for sales reps to check and reject (sometimes days later). Companies using CPQ reduce quote-to-cash time primarily through these guided selling features.

2. Real-time pricing

CPQ systems handle automatic price adjustments based on real-time data. Instead of sales reps manually calculating discounts or referencing outdated pricing sheets, CPQ tools apply dynamic pricing models that account for volume discounts, customer tiers, regional pricing variations, and even competitive factors.

This eliminates pricing errors that lead to lost revenue or customer frustration when quotes need revision.

3. Simplified approval

CPQ solutions offer simplified approval processes that accelerate decision-making. Traditional approval chains often involve multiple emails, phone calls, and delays as quotes pass through various stakeholders.

CPQ platforms streamline this with automated routing based on business rules - only flagging exceptions that truly need review.

For example, standard configurations might skip approvals entirely while high-discount scenarios automatically route to financial controllers, with all approvals tracked in one system.

CPQ vs. Traditional Quoting Methods

The benefits of CPQ tools over traditional quoting methods are clear.

With traditional approaches, sales reps spend approximately 13 hours per week on administrative tasks related to quote creation, according to Sales Benchmark Index. CPQ systems cut this time by 65-80%, allowing sales teams to focus on relationship building and closing deals.

Traditional quoting often involves manual lookups in spreadsheets, checking with product managers about compatibility, and seeking multiple approvals. With CPQ, these processes happen automatically within rule-based systems.

This automation ultimately saves time and reduces quoting errors.

3. Streamline Your Quote Process for Speed

Your quote process likely grew organically without strategic planning. This often results in unnecessary steps that slow down the entire process.

Research shows that sales reps spend only 28% of their time selling, with the rest going to administrative tasks including quoting. Automating workflows like quoting gives your sales team more time to do what it does best.

Collect Team Feedback on Process Pain Points

Your business thrives on the insights of team members who work with quotes daily. Set up individual interviews or an interactive workshop to gather their feedback.

Ask specific questions like:

• Which steps take the most time to complete?

• Where do you see quotes frequently getting delayed?

• What information do you often have to hunt down?

• Which approvals seem unnecessary or redundant?

• What tools or resources would help you create quotes faster?

Capture all feedback openly, then analyze it for patterns. You'll likely find that multiple team members point to the same issues, confirming your primary bottlenecks.

Identify and Eliminate Redundant Steps

Look for redundant steps that can be eliminated. For example:

• Multiple people checking the same information

• Repeated data entry across different systems

• Excessive review cycles for standard quotes

• Manual calculations that could be automated

• Waiting for approvals that rarely result in changes

Setting up a custom quote calculator eliminates redundant steps in your quoting process. This lets you streamline your workflow and free up time for your team.

Using tools like Convert_ means it’s never been easier to build a powerful custom calculator online.

4. Automate the Quoting Process

Automation transforms how your business handles quotes and proposals. You slash errors and fast-track the entire process.

When your team isn't bogged down with manual data entry or document formatting, they can focus on high-value activities like building customer relationships or developing strategic plans.

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Set Up Automated Data Entry

Choose a quoting tool that pulls data directly from your existing systems. This eliminates taks like manual copying of customer details, product specifications, and pricing. When evaluating tools, look for these powerful features:

• Pre-populated fields that automatically fill with customer information

• Product catalogs that update in real-time with your inventory system

• Pricing rules that calculate based on quantity, customer tier, or special promotions

Modern proposal automation tools help standardize proposal formats, reduce manual data entry errors, and ensure consistency across all proposals. You can even generate professional PDF quotes for customers to sign.

Create Standardized Templates

Professional, consistent proposal formats don't just look impressive - they save significant time. Create a library of standardized templates for different products, services, or customer types:

1. Design base templates with your company branding (logos, fonts, color schemes)

2. Create sections for standard components (cover page, introduction, pricing tables, terms)

3. Add dynamic fields that automatically populate with customer-specific information

4. Include conditional content that appears only when relevant to the specific quote

When building templates, balance standardization with flexibility. The goal is to create consistent, professional-looking quotes without sacrificing your ability to personalize for specific customer needs.

This approach ensures your quotes capture your brand identity while addressing individual customer requirements.

Integrate Tools with Existing Systems

Disconnected systems create data silos that slow down your quoting process. When your proposal tools don't communicate with your CRM, accounting software, or product catalog, staff waste valuable time switching between programs and manually transferring information.

The solution is system integration - getting your different business tools to share data automatically. Proper integration eliminates double data entry, reduces errors, and creates a seamless flow of information across your entire quote-to-cash process.

Establishing CRM-Proposal Tool Integration

Start by connecting your CRM system with your quoting tool. This foundation enables your sales team to create quotes without leaving their primary work environment.

Here's how to establish this critical integration:

1. Check if your current systems offer native integration options

2. If not, investigate third-party integration platforms like Zapier

3. Map the specific data fields that need to flow between systems (contact info, deal stage, product details)

4. Set up bidirectional sync to ensure changes in either system update the other

5. Test the integration thoroughly with sample quotes before full deployment

Implementing API Connections for Data Synchronization

APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) are the technology that allows different software systems to communicate. Modern proposal management solutions integrate seamlessly with CRM systems using APIs, ensuring that data flows automatically between platforms and reducing the risk of errors from manual entry.

To implement effective API integration:

1. Identify which systems need to share data (CRM, quoting tool, ERP, etc.)

2. Check the API documentation for each system to ensure compatibility

3. Determine the authentication method required (OAuth, API keys, etc.)

4. Decide on synchronization frequency (real-time vs. scheduled updates)

5. Build and test the connections, starting with the most critical data points

If you don't have in-house technical expertise, many software providers offer professional services to help set up these integrations. The investment generates returns quickly through time savings and error reduction.

5. Automate Quote Approvals

Sometimes, certain quotes may need approval, depending on your business and structure. Long approval chains are among the biggest speed bumps in quote processes.

Simplify Internal Approval Chains

Start by listing all approvals currently required in your quote process. For each approval, ask these critical questions:

• What risk does this approval help mitigate?

• How often does this approver actually request changes?

• Could we use business rules instead of human approval?

• What would happen if we removed this approval step?

Based on your answers, create a tiered approval system.

Standard quotes that meet preset criteria should move through with minimal or no approvals. Only quotes with special conditions - like deep discounts, custom terms, or high-value deals - should require extensive review.

You can even set up rules within a Convert_Calculator to match your approval system. For instance, a quote over a certain price could trigger an approval email to the relevant decision-maker.

Digital Signatures for Faster Approvals

Even when approvals are necessary, they don't need to cause days of delay. Digital signature tools can dramatically reduce approval time by:

• Eliminating the need to print, sign, and scan documents

• Allowing approvers to sign from any device, even when traveling

• Sending automatic reminders to pending approvers

• Creating a clear audit trail of who approved what and when

• Enabling sequential or parallel approval workflows

Convert_ lets you add digital signatures to quotes. All the documents are stored on the dashboard and accessible from anywhere.

6. Enable Self-Serve Quotes on Your Website

Self-serve quote tools have become essential for modern businesses. When potential customers visit your website, they want pricing information quickly.

Adding a price quote calculator to your website lets you satisfy this need immediately without requiring staff involvement.

The core concept is simple:

• Visitors select products, services, or options through a user-friendly interface

• They receive an instant quote based on their selections

For example, a software company might let visitors select their user count, needed features, and implementation options to generate a preliminary price.

This immediate feedback creates a positive user experience by removing the frustration of waiting for pricing information.

81% of customers attempt to take care of themselves before reaching out to a live representative, highlighting the growing demand for self-service options like online quote calculators.

When you implement such tools, you're meeting customer expectations while simultaneously qualifying prospects based on their interests and needs.

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Conversion Optimization Benefits 

Self-serve quotes dramatically improve conversion rates by addressing the most common customer question: "How much does it cost?" People don't need to take any extra steps, like contacting your sales team.

When properly implemented, website quoting tools serve three key purposes:

1. They pre-qualify leads by letting price-sensitive customers self-filter

2. They capture valuable data about customer preferences

3. They reduce the workload on your sales team by handling initial pricing inquiries automatically

Why Website Quoting Tools Work

The self-serve quote approach works because it aligns with how people prefer to shop in 2025. Rather than making customers wait for information, you're giving them control over the buying process.

Capturing Warm Leads Effectively

The genius of self-serve quotes is that they qualify leads automatically. By the time someone has configured a quote that meets their needs, they've demonstrated a genuine interest in your offering.

Gate the final quote by requiring contact information and capture leads when they're most engaged.

These leads are significantly warmer than general website visitors because:

• They've already invested time in exploring your solution

• They've seen pricing that appears to fit their needs

The contact information you gather lets you follow up with personalized information based on the specific configuration the prospect created.

Customizable calculators are lead-generation machines.

• Help leads figure out their budget

• Make answers quick and easily accessible

• Educate them about your business is less time

Eliminating Friction in the Buying Process

The traditional quote process creates unnecessary barriers. Customers must fill out contact forms, wait for responses, and often engage in multiple back-and-forth communications - just to get basic pricing information.

This friction causes many potential customers to abandon their inquiries entirely.

Self-serve quotes remove these barriers. A visitor can explore different product combinations and immediately see how their choices affect pricing.

This transparency builds trust and keeps prospects engaged with your offering.

How Convert_ Helps

Convert_ is a powerful no-code builder letting you easily create a website price calculator. We make it simple to embed your calculator into any website or publish it as a standalone landing page.

Benefit from advanced features like:

• Dynamic pricing

• Google Places API

• Conditional logic

• Layered images

• Charts and graphs

• And much more

Our tools are highly customizable, embed into any website, and offer seamless integration.

The software does all the heavy lifting for you. Benefit from a user-friendly, drag-and-drop builder for creating powerful quote and CPQ calculators - without coding skills.

Getting started is easy. Sign up for a free forever plan, choose a template, and customize it to suit your needs.