Quotes in Dynamics 365 CE

Dynamics 365 Sales allows us to personalize our sales process by using Quotes.

I'll start with an example. Let's say we have a client who needs Tulips and Roses for their event. They have a budget of £200 and we sell tulips for £10/a bunch of 15 and roses for £20/a bunch of 15. At this point, we have the ability of creating different quotes and present them to our client:

10 x 15 Tulips = £100 5 x 15 Roses = £100

OR

16 x 15 Tulips = £140 3 x 15 Roses = £60 , ETC.

You get the gist. We can tailor our offer, based on our client's needs, and our sales opportunity actual value remains the same.

This is why quotes are so valuable. They allow us to win deals we might have lost otherwise. We can also do other funky stuff like offer discounts on certaing products or even take out the Tax Cost or Shipping Costs.

Once you create a Quote, you can present it to your client by using Document Templates.

As most other records, Quotes have a lifecycle. They are draft right as you create them and you can edit them freely. You will then activate them and send them to your client, or maybe to another colleague or manager, in case you have an approval system in place.

Once you have activated the Quotes, you can no longer edit them. Should you wish to edit anything, you will have to revise the quote. This button will create a draft copy of your quote and deactivate the original one. This functionality is very useful for your records, as you will clearly determin the evolution of your sale.

Finally, I want to mention that you can create Quotes from an Opportunity or on its own. You might want to go from Quote straight to an Order, or create an Opportunity->Order process.

A Quote can be won or lost and this can impact your Opportunity and Order, in the sense that you can alter the Opportunity with the quote values and create a sales Order.

Microsoft have published a step by step guide on how to add and edit Quotes.

As with everything, play with Quotes, create some from Opportunities as well as stand alone. This is how you'll gain enough knowledge to pass exams and to be able to present to your clients.

pic source: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/806214770763584673/