Hardware and software distributor is using cloud-based configuration, pricing and quotation tool
Elly Yates-Roberts |
Ingram Micro is a wholesale hardware and software distributor committed to helping its reseller partners grow their businesses and maximise profitability. The company wanted to simplify the configuration, pricing and quotation process, ideally through an online tool to support reseller partners and the internal sales team. It aimed to free its leasing sales team to focus on the most profitable opportunities. Ingram Micro needed to complete this project in a shorter timeframe than the 18 months it would take its internal IT team.
Mercato Solutions’ cloud-based tool PreSalesAdvisor makes the pricing and quoting processes for verified technology configurations simple. Ingram Micro chose Mercato Solutions to meet the brief within the required timescale.
“Our manual processes were slowing us down and limiting the number of opportunities we were able to chase,” said Gemma Glen, Synerg Lead at Ingram Micro. “We wanted to save resource on pre-sales, sales and pricing, and needed to work with someone who understood the nature of our business to deliver this. Mercato fitted the bill perfectly – and was able to work with our team and brand managers for Microsoft and HP to deliver the project smoothly.”
Using PreSalesAdvisor, Mercato Solutions has created a simplified configuration, pricing and quotation process. Once this process is complete, resellers can apply for credit on behalf of their customers and once approved, goods are automatically dispatched.
The tool integrates with the finance provider for a seamless experience. It has empowered Ingram Micro to deliver the right prices in real time, made it easy to manage pricing and stock, and helped strengthen relationships with suppliers and resellers.
Using PreSalesAdvisor, Ingram Micro have reduced a 5-day sales process reduced to 5 minutes. This has freed up the leasing sales team and helped boost revenue while cutting costs of sale.
“The response from our reseller customers to the PreSalesAdvisor tool has been fantastic,” said Gemma Glen, Synerg Lead at Ingram Micro. “It’s simple to use and understand, meaning they can self-serve easily and with confidence. They get the right price in real time, and goods are dispatched automatically. And the time saving it’s given the leasing sales team has been little short of miraculous, enabling us to focus on bigger opportunities while giving everyone a high level of service.”