BigMachines, Inc., provider ofproduct configuration, pricing and quoting, proposal generation and B2B ecommerce, today announced that PLATO Learning, Inc. has deployed the BigMachines Selling Platform. BigMachines automates product selection, pricing, approvals and proposal generation for PLATO’s Customer Finance Consultant team.
PLATO Learning offers online courses for kindergarten through adult learners that include reading, writing, mathematics, science, social studies, and life and job skills. PLATO chose to self-implement the BigMachines Selling Platform, replacing their existing quoting and pricing tool. Prior to implementation, members of the PLATO team attended BigMachines Administrator Training, where they learned how to set up and maintain their BigMachines software platform. With guidance from the BigMachines Professional Services team, they were able to implement their new web-based selling solution in under three months.
BigMachines now supports product selection, improved sales proposals and a tiered pricing structure. BigMachines is integrated with PLATO’s Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system from salesforce.com. BigMachines also automates PLATO’s sales tax calculations. In addition, BigMachines is used to automate discount approvals, ensuring pricing controls and accuracy.
“BigMachines has taken our quoting process to a new level and the integration with our CRM and tax software helps this business process run more efficiently,” said Mitch Wacker, director of finance operations for PLATO Learning. “By self-implementing, we have enabled our internal team to continuously improve and add features beyond our phase one deployment. The professional training and support we received from the BigMachines team has been great throughout the entire process. In the end, the greatest benefit will be the ability for our sales professionals to deliver higher quality, tailored proposals that will meet or exceed our customers’ expectations for contracting requirements and turnaround times.”
