Conga CPQ vs. IBM CPQ

CPQ software is an invaluable tool for sales teams, improving sales process agility and accuracy while helping to ensure that quotes are accurate and consistent. By automating, streamlining, and simplifying the sales quote process, CPQ solutions help to improve customer experience, reduce time to market, and save valuable time on repetitive tasks.

Conga CPQ and IBM CPQ are both cloud-based CPQ solutions that offer comprehensive features and capabilities to help organizations create, manage, and deliver quotes quickly and accurately. Both include features like guided selling, quoting configuration, and proposal generation. And each includes its own set of features to help automate and manage the sales quote process.

Conga CPQ is a tool built for complex sales contracts, and it is designed to manage the entire sales quote process while also providing access to detailed analytics. For businesses that need to quickly generate quotes and manage multiple versions, configurations, upsells, and cross-sells of products, Conga is a solid option.

IBM CPQ is primarily used by ecommerce and retail operations, but it is also suitable for complex sales with its comprehensive quote configuration capabilities. Its localized pricing engine and geographic support make it useful for multinational ecommerce sellers. It also offers advanced analytics, allowing users to quickly identify trends in their sales metrics and optimize their products accordingly.

Plenty of organizations use either Conga CPQ or IBM CPQ for their quote and contract management functions. But the end result will vary based on the individual company, its needs, and how the specific software can benefit their business. Here’s a quick rundown of the features and benefits offered by each product.

Defining Conga CPQ

Before there was Conga, there was Apttus, an innovator in its own right. Originally built for the Salesforce Force.com platform, Conga CPQ is now a standalone multi-channel sales solution that offers an array of CPQ and CLM features to help automate quote issuing and contract management.

At its core, Conga CPQ is built to make complex quoting easier. Enterprise companies use its self-service guided selling interface to quickly configure and generate one-time and recurring quotes. As they need to add or remove functions, Conga’s scalable microservices architecture allows users to easily add on or switch out features in their subscriptions.

The main benefits of the Conga CPQ platform are its speed, scalability, and ease of use. It is highly configurable and customizable, but it also offers a visually-guided process. It still requires CRM integration to fully function with the right data, but its well-structured platform can be used with numerous CRM systems (including Salesforce, the platform it was built on).

Defining IBM CPQ

IBM’s foray into the world of CPQ came in 2010 when it acquired its CPQ solution from Sterling Commerce. Now operating under the “IBM Sterling CPQ” name, This platform revolutionizes the purchasing and selling of intricate goods and services through all customers’ preferred channels, making it easier than ever for them to make purchases.

IBM Sterling CPQ is the ideal platform to modernize the ecommerce experience and enhance sales productivity. Its software solution guides customers, partners, call center reps, and sales teams to choose from a selection of quality products while ensuring accurate pricing.

With this tool, businesses can provide online buyers with an accurate, personalized purchasing experience without needing to manually assign items or prices. And they can use the platform’s analytics features to gain insight into customer trends and create products that more closely match their preferences.

When examining each product, their differences become clear. Every CPQ software has its own niche and use cases, even if they both accomplish the same general task. In the case of Conga and IBM, their approaches are completely different, as Conga CPQ is designed for complex enterprise sales for many types of product and service businesses, while IBM handles the ecommerce side.

Conga CPQ is remarkably flexible in gathering customers’ exact specifications. With the ability to handle multiple pricing models including one-time, recurring and usage-based accounts, it makes an excellent option for businesses with complex cost frameworks.

IBM Sterling CPQ’s standout features are its order management platform and inventory visibility functions. These help retailers deliver a seamless omnichannel experience while ensuring up-to-date data, even for companies with thousands of SKUs and multiple warehouses across different regions. IBM CPQ also integrates with other enterprise data warehouses and database tools, making it helpful for data science teams at large retail companies.

Another difference between Conga and IBM is in their approach to retail sales. While Conga is mainly designed for enterprise sales in the form of subscription models, digital services, and complex B2B ecommerce packages, IBM’s platform can provide store associates with the tools they need to sell more effectively on the physical sales floor.

Here’s a breakdown of each product’s features:

Understanding the customer sizes and segments best-suited for each platform is critical when deciding which one will work best.

Conga CPQ is a viable solution for medium and large organizations with over 93% of its customers doing over $50M in annual revenue. It supplies unparalleled product configuration abilities that allow you to create tailored pricing proposals based on a variety of scenarios. This powerful technology offers an optimal balance between flexibility and automation—ideal for mid to large-sized companies.

IBM Sterling CPQ serves companies of the same sizes, but its customers have completely different product offerings, scope, and market use cases. It’s suitable for businesses with large retail catalogs that require quick and efficient order management, inventory visibility, and sales quoting capabilities. The platform is also designed to support a wide range of customer segments including B2B, B2C, and C2C.

It is also worth noting that customers of Salesforce would be better suited to use Conga CPQ to make their quoting process simpler and more efficient. IBM customers, on the other hand, will benefit from a seamless integration that IBM CPQ offers.

Because of their robust features, smaller businesses might find that either of these solutions are too complicated. In this case, they should look into simpler CPQ software that can meet the needs of their organization without the cost or complexity associated with larger platforms.

CPQ implementation isn’t easy, especially when it comes to larger businesses with more than one office or location. When considering multiple offices or retail locations, global workforces, and different customer segments all under the same platform, it’s important to have reliable customer support.

Conga has excellent technical assistance with a dedicated team that quickly responds to any inquiries or issues you may face. IBM also provides an extensive library of resources for customers in addition to their responsive help desk staff.

In terms of support offered, their abilities are quite similar. But IBM edges out Conga thanks to its powerful and well-known platform with plenty of specialist consultants and third-party IT services providers that can help.

Pricing plays a critical role in the buying decision process, and the pricing models of Conga and IBM are similar.

As enterprise solutions, each product is offered on a quote basis (i.e., prospective buyers must contact sales for a customized quote).

When it comes to costs, IBM Sterling CPQ is more expensive because of its wide range of features and the support services it offers. And depending on how robust a customer needs the system to be (and what other IBM products they use), the product can quickly become even more costly.

Conga’s pricing is usually lower due to its focus on automation and configuration capabilities for large enterprises. Although it starts at around $35 per user per month for most users, this price rarely sits this low. It goes up depending on the number of features and integrations required (which also adds to its complexity).

It’s worth noting that the additional IT infrastructure, setup costs, and maintenance fees can quickly make the solution more expensive. Before investing in an enterprise CPQ solution, businesses should be aware they will need to budget for more than bust the per-month cost of the product.

To better understand pricing, here’s a quick look:

Conga CPQ and IBM CPQ are both excellent solutions for large enterprises, but their target customer segments are quite different.

Conga is better suited to companies that require powerful product or service configuration capabilities (e.g., large agencies, consulting firms, vendors, B2B software companies). IBM is an ideal choice for businesses with large retail catalogs that need efficient order management and sales quoting tools.

In terms of pricing and customer support, the two platforms are similar. However, IBM’s platform is more expensive, and it has a stronger presence in the market with plenty of specialists that can help.

At the end of the day, businesses should choose the CPQ solution that can best address their needs. Both Conga and IBM have powerful features and capabilities—they just differ in terms of who they are most suitable for.

Rhonda Bavaro

Rhonda Bavaro excels in boosting SaaS companies’ growth through innovative content marketing, thriving in the dynamic sales tech industry amidst evolving technologies that drive revenue acceleration.

Conga CPQ vs. IBM CPQ

• 1Introduction
• 2Product Overview
• 3Product Features
• 4Customer Size
• 5Customer Support
• 6Pricing
• 7Summary
• 8FAQs