Documentation Commerce Adobe Commerce B2B

Negotiate a quote

Last update: September 4, 2024

Topics:
B2B
Quotes

CREATED FOR:

Beginner
Intermediate
Admin
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If B2B Quotes are enabled in the configuration, price negotiation can be initiated by an authorized buyer from a company or a sales representative.

Buyers initiate the price negotiation process by requesting a quote from the shopping cart. Sales Representatives can initiate negotiation by creating a draft quote for a buyer, updating the quote with the initial order items and pricing, and sending it to the buyer.

When the price negotiation begins, quotes are listed in the Quotes grid. All negotiation between the buyer and seller takes place by email, and is initiated and tracked from the detail view of the quote.

During the negotiation process, the seller can do the following from the Admin:

Add or remove products
Change the quantity
Apply a discount to line items, or to the entire quote
Add or change the shipping method
Add comments
Send the updated quote to the buyer, or save as a draft

Buyers manage the quote negotiation process from the storefront using My Quotes. While the quote is open for review, its status in the buyer’s account is set to Pending. The buyer can change and resubmit the quote even if it was declined or is expired.

Step 1: View the request

On the Admin sidebar, go to Sales > Quotes.

The new request appears in the Quotes grid.
In the Actions column, click View.

Step 2: Modify the quote

Under Quote & Account Information, click the Calendar ( ) icon.
Choose an Expiration Date for the quote.
Scroll down to the Quote Totals section and update the Negotiated Price as needed.

If the buyer changes the quantity of any items in the quote, a notice appears at the top of the quote, indicating that list of items has changed, and the negotiated price must be updated.

Add new products to the quote

Click Add Products by SKU.
Enter the SKU and Qty to be added.

Apply line item updates

Apply line item changes in the Items Quoted section if needed.

Apply line item updates

Change the Quantity that must be purchased at the Proposed Price.
Select Configure and change the product options.

The Configure option is available only on a line item for a configurable product
In the Action menu, select an action to update the item:
- Discount item to apply a discount as a percentage, fixed amount, or preferred pricing.
  Optionally, you can lock the discount amount to prevent further discounting. If the discount is not locked,
  both the line item discount and any quote level discount are applied to the product price.
- Leave a note to buyer to provide the buyer with additional information about an item
- Remove to remove an item from the quote.

Apply changes and update

To apply changes, click Add to Quote.
To update the quote, click Recalculate the Quote.
To apply the changes and update the quote to the shared catalog and price rules, click Update Prices and then click Proceed to confirm the update.

Update shipping information

If the buyer includes a Ship To address in the quote, click Get shipping methods and rates.
Choose a shipping method from the available options.
Enter a Proposed Shipping Price.

The Quote Totals are updated to reflect the proposed shipping price.

Attach a supporting document

Under the Add your comment box, click Attach file.

By default, attached files can be up to 2 MB in any of the following file formats: DOC, DOCX, XLS, XLSX, PDF, TXT, JPG or JPEG, PNG.
Choose the file from your directory.

Step 3: Update quote-level information, and send your reply

In the Negotiation section on the Comments tab, enter your reply in the Add your comment section.
To include a supporting document, click Attach file and select the file from your directory.

The maximum file size allowed for attachments is 2 MB.
To apply a discount to the quote:
- Under Quote Totals in the Negotiated Price section, choose one of the following discount types:
  - Percentage Discount: A percentage discount reduces the original price by a specific percentage.
  - Amount Discount: An amount discount applies a fixed price reduction.
  - Proposed Price: A proposed price discount sets the final price to a specific amount, regardless of the original price.
- Enter the amount as a percentage or flat price.
- You can apply discounts to each line item or the quote as a whole:
  - Line item discounts: Line item discounts are applied to individual items in the cart. The discount can be a percentage, a specific amount, or a proposed price.
  - Cart-level discounts: Cart-level discounts are applied to the entire shopping cart. The discount can be either a percentage or a specific amount and is applied to the total cart value.
  - Combination of Cart and Line Item Discounts: In some cases, discounts can be applied at both the cart and line item levels. The line item discount is applied first, followed by the cart-level discount on the remaining total.
Send or save the quote:
- If the quote is ready to send back to the buyer, click Send.
- To continue working on the quote later, click Save as Draft.

NOTE

During the quote negotiation, discounts can be locked to prevent further changes. Once a quote is locked, neither the discount type nor the amount can be altered without unlocking the quote first. This locking mechanysm ensures that the agreed-upon terms between the sales representative and the buyer are preserved.

Step 4: Follow up on a quote

When you send a quote, the system notifies both the buyer and the sales rep who manages the company account. The email includes a link to the quote in the buyer’s account and the expiration date of the quote. At any point in the negotiation, the buyer can do any of the following:

Accept the negotiated quote and complete the purchase.
Send a reply with a counter offer and continue the negotiation.
End the negotiation.

To monitor its position in the workflow, check your email and the status of the quote in the grid. You can continue the negotiation process as long as needed.

Button bar

Button

Description

Back

Returns to the Quotes page without saving changes.

Print

Sends the quote to a printer or saves it as a PDF file.

Create Copy

Creates and opens a copy of the current quote with (copy) appended to the original name. Rename the new quote by editing the Name field. Process the new quote by saving it as a draft, or sending it to the customer.

Create Template

Create a quote template based on the current quote. Quote templates streamline quote negotiation by allowing buyers and sellers to agree on contract and pricing terms that can be applied to multiple quotes. . On agreement, the buyer can generate a pre-approved, linked quote from the template for subsequent orders instead of restarting the request for quote (RFQ) process.

Save as Draft

Save any changes made to the quote, but do not send it back to the buyer.

Decline

Declines the request to negotiate prices, either on the initial inquiry, or during ongoing negotiations. When a quote is declined, the seller should add a comment to explain the decision. When a quote is declined, all negotiated prices are reset to the original values. This button is disabled while the seller is waiting for a reply from the buyer.

Send

Sends the updated quote as a reply to the buyer’s inquiry. This button is disabled if the seller is waiting for a reply from the buyer.

Field descriptions

Quote information and functions in the Admin are organized into the following sections.

Quote & Account Information

Field

Description

Name

The name assigned to a quote request by the buyer.

Status

Indicates the current state of the quote. The status of a quote can be changed only by action on the part of either the buyer or seller. See also the Status settings from the Admin and the buyer’s account.

Created

The date and time the buyer first submitted the request for a quote.

Created By

The first and last name of the company buyer who submitted the request for a quote.

Expiration Date

Indicates the last day that the current quote is valid. The default expiration date is set in the configuration as 30 days after a buyer submits a request for a quote.

The seller can override the default expiration date by entering a different date (MMM DD YYYY ) or choosing the date from the calendar. The quote never expires if the field is left blank.

For open quotes, the seller receives an email notification 48 hours before the quote is scheduled to expire. Buyers are notified 24 hours before the expiration date.

The status of the quote changes to Expired and the buyer cannot make further changes to the quote. The proposed prices in the quote revert to the original values from the catalog.

If a quote is open for review by the seller when the quote is set to expire, the expiration date is reset according to the range that is set in the configuration.

The Expiration Date is the only field in the Quote & Account section that can be edited during the review process.

Company

The legal name of the company that the buyer represents.

Company Admin Email

The email address of the company administrator.

Sales Rep

The sales representative who works for the seller, and is the primary contact assigned to the company account.

Shared Catalog (or Customer Group)

The shared catalog or customer group to which the company is assigned. The quote might include custom prices from the shared catalog that is assigned to the company.

Add to Quote by SKU

Field

Description

Enter SKU

The SKU of the product that is to be added to the quote.

Qty

The number of items of this SKU to be added to the quote.

Add to Quote

Adds the quantity of the product specified to the quote.

Items Quoted

Field

Description

Name & SKU

The linked product name and stock-keeping unit (SKU).

Stock

The number of products under this SKU that are currently available for sale.

Cost

The amount the seller paid to purchase the product.

Catalog Price

The price of the product in the buyer’s catalog, based on the customer group or shared catalog that is assigned to the buyer’s company.

Cart Price

The original price of the item in the cart, less any discounts applied from the cart. The cart price might differ from the catalog price if there are discounts or cart rules that apply to the buyer’s customer group.

Discount

The line item discount applied to the item. The value can be a percentage, a fixed amount, or a proposed price.

Qty

The number of units in this SKU that is the basis for the quoted price. Only a positive number greater than zero can be entered. If you want to change the quantity to zero, delete the line item from the quote.

Subtotal

The proposed price multiplied by the quantity of items ordered.

Estimated Tax

The amount of tax that is estimated for this line item, according to the configuration. Depending on the Tax Calculation Settings, the estimated tax can be based on any of the following: Unit Price / Row Total / Total

Subtotal (Incl./Excl. Tax)

Depending on the configuration, this column can display the subtotal with or without estimated taxes.

Action

Selection menu of operations that can be applied to a line item:

Discount item
Leave a note to Buyer
Remove an item from the quote

.

Configure

Allows you to change the product options for a configurable product.

Update Prices

Updates the quote with the latest changes from the shared catalog and price rules.

Recalculate Quote

Recalculates all quote prices, cart price rules, and tax to reflect changes to the quote.

Shipping Information

Field

Description

Shipping Address

Displays the shipping address that is specified in the buyer’s account. The shipping address is blank if the buyer did not specify an address before submitting the request.

Shipping Method & Price

The Get Shipping Methods and Rates link appears if the buyer includes a Ship To address in the quote.

Negotiation

Field

Description

Comments

The Comments tab of the Negotiation section is used to enter a message to the buyer about the quote.
Add your comment - The comments are used to communicate with the buyer during the negotiation process. Use the comments to explain any discounts offered in the quote, or the reason a quote request is declined.
Attach file - The maximum file size and supported file types for attached files are determined by the configuration. By default, an attached file can be up to 2 MB, and of any of the following file types: DOC, DOCX, XLS, XLSX, PDF, TXT, JPG or JPEG, PNG.

History Log

This tab displays a complete history of the quote with dates, quote status, and comments.

Quote Totals

Field

Description

Total Cost

The total cost to the seller of the items included in the quote.

Catalog Total Price (Incl./Excl. Tax)

The total price of the items in the quote without tax, according to the prices in the shared catalog or primary catalog that is used as the basis of the quote. Expand the section to display the values that are used in the calculation, depending on the Display Subtotal setting in the configuration. Options:
Subtotal (Excl. Tax) - The Catalog Total Price without estimated tax.
Subtotal (Incl. Tax) - The Catalog Total Price without estimated tax.
Estimated Tax - The amount of tax that is estimated to apply to the Catalog Total Price.

Negotiated Price

The discount that is offered to the buyer can be based on any of the following:
Percentage Discount - The discount as a percentage.
Amount Discount - The discount as a fixed amount.
Proposed Price - The price proposed by the seller.

If all items in the quote have a locked item discount, the Negotiated Price section is disabled because no further discount can be applied.

If a product has a line item discount that is not locked, both the line item discount and the quote-level discount are applied to the product price.

Quote Subtotal (Incl./Excl. Tax)

The total proposed price of each line item in the quote, either with or without tax, depending on the tax calculation settings in the configuration.

Shipping & Handling

The amount entered by the seller in the Proposed Shipping Price field in the Shipping Information section of the quote. If that field is empty, the amount is based on the selected shipping method.

Estimated Tax

The amount of tax that is estimated to be due, as specified in the configuration display settings.

Quote Grand Total (Incl. Tax)

The final total at the bottom of the quote that includes the negotiated price, estimated tax, and proposed shipping and handling.

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