How to create a Commercial Deal-to-Invoice process in Zoho CRM

How to create a Commercial Deal-to-Invoice process in Zoho CRM


In this guide, we'll learn how to create a deal-to-invoice process in Zoho CRM for Commercial team This involves creating a deal, gathering customer information, generating a quote, and finally creating a sales order that will help deduct inventory automatically.

We'll cover each step, from selecting the right account and contact to verifying and confirming the quote. This process ensures that all necessary information is captured and that the sales order is accurately created in Zoho CRM and Zoho Books.


Let's get started

Step 1 - Create a Deal (if not already)

Click on the Deal module. Then, click on Create Deal . Select the appropriate account and contact.

This is the contact to whom the invoice and code will be sent. Fill all mandatory fields with appropriate data points. Then, click save.




Once the deal is ready, you can start speaking to the customer, gather more information about their requirements, and move to next step of creating a quote.

Step 2 - Create a Quote

To create a quote, click on "Quotes" on the left-hand side and click the plus symbol. This will provide a screen where you can write the Quote subject and mandatory information.
Ensure that your page layout is set to "Commercial"


Commercial projects estimation process could be complex and can take days, hence quotation process is done in Zoho Sheet (earlier on Excel). Ones the Zoho Sheet are completed with estimation then corresponding values are transferred over from cover sheet in Zoho Sheet to Zoho CRM > Quote. Hence, in below below steps we will show how to access Zoho Sheet and edit it.
Note that every workbook (Zoho Sheet) only related to one quote and deal, hence only edit the Sheet link available on Quote.
 
Click on "Sheet URL" on quote module


This opens up the Zoho Sheet for quote/estimation process



Do not change any formulas on "Cover Sheet" or else the values will not transfer to Zoho CRM


Explanation for commercial quote Zoho Sheet
  1. Cover Sheet - This sheet consolidates data from various sheets and helps transfer this structure data to Zoho CRM
  2. Com Intruder Alarm - This sheet should only be used for Commercial Intruder Alarm estimates
  3. Dom Intruder Alarm - This sheet should only be used for Domestic Intruder Alarm estimates
  4. CCTV - This sheet should only be used for CCTV estimates 
  5. CCTVRW - This sheet should only be used for CCTV Remote Watch estimates
  6. Eagle Eye Bridge CCTV - This sheet should only be used for Eagle Eye Bridge CCTV estimates
  7. Eagle Eye CMVER CCTV - This sheet should only be used for Eagle Eye Bridge CCTV estimates
  8. Access Control - This sheet should only be used for Access Control estimates
  9. Intercom - This sheet should only be used for Intercom estimates
  10. Fire Alarm - This sheet should only be used for Fire Alarm estimates

Use appropriate sheet to start your estimation process. At a broad level every sheet requires a user input on quantities, hours, monitoring and maintenance. And Total values towards the end are then picked and transmitted to cover sheet, from where Zoho CRM reads this data.  

Finish editing the Zoho Sheet workbook and ones you are ready go back to quotes in Zoho CRM. Ensure you are on relevant quote record and this can also be confirmed by reading the Zoho Sheet file name, which also contains quote name in it.

Click on "Get Master Sheet value", this will bring sheet value over to Zoho Sheet. And you are then ready to create a Sales Oder and Invoice from this data within Zoho CRM.

 

Send the Quote to customer for confirmation or else if you have spoken to customer then mark the Quote as confirmed.
Click o
A quote is created !
mark quote as "Confirmed"


Step 3 - Create a Sales Order

Sales Order creation process for commercial is only for Inventory stock reduction and hence on Sales Order you would only find equipment data
While you are still on Quote page, click "Create a Sales Order" button on upper right hand side.

Only create a SO if the customer has confirmed the order
click "Create Sales Order"

After receiving the success message, wait 2minutes for the sales order to be created in Zoho CRM and Books. Reason being Sales Order gets created in Zoho Books first to enable Inventory Management and then is transferred over to Zoho CRM under SO.

sales order is created, give it 2mins before editing SO, have patience at times this may take longer then 2minutes.


Step 4 - Edit SO for Service Vertical and Product Vertical information

This step aligns, cost split to respective team and hence an important piece

Click on "Edit Sales Order" button on upper right hand side of screen

click "Edit Sales Oder"

Click "Edit" again


Edit "Recurring Period", "Service Vertical" and "Product Vertical" data


  1. Service Vertical is kind of service to be provided to customer e.g. Install, Call Out, Maintenance and Monitoring
  2. Product Vertical is Intruder, CCTV, Access, Locks, Fire Alarms, Keyholding
  3. Recurring Period will remain as  "Not Applicable" for commercial quote, as the SO only consists equipment's

Ones the editing of Service vertical and Product vertical is completed, save the Sales Order.

End of process


Finance team, picks up all completed Sales Order and marks them as "Marked as Confirmed" post validation.

Step 5 - Create Commercial Invoice for Monitoring and Maintenance

For commercial the invoice needs to be created differently, as it will consist of Installation Fee, Maintenance Fee and Monitoring Fee, hence we need to click on "Create Commercial Invoice". This then picks up data from sections of "Commercial Invoice" section and PPM section, which then helps create a invoice with Install and PPM info.

Recurring Invoice for Maintenance and Monitoring are also auto created.




Conclusion

Through this process we learnt how to create a Deal to Quote to Sales Order to Invoice for commercial projects. While these are initial steps from Sales Team, next steps involve Finance and Inventory team. Where Finance teams reviews the information on Sales Order and that requires reduction of stock from Inventory,

For any further questions reach out to Eimear or support@constructionbos.com


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