ALISO VIEJO, Calif., April 10, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Alternative Technology Solutions, the leading ERP and CRM service provider for small to mid-sized manufacturers and distributors and an Inc. 500 company, today announced its next release of iQ, a Configure, Price, Quote application for manufacturers.
"This latest release continues to set Alternative's iQ application apart as a tool built specifically with manufacturers in mind rather than a generic quoting tool that manufacturers can use," said Donna Barnett, Chief Technology Officer at Alternative. "Quoting can be very complex for manufacturers and Alternative recognizes that a solution needs to remove complexity for the end user so that he can generate more accurate and consistent pricing in line with business processes."
The latest version of iQ, which was officially released March 31, 2014 and is available on the Salesforce AppExchange, includes many new features and enhancements. Several highlights of this release include:
- Recurring Products. For customers who quote products that are regularly repeated such as subscriptions or maintenance contracts, iQ has enhanced its functionality around quoting recurring and subscription products to provide greater simplicity and visibility with automatic calculation of annual and total contract values.
- Document Template Enhancements. iQ now has even more flexibility in creating templates with additional styling and formatting features including more flexible merge fields and WYSIWYG table styling.
- Pricing Enhancements. Manufacturers can maximize profitability with enhancements including a target margin price calculator, the ability to define markup pricing in price lists, and rules-based markup pricing.
- eSignature Integration. To speed approval turnaround, DocuSign has been integrated to the iQ application.
- Sales Partner Communities. Sales teams using Salesforce Partner Communities can further empower collaboration among representatives to generate quotes with iQ.
- Salesforce1 Capability. In addition to mobile browser capability, iQ can be deployed through the Salesforce1 app to give users greater functionality and usability.
"We're proud that our iQ product roadmap is heavily influenced by our customers' feedback and use of the application," added Barnett. "For example, quote line grouping, a new feature in the latest release which makes it easier to organize items on a quote, was added to the list based on direct feedback from an iQ customer. It's a great addition to iQ and we're excited to make it available to all users."
Looking ahead, the next iQ release is scheduled for early third quarter and will continue Alternative's vision to deliver the best user experience through a fast, smart, simple, and social application that handles the complex quoting needs of manufacturers and distributors.
Visit Alternative Technology Solutions' website or the Salesforce AppExchange for more information.
About Alternative Technology Solutions
Alternative Technology Solutions, Inc. is the leading independent full-service provider specializing in delivering on-premise and cloud-based Salesforce and ERP solutions for mid- sized manufacturers and distributors. Headquartered in Aliso Viejo, CA, the company also has offices in Boston, Chicago, Atlanta, Indianapolis, and Monterrey, Mexico. Alternative was named an Inc. 500 company in 2013, was highlighted as a fast-growing company and best place to work in 2012 and 2013 by the Orange County Business Journal, and was a Silver Stevie Award Honoree in 2012. For more information, visit http://alttechsolutions.com.