Using Conga Composer with Salesforce.com
Several months ago we posted a review of the Quote capability that was added to SalesForce.com. In particular we discussed the template editor. Our conclusion was that it provides the very basic needs for generating a quote, but there were limitations in designing and creating a template. In working with clients who need to convert existing templates from a word document to the template editor, we found limitations in reaching a complete recreation. In cases where a more eloquent and robust solution is needed we found Conga Composer from AppExtremes a great alternative. Conga Composer makes it easy for Salesforce.com users to create sophisticated documents, proposals and reports using their data in Salesforce CRM with just a few clicks.
Below is a Quote template example using Microsoft Word and merge fields from SalesForce.com
Example with data added:
Both SalesForce.com Quotes and Conga Composer alleviate the need to manually gather data from multiple objects and sources to create a proposal. In addition, both solutions make it easy to save locally or in Salesforce.com, as well as emailing it, and automatically logging activity. However, Conga Composer sprints ahead when working to have a proposal to look exactly how you want it every time! This makes branding and following specific standards dictated by marketing a breeze. Conga Composer also takes advantage of being integrated with e-signature solutions (EchoSign, Docusign, and Sertifi). Having said this, it’s worth pointing out Salesforce.com Quotes’ ability to sync with opportunities to make changes that cross between the two sources makes management of the sales process concise and accurate. In the end both solutions will allow a sales organization to easily manage the proposal process. It really becomes a matter of how sophisticated and flexible the proposal needs be in design and maintianlblity for your organization.