When steel demand is shaky, competition is tight, and customers are shopping harder than ever, the quoting process becomes a pressure cooker. For sales directors, this is the moment that separates reactive sellers from strategic leaders. Quoting isn’t just about throwing out a number. It’s about defending your margins without losing the deal.
Protecting margin while staying competitive requires more than a keen eye—it takes process, data, and discipline. Here’s how sales leaders can guide their teams to quote smarter, faster, and more profitably—even when the pressure is on.
Quoting Isn’t a Race—It’s a Strategy
Speed matters, but speed without strategy is a recipe for margin loss. Many sales teams get so focused on being first to quote that they forget to quote right. This often leads to underpricing, scope creep, and costly follow-up corrections.
Set the tone: quoting is a strategic part of the sales process, not a formality. Make sure your reps understand that the goal is not just to win the job—but to win it profitably.
Know Your Cost-to-Serve—Exactly
The foundation of a strong quote is an accurate understanding of cost-to-serve. That means accounting for more than just base material costs. Freight, handling, processing time, packaging, delivery constraints—all of it must be factored in.
Equip your team with tools or calculators that make these real costs visible. Don’t leave them to guess. When reps quote with a full picture of the true cost, they’re less likely to undercut margin just to close.
Train for Confidence in Value
When salespeople don’t believe in the value of what they’re selling, they default to discounting. In high-pressure quoting situations, this is a quick way to erode profitability.
Train your reps to clearly articulate value. What’s unique about your turnaround time? Your fill rates? Your certifications? Your customer support? Confidence in your offer—when backed by real differentiators—gives your team permission to quote assertively, not defensively.
Use Data to Benchmark and Guide
Inconsistent quoting often comes down to lack of visibility. Reps are working off memory, tribal knowledge, or last month’s numbers. That leads to wide pricing swings and unpredictable margins.
Leverage pricing intelligence and quoting software that gives your team guardrails. AI-powered tools can recommend optimal price ranges based on customer history, market trends, and inventory levels. These systems help reps quote with accuracy and confidence, not guesswork.
Standardize Your Quoting Process
Chaos kills margin. If every rep uses a different method, different logic, and a different margin target, you’re leaving profitability to chance.
Create a standardized quoting process. Define required inputs. Set margin thresholds. Use templates that include terms, lead times, and assumptions. The goal is consistency—because consistency protects both price and credibility.
Push Back—Professionally
Sometimes a customer pushes hard on price. And sometimes, your team gives in too quickly. The best salespeople are trained to handle pushback with tact, not retreat.
Equip your reps with language to defend price confidently. Instead of immediately caving, they should ask: “What part of the quote concerns you most?” or “Are we comparing full scope or just base price?” These kinds of questions keep the conversation open without opening the door to deep discounts.
Reward Smart Quoting, Not Just Sales Volume
If your comp plan only rewards total sales, you’re indirectly encouraging your team to chase revenue over profitability. That’s a fast way to burn margin in a competitive market.
Consider incentivizing quote quality and win rate, not just volume. Celebrate reps who protect margin and avoid unnecessary discounting. When you reward quoting discipline, you build a smarter, more sustainable sales culture.
Use Post-Mortems to Improve
Every lost quote holds a lesson. Was it timing? Price? Scope? Response time? Create a system for reviewing lost quotes regularly. Look for patterns. Share the insights across the team.
Sales directors who make quoting reviews part of the rhythm are the ones who continuously refine and sharpen their edge. It’s not about blame—it’s about getting better, faster.
Keep Operations in the Loop
Your quoting process must be aligned with your operations team. If your salespeople quote unrealistic lead times or overpromise capacity, the margin loss will come later—in rushed freight, overtime, or customer churn.
Make sure your sales and ops teams communicate regularly. Your quoting team should have visibility into real-time capacity, material availability, and delivery constraints. That’s how you quote with integrity and avoid margin-eroding surprises later.
Final Thought: Pressure Is Inevitable—Margin Loss Isn’t
Quoting under pressure is a fact of life in steel sales. But margin erosion doesn’t have to be. With the right systems, the right training, and the right leadership, your team can learn to quote quickly and profitably.
A disciplined quoting process isn’t restrictive—it’s empowering. It gives your team the confidence to stand by their numbers, the insight to know when to flex, and the tools to keep your business growing without bleeding profit.
In tough markets, the smartest sales directors know: quoting is the front line of margin defense. And they make sure their teams are ready for the fight.
