If your sales team’s quoting process feels like a game of email ping-pong—especially when deals get big, weird, or risky—you’re not alone. Manual approvals waste time, introduce errors, and usually get ignored until someone’s shouting. This guide is for anyone who wants to fix that mess and set up automated approval workflows for complicated quotes in Quoter.
Let’s keep it practical. I’ll walk through how to actually do it, what to watch out for, and where the hype doesn’t quite match reality.
Why Bother Automating Quote Approvals?
Before you dive in, let’s be honest: not every quote needs an approval workflow. For routine deals, automation can be overkill. But if you’re regularly quoting custom pricing, bundling oddball products, or dealing with high-dollar contracts, approvals are your safety net. Automating that process in Quoter does a few things:
- Cuts down on back-and-forth emails and Slack messages
- Reduces errors and “Oops, did anyone approve this?” moments
- Creates an audit trail, so you know who gave the green light (or didn’t)
- Speeds up sales cycles—if you set it up right
But don’t expect magic. Automation only works if your team actually uses it and your rules fit how you really sell.
Step 1: Map Out Your Real Approval Needs
Don’t start clicking around in Quoter just yet. First, figure out what “complex” means for your business. Ask yourself:
- When does a quote need a second set of eyes? (Over a certain dollar value, discount, or type of product?)
- Who actually needs to sign off? (Sales manager, finance, legal?)
- Are there legal or compliance requirements?
- What’s a “dealbreaker” that must trigger extra approval?
Pro tip: Keep your approval triggers as simple as possible at first. If you try to automate every possible scenario, you’ll end up with a tangled mess no one wants to maintain.
Example triggers: - Quotes over $20,000 need sales manager approval - Discounts over 15% require finance sign-off - Any non-standard contract terms go to legal
Write these out somewhere. You’ll need them when building your workflow.
Step 2: Set Up Approval Rules in Quoter
Now, log into Quoter and head to your account settings. The names of menus might change a bit, but here’s the general path:
- Go to Settings → Approval Workflows (or similar; sometimes under "Quote Settings").
- Click Add Workflow or New Approval Rule.
You’ll see options to define when a quote should trigger an approval workflow. Here’s how to keep it sane:
Choose Your Triggers
- Quote Value: Set a minimum (or range) that kicks off approval. Don’t go overboard—pick thresholds that matter.
- Discount Percentage: If your reps love to discount, use this trigger to flag anything aggressive.
- Product or Service: For certain products (maybe ones with razor-thin margins), route for special scrutiny.
- Custom Fields: If you track risk, contract type, or special requests, use these to trigger workflows.
Assign Approvers
- Add people or roles—not just “Bob from Finance” (what happens when Bob’s on vacation?). Use groups or roles if you can.
- Decide if approval must be unanimous or if any one person can approve. For most teams, “any one of these managers” is enough.
Set Up Notifications
- Make sure approvers get notified—email is fine, but in-app notifications are better if your team actually checks them.
- Don’t spam everyone. Only notify people who genuinely need to act.
Example Setup
Let’s say you want quotes over $20,000 and with more than 10% discount to require both sales manager and finance approval:
- Trigger: Quote value > $20,000 AND Discount > 10%
- Approvers: Sales Manager group AND Finance group
- Notification: Send to both, but only escalate if no action in 24 hours
Don’t worry about getting this perfect. You can (and should) tweak rules as you see how they work in real life.
Step 3: Test with Real-World Scenarios
Here’s where most teams trip up: they set up rules, then trust they’ll work. Don’t. Test with the same stubbornness you’d use if your paycheck depended on it (because, well, it kind of does).
- Create a few test quotes that should trigger approval. Make sure each scenario (value, discount, etc.) actually fires off the workflow.
- Try to break it: What happens if you edit a quote mid-approval? What if someone ignores the notification?
- Check the audit trail. Can you see who approved what, and when?
What usually goes wrong: - Approvers don’t get notified, or miss the email - Workflow gets stuck if someone’s out of office - Edge case quotes (like a $19,999 quote with a 20% discount) don’t trigger as you expected - Someone finds a way to bypass the process (intentionally or not)
Fix these now. Don’t wait for a real deal to blow up.
Step 4: Train Your Team—But Don’t Make It a Slog
Nobody wants a 2-hour training on quote approvals. Here’s what works:
- Show them how to start a quote and what’ll trigger an approval (screenshots help)
- Explain why the rules exist (so they don’t try to “game” them)
- Tell approvers where they’ll get notifications and how to approve or reject
- Make it clear what to do if something breaks (who to call, how to escalate)
Pro tip: Write up a one-pager or quick Loom video. Most people won’t read a manual, but they’ll watch a 2-minute walkthrough.
Step 5: Iterate—Don’t Let Workflows Stagnate
No workflow is perfect forever. After a month or two, check:
- Are deals getting stuck in approval limbo?
- Are people ignoring approvals, or rubber-stamping everything?
- Are there too many (or too few) approvals firing?
- Has your business changed? (New products, new team members, new risk factors?)
Adjust your rules based on real pain, not theoretical problems. Kill off unnecessary approvals ruthlessly—workflow bloat is just as bad as no workflow at all.
What Works, What Doesn’t, and What to Ignore
What works: - Simple, clear triggers (like deal size or big discounts) - Assigning approvals to roles, not individuals - Escalation rules for when someone’s out or not responding
What doesn’t: - Over-complicating with dozens of special-case approvals - Relying only on email notifications (they get ignored) - Setting it and forgetting it—rules need updates as your business evolves
What to ignore: - Fancy “AI” auto-approvals unless you’ve got a real need and understand the risks - Overly detailed approval hierarchies (unless you’re in a regulated industry) - “One size fits all” templates—your business is unique, build what you actually need
Keep It Simple—and Don’t Be Afraid to Change
Automating quote approvals in Quoter is about making life easier, not harder. Start small, set clear rules, and expect to tweak things as you go. If a workflow adds more headaches than it solves, cut it. The point isn’t to have the fanciest setup—it’s to get deals out the door with just enough oversight to keep you safe.
Stay skeptical of any tool or process that promises to “revolutionize” your sales workflow overnight. The best systems are the ones your team actually uses, quietly, in the background. Keep it simple, watch how it works, and don’t be afraid to iterate. That’s how you win.