Creating Pending Subscription Quotes

This document outlines the process for creating pending subscription quotes using Zoho and Salesforce. Pending subscription quotes enable you to lock in pricing and obtain necessary approvals for services scheduled to begin at a future date.

Step 1

Begin by creating a pending subscription quote. This step is crucial because not every customer's subscription begins on the same day the quote is created. Pending subscription quotes allow you to finalize pricing and approval in advance for services starting later.

Step 2

Once a quote is sent to Zoho, the subscription will automatically activate on its scheduled start date. Our customer, L. Harper Kings, has signed a new contract for cloud storage services starting next quarter.

Step 3

Create a pending subscription quote with a future start date to secure the deal now. Ensure you have enabled the necessary settings for pending subscription quotes.

Step 4

First, navigate to the Zoho Billing section of your Zoho Billing tenant.

Step 5

Under the Define Default Subscription Order Settings, scroll down to verify that the options for "Require customer acceptance of orders" and "Service activation of orders" are set to Yes.

Step 6

With these settings confirmed, return to Salesforce. Navigate to Zoho Config and select Quote Studio Settings.

Step 7

Select Future Access Config. In the Features dropdown, choose "Create Pending Subscription" and grant access to the relevant profiles. Select all profiles by pressing Control A, move them to the Selected section, and click Select.

Step 8

Select the checkbox for New Quote. Enable access for editing pending subscriptions by selecting all profiles, moving them to the Selected Profiles section, and clicking Select. Ensure the New Quote checkbox is checked.

Step 9

Add an action to activate the pending subscription. Select all profiles, move them to the right, click Select, enable the checkbox, and save the changes.

Step 10

Proceed to create a quote. Open Harper's opportunities and click the New Quote button.

Step 11

Technical note: For pending subscriptions that include a subscription fee, the "Create Subscription" option will always be selected in the quote object. For standard subscriptions, this checkbox remains unchecked. Now, create a pending subscription.

Step 12

Click the New Quote button. A pop-up will prompt you to confirm whether you're creating a quote for an active or pending subscription.

Step 13

For a pending subscription, select the corresponding checkbox or radio button and click Next.

Step 14

Provide the quote details, including the start date, quote name, initial term, and final term. Set the start date to a future date.

Step 15

For instance, set the start date to December 1st, 2025. The customer acceptance and service activation dates can be left blank for now. Proceed to add products.

Step 16

Select the product and verify the subscription details—a one-year subscription starting on December 1st, 2024. Save and submit the quote.

Step 17

Click Submit.

Step 18

On the Code Details page, verify that the subscription start date is set for the future. Send the quote to Zuora, and define the activation dates. The quote has now been sent to Zuora Billing.

Step 19

Navigate to Zuora Billing to review the subscription.

Step 20

Subscription 91 for the customer Yell is now pending activation. View the subscription and set the activation dates post-submission.

Step 21

With the subscription pending, define the activation date. For example, set it to April 1st, 2025.

Step 22

Click Save.

Step 23

We've learned how to activate or set an activation date on a subscription or pending subscription based on a quote from Salesforce. There is also a method to set the activation date from Salesforce itself. Let's explore that.

Step 24

Here is another quote created for Harper, which has been sent to Zuora. The subscription details show as 92. Now, review the subscription details in Zuora Billing.

Step 25

Subscription 92 is pending activation. As demonstrated previously, you can set the activation dates in Zuora Billing, but we'll learn to do it from Salesforce.

Step 26

To proceed, click on Harper's opportunity and navigate to the New Quote Studio page to create a new quote. Scroll down to find subscription 92 with a "Set Activation Dates" button. Click it to define the service activation date.

Step 27

Set the service activation date to May 1st, 2025, and do the same for the customer acceptance date. Click Save to confirm the activation dates for this subscription.

Step 28

Return to Zuora Billing and refresh the page to verify the change in activation status. Subscription 92 should now be active. Version 1 is also active.

Step 29

As you scroll down, you can see...

Step 30

The contract's service activation date is set for May 1st, 2025, and the customer acceptance date is also May 1st, 2025.

Step 31

In the Subscription Change History section, observe the changes in subscription dates.

Step 32

Back in Salesforce, the Set Action button is no longer available for editing in the list of subscriptions.

Step 33

The button is no longer visible for subscription 92. We have successfully learned how to create a pending subscription quote in Zuora CPQX. This feature enables sales teams to secure customer approval in advance for services scheduled for the future, ensuring accurate activation dates in Zuora Billing when the start date is reached.