How We Simplified Customer-Specific Pricing in NetSuite

When every customer has a different price, maintaining pricing in Excel becomes a nightmare

Introduction

Every customer may have different pricing agreements based on their business relationship, order quantity, or negotiated rates.

For distributors managing hundreds of customers, maintaining these prices in Excel spreadsheets can become difficult. It can lead to incorrect pricing, manual work, and problems with profit margins.

One of our clients was facing this exact challenge. Their sales representatives were managing customer pricing outside NetSuite and manually updating prices when entering sales orders.

SmartSource Technologies helped the client simplify its pricing process by bringing customer-specific pricing into NetSuite.

The Client's Challenge

The client was a distributor with hundreds of customers, each having different negotiated prices for various products.

Since pricing information was maintained in spreadsheets instead of NetSuite, sales representatives had to check prices manually and update sales orders.

This created several problems:

• Incorrect Pricing: Sales representatives sometimes used outdated or incorrect prices.

• Manual Work: Employees spent extra time checking spreadsheets and updating sales orders.

• Margin Issues: Incorrect pricing affected expected profit margins.

• Customer Disputes: Pricing differences sometimes led to disputes with customers.

• Slow Order Processing: Manual price verification delayed sales order entry.

As the business grew, managing customer pricing through spreadsheets became more difficult.

The client needed a centralized pricing process that was easy to manage and reduced manual errors.

Our Solution

SmartSource Technologies reviewed the client's existing pricing process and redesigned the pricing structure using NetSuite's standard features wherever possible.

Our goal was to make customer pricing easier to manage without creating unnecessary complexity.

1. Customer Pricing

We used customer-specific pricing to maintain negotiated prices directly in NetSuite.

This allowed sales representatives to access the relevant pricing information when creating sales orders, reducing the need to refer to external spreadsheets.

2. Price Levels

We used price levels to organize different pricing structures based on the client's business requirements.

This helped simplify pricing management and reduced the need for repeated manual price adjustments.

3. Quantity Pricing

Some customers received different prices based on the quantity they ordered.

We used quantity pricing where required to support these volume-based pricing agreements.

4. Customer-Specific Pricing Agreements

For customers with unique negotiated prices, we configured customer-specific pricing to better support their individual agreements.

This helped ensure that sales representatives could access the appropriate prices during order entry.

5. Pricing Validation

We introduced validation controls to reduce incorrect pricing changes and unnecessary manual overrides.

These controls helped the client maintain pricing consistency while allowing authorized users to make required adjustments.

6. Targeted Customization

Where standard NetSuite functionality did not fully meet the client's requirements, we introduced targeted customization.

This allowed us to address specific pricing needs while keeping the overall solution simple and easier to maintain.

The Results

With the new pricing structure in NetSuite, the client improved how customer pricing was managed.

The key benefits included:

• Consistent Pricing: Customer-specific prices were easier to access and manage.

• Reduced Manual Work: Sales representatives relied less on spreadsheets and manual price changes.

• Better Margin Control: Improved pricing accuracy helped protect expected profit margins.

• Faster Order Entry: Sales representatives spent less time checking prices and updating orders.

• Improved Control: A structured pricing process made it easier to manage customer agreements.

The new process helped the client manage pricing more efficiently while supporting its day-to-day sales operations.

Why It Matters

When customer pricing is managed through spreadsheets, businesses can face errors, delays, and a lack of control.

Managing pricing directly in NetSuite helps bring customer agreements and sales order processing into one system.

However, adding too many customizations can make pricing difficult to maintain.

The important thing is to understand how the business manages its pricing and configure NetSuite to support that process.

The goal wasn't to build a complicated pricing engine. It was to make NetSuite understand the client's existing pricing model.

Conclusion

Managing different prices for hundreds of customers does not have to be complicated.

By using NetSuite's customer pricing, price levels, quantity pricing, and validation controls, businesses can reduce manual work and improve pricing accuracy.

At SmartSource Technologies, we focus on understanding the client's business requirements and using standard NetSuite functionality wherever possible, with customization only when needed.

A well-designed pricing process helps businesses reduce errors, improve efficiency, and manage customer relationships with greater confidence.

Need Help Optimizing Your NetSuite Pricing?

SmartSource Technologies helps businesses improve NetSuite pricing, sales order management, and business processes through practical solutions tailored to their needs.

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