This article applies to Proposals using the October 2023 release of the "Contracts" module.

All Service & MPS rates must be configured using "Service Rate Groups" in the Regional Pricebook. Once a group is configured, we can attach one or more pricebook items to the group. Items can be configured with Current Customer and Net New Logo Service Rate Groups. A Current Customer group is required and will be used if the Net New Logo option is left blank. Pricebook Items will now highlight in red when they are missing a Current Customer Service Rate Group to highlight the importance of this field.

This image shows 3 items that are configured correctly and 3 items that are not configured. The 3 items with a red service group will not be configurable on a Proposal and cause errors for the user. These must be addressed immediately.

Admin Tools > Pricebook > Service Rate Groups tab

Service Rate Groups should be shared across items when the item service pricing matches for all service options. For example, if all Xerox A4 printers share the same B&W and Color Rates (If they have a Color Meter), and Flat Rate is allowed and that price structure is also the same across the devices, you should use a single Service Rate Group and all printers to this group. However, if you have any service rate that varies by device, for example if the Flat Rate cost varies but the CPC rates are the same, you must create a unique group.

Let's consider these scenarios:

The recommended Service Rate Group Configuration would be:

When printers are grouped on a Service Rate Group, the user can enter volume for all devices as a group on the proposal versus item by item. It is also easier to manage Service Pricing when multiple items share the same group as there are less items to manage.

When possible, attach many items into the Service Rate Groups!

Group Name

This is a friendly name that is visible to all users. On the Proposal, users will see this name and add volume for the related items. When you have many items that share the rates, give a name that represents the entire group such as "Xerox A4 Printers"; when you have a single item in the group, name the group by the item name such as "B8155".

Contract (Service or MPS)

This drop-down controls whether the items in the group can be added to an MPS agreement. When selecting MPS, all items attached to the group must also be configured to be MPS eligible.

Allow B&W Flat Rate

If enabled, all items within the group will be eligible to have the B&W meter set to flat rate. This will be a fixed fee for unlimited prints for B&W only. When color devices have B&W flat rate enabled, there is an option to discount the color CPC bands.

Allow Color Flat Rate

If enabled, all items within the group will be eligible to have the Color meter set to flat rate.

Allow Hardware as a Service

Hardware as a Service (HAAS), formerly known as MPS Refresh, is a pricing strategy that puts the equipment cost into a monthly contract payment instead of in the equipment payment. This is historically used for A4 devices but is now available to be used on all Service Rate Groups. If enabled, all items within the group will be eligible for the HAAS program.

Allow Rep Changes to Cost

This is a special setting that allows Users to change the pricing on the proposal. The Meter pricing that is set will be the default, but Users can override this. This should only be used in special groups such as Third Party Items where we may have a default cost, but certain items need to be configured within the proposal.

You must configure all the meters that exist on the items added to the Service Rate Group. You may configure meters that exist on some items but not others. For example, you can configure B&W and Color meters on your Service Rate Group and add B&W only devices to the group. The Color meter pricing will simply be ignored on the B&W only devices.

Meters can be configured with Volume Bands, Flat Rate Bands, and sometimes Discount Volume Bands.

Volume Bands

If your service rates are discounted when the customer commits to more volume, you can configure multiple volume bands with start and end volumes. As the user increases volume on devices within this service group, the rate is updated automatically.

An example of a B&W Meter that has 3 volume bands, encouraging reps and customers to commit to a higher base volume.

Flat Rate Bands

If enabled on the Service Rate Group, you can configure one or more pricing bands for Flat Rate.

An example of a Flat Rate Band with a single cost.

Discount Volume Bands

This option is only available for Color meters where the B&W Meter has the option of Flat Rate. If configured, the Discount Band will be used instead of the Volume Band if the B&W Meter is set to Flat Rate. (XBS West "Unlimited Plan")

An example of a discounted color rate when the B&W Meter is set to flat rate.