Revenue Cloud: Proof of Concept or Period of Clarity?

Rolling out Salesforce Revenue Cloud is a big step. Done right, it can completely transform how you sell, quote, and bill. But like any powerful tool, it comes with complexity. That’s why doing a POC (proof of concept) is so important.

But let’s stop thinking of a POC as a tech test and redefine what it truly means: a proof of concept is a way to explore the product, mitigate risk, and, more importantly, build confidence before going all in. If done right, a POC is in reality an eye-opener, a Period Of Clarity, where your organization has the chance to see the product in action in a real use case, not in a demo.

We recently started a Revenue Cloud proof of concept engagement with a Global Fortune 500 company. They are currently using Salesforce CPQ (managed package) as their main quoting tool for non-services Products, and PSQuote for the Services products. Their goal was to assess Revenue Cloud as a replacement for Salesforce CPQ (managed package) for non-services Products, keeping PSQuote for Services. PSQuote already proved to be the right solution for services quoting, and since it works seamlessly with Revenue Cloud (aka Revenue Cloud Advanced (RCA)), the focus of the POC was on the Product quoting process.

In this article, we explore our lessons learned and how we think a Revenue Cloud proof of concept should be approached.

RCA Proof of Concept Goals

A well-run POC isn’t about proving that Salesforce works. We all know it does. For our customer, this was clear from the beginning. The POC is about seeing how it will work for your business, your products, your pricing, your approval processes, your data, and your uniqueness.

Think of it like test-driving a high-performance car on your actual roads, not a perfect track. It gives your team a chance to touch it, test it, and ask real questions before committing to a full implementation.

Also, if you’re facing challenges with your current CPQ implementation (like most of the organizations!), building confidence that the new tool can help alleviate some of the pain helps reduce the skepticism in the team, setting the right foundation for a full implementation.

Revenue Cloud Proof of Concept Structure

Before jumping into what a good POC looks like, we want to emphasize the importance of bringing a trusted partner early on. One of the biggest mistakes companies make is trying to go through a POC on their own. But the right implementation partner does more than configure Salesforce: They bring the expertise from past projects, help you avoid common pitfalls, and ask the questions you might not know to ask yet, both internally and to Salesforce. A good partner can help shape the POC so that it reflects real business outcomes, not just technical functionality. Choose someone who’s done it before and will challenge your assumptions (in a good way!).

Now, let’s talk about the POC structure. A good POC doesn’t have to take forever.

Revenue Cloud POC Blueprint (4-6 Week Plan)

1) Pick a few complex use cases

Pick a few use cases such as quoting, approvals, maybe billing, depending on the organization. Why complex? Most of the CPQ tools can probably cover your easy cases. The challenge arises when looking at the hard cases, those that require advanced tools and processing. With the POC, we want to make sure that you don’t make the same mistakes of the past, and your new CPQ tool can adapt to your complex business needs.

Use cases that are good POC candidates are those that typically you can’t solve with the current tool, and cause friction, disconnected processes, or offline tools to “make them work”.  

Choosing the right use case is not a trivial task, and this is also why having a trusted partner is critical: We helped our customer throughout the process to discard those use cases that were not going to contribute to the decision, narrowing it down to what ultimately was a good representation of the quoting complexities. 

2) Build and Configure

Configure the use cases in a sandbox environment. Yes, POCs happen in a sandbox environment. We want this process to be completely separate from your normal operation. Obtaining a Revenue Cloud sandbox is not as hard as it sounds: In our experience, Salesforce AEs are extremely open to working with you if you share with them your POC plans. They want you to be successful and will help you in this journey.

3) Demo the POC

Demo the proof of concept to the stakeholders. This is not a selling demo: It is the chance to see the product in action in a way that the team can relate to, and certainly the chance to get feedback. 

4) Identify and document

Document the gaps. The POC is NOT intended to solve all the issues that will come up in a full implementation. However, it’s a great opportunity to have a head start identifying and documenting them. 

5) Decide

Decide what’s next. Now with a better understanding of how the product can work in your particular scenarios, decide if a full implementation is viable.

A Special Word About Advanced Approvals

If you’re using Salesforce Advanced Approvals, the POC is the perfect chance to revisit how your approval flows are built. Salesforce is putting a lot of energy into Flow Approval Orchestration, and for good reason: it’s more flexible, easier to maintain, and scalable.

During the POC, try rebuilding one of your existing approval processes, maybe discount approvals or legal sign-offs, using Flow Approval Orchestration. You’ll get a sense of how powerful it can be and whether it’s time to start moving off the Advanced Approval managed package.

Also, be ready to accept that perhaps Salesforce Advanced Approvals are not robust enough to handle your approval requirements. In the engagement with our customer, we identified critical show-stoppers that justified staying in the Advanced Approval managed package for now. FOR NOW. Salesforce Advanced Approvals are also evolving, and in the long run we trust that it will be a full replacement for the Advanced Approval managed package functionality.

Final Thoughts– Period of Clarity

Implementing Revenue Cloud isn’t just about flipping a switch. It’s about getting it right, but more importantly, making sure it fits your business.

A POC isn’t a delay or a detour. It’s a Period of Clarity where big decisions get easier, risks become visible, and your team gets aligned before the real journey begins.

If you’re considering Revenue Cloud, start with clarity and start with a proof of concept. We’ll help you get started.