[June 23, 2011]

PLATO Learning Implements BigMachines SaaS Selling Platform

BigMachines, Inc., the leader in product configuration, pricing and quoting, proposal generation and B2B ecommerce, today announced that PLATO Learning, Inc. has successfully deployed the BigMachines Selling Platform. BigMachines automates product selection, pricing, approvals and proposal generation for PLATO's Customer Finance Consultant team.

PLATO Learning is a leading provider of education technology solutions, offering innovative online courses for kindergarten through adult learners that include reading, writing, mathematics, science, social studies, and life and job skills. They have more than 50 years of experience in the educational technology market.

PLATO chose to self-implement the BigMachines Selling Platform, replacing their existing quoting and pricing tool. Prior to implementation, members of the PLATO team attended BigMachines Administrator Training, where they learned how to set up and maintain their BigMachines software platform. With guidance from the BigMachines Professional Services team, they were able to implement their new web-based selling solution in under three months.

BigMachines now supports product selection, improved sales proposals and a tiered pricing structure. BigMachines is integrated with PLATO' Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system from salesforce.com. BigMachines also automates PLATO's sales tax calculations. In addition, BigMachines is used to automate discount approvals, ensuring pricing controls and accuracy.

"BigMachines has taken our quoting process to a new level and the integration with our CRM and tax software helps this business process run more efficiently," said Mitch Wacker, director of finance operations for PLATO Learning. "By self-implementing, we have enabled our internal team to continuously improve and add features beyond our phase one deployment. The professional training and support we received from the BigMachines team has been great throughout the entire process. In the end, the greatest benefit will be the ability for our sales professionals to deliver higher quality, tailored proposals that will meet or exceed our customers' expectations for contracting requirements and turnaround times."

"We congratulate PLATO on a successful self-implementation of BigMachines," said Shane Anastasi, Senior Vice President, Services and Support, BigMachines. "We have developed our implementation processes using best practices from hundreds of successful BigMachines customers. This streamlined methodology enables customers like PLATO to manage their own self-led implementation. PLATO's success is validation of our methodology, and we look forward to helping more customers sell more and sell faster using BigMachines."

About BigMachines

BigMachines is the global leader in enabling B2B sales, helping companies sell more and sell faster. BigMachines' award-winning on-demand configurator, pricing and quoting, proposal generator, and B2B eCommerce software solutions empower sales across customers' channels by streamlining their sales processes from opportunity to order. Using BigMachines software, sales teams and channels can quickly configure products, generate quotes and proposals, manage complex pricing, generate legal contracts, and manage orders. BigMachines offers extensive reporting capabilities and easily integrates to leading CRM and ERP systems, including those from salesforce.com, Oracle (News - Alert), Microsoft and SAP. BigMachines' rapidly growing customer base includes global leaders such as Kodak's GCG, Siemens, Ingersoll Rand, and NTT Communications, as well as innovative growth companies such as Acme Packet and Voltaire (News - Alert). For more information, visit www.bigmachines.com.

About PLATO Learning, Inc.

PLATO Learning is a leading provider of high-value, comprehensive education technology solutions with a focus on learner achievement leading to academic and career success. With more than 50 years of experience driving significant advances in the industry, PLATO offers a wide variety of innovative solutions spanning a multitude of program areas to facilitate 21st century teaching and learning. For more information on PLATO Learning, visit www.plato.com, like our Facebook page, or follow us on Twitter.

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