Getting Volume Discounts: How License Quantity Can Lower Salesforce Prices – Negotiating Tiered Discounts for Large User Counts or Big Purchases
Salesforce is renowned for being a powerful platform, but it comes with a hefty price tag.
But if your organization is onboarding hundreds or thousands of users, there’s good news: Salesforce volume discounts can dramatically lower your per-user costs. Learn more about how to maximize discounts in Salesforce deals.
In this guide, we explain how Salesforce’s tiered pricing model rewards large purchases and how to negotiate discounts for high user counts or significant deals – without ending up with shelfware.
Why Volume Discounts Matter in Salesforce Negotiations
Enterprise buyers negotiating Salesforce license costs know volume discounts are essential. A single-digit price drop per license can translate to six-figure savings on a large Salesforce contract.
In other words, a good volume deal directly lowers your Salesforce total cost of ownership and frees up budget for other priorities.
Additionally, the larger your user base, the greater your leverage. Salesforce will be more flexible on pricing for a major commitment, making volume one of your strongest tools for negotiating Salesforce pricing.
Salesforce’s Tiered Discount Structure Explained
Salesforce employs a tiered pricing structure for volume-based licensing discounts, where the higher the volume of licenses purchased, the greater the discount percentage. There are quantity price breaks at various thresholds (though exact tiers aren’t published).
For example, a small purchase might pay the full Salesforce list price, but a deal involving hundreds of users could earn 20% or more off, and thousands of users might see a discount of 50% or more.
This tiered approach defines the Salesforce discount structure. Salesforce’s CPQ software can automate these discount schedules (supporting both tiered (range-based) and “slab” pricing methods), although most deals ultimately use a single flat discount rate for all licenses.
How License Quantity Impacts Pricing Tiers
The quantity of licenses directly determines the pricing tier you are assigned to. As the number of users climbs, the Salesforce net price calculation shifts in your favor – you unlock better discount brackets that lower the cost per user.
For instance, 50 users might yield little to no discount, whereas 500 users could net a much lower price per seat. Be mindful of the significant threshold breakpoints and discuss them with your Salesforce representative.
Just remember: only chase a higher tier if you truly need those licenses. The goal is real savings on licenses you will use, not just a headline-grabbing Salesforce discount percentage that comes from buying extras you don’t need.
Negotiating for Bigger Discounts Without Overbuying
To secure a bigger discount without paying for unused licenses, focus on tactics that give you flexibility:
- Negotiate future volume: Instead of overbuying now, negotiate the right to add users later at the same discounted rate. If you anticipate growth, lock in today’s volume pricing for those future licenses so you won’t pay a premium when you scale up.
- Use multi-year ramp-ups: In a multi-year deal, structure a gradual increase in users. You’ll get the higher-volume discount locked in, but without having to deploy (and pay for) every license on day one.
- Avoid shelfware: Don’t buy more licenses than necessary just to hit a tier. Paying for excess “shelfware” will waste money and erase the benefit of a bigger discount.
Avoiding Shelfware and License Waste
“Shelfware” refers to paid Salesforce licenses that remain unused – a costly situation to avoid. Unused licenses still hit your budget and drive up costs needlessly. To dodge this Salesforce shelfware risk, be disciplined and realistic.
Phase your license purchases in line with actual rollouts, and monitor utilization closely. If some licenses aren’t being used, address it before renewal (either reassign them or plan to drop them) so you’re not paying for capacity you don’t need.
Learn more about Special Salesforce Discount Programs.
Applying Volume Discounts Across Multiple Clouds or Products
If you’re investing in multiple Salesforce products (Sales Cloud, Service Cloud, Marketing Cloud, etc.), leverage your combined spend in negotiations.
Salesforce won’t automatically give a cross-product discount, but you can push for one by presenting the deal holistically:
- Leverage total spend: Negotiate all your Salesforce products together. The larger total contract value will give you more leverage for volume discounts across the board.
- Negotiate each product: Don’t assume a great price on one cloud guarantees a great deal on another. Different products have separate pricing, so push for a discount on each. And if Salesforce offers a bundle, ensure you truly need every component; otherwise, you’ll pay for unused services.
Multi-Year and Volume Discount Strategy Interactions
Longer contract terms often accompany volume discounts.
A Salesforce multi-year discount strategy can amplify your savings: by committing to multiple years, you might secure extra percentage points off on top of the volume break.
Crucially, multi-year deals allow you to lock in pricing, ensuring you’re protected from list price increases during the term. Ensure that any built-in price increases are minimal – you don’t want an annual uplift to eat away at your volume discount gains.
Contract Clauses to Protect Your Volume Pricing
Negotiating a good price is only half the battle – you also need to protect it. Include contract terms that safeguard your volume pricing:
- Price locks and caps: Add clauses to fix your discounted rate for the term and cap any renewal increase (e.g,. no more than 5%). This ensures your volume savings aren’t undone later.
- Add-on protection: Any licenses added mid-term should carry the same discount and co-terminate at the renewal date. Expanding your user count won’t dilute your negotiated rate.
- Renewal flexibility: Negotiate some ability to reduce or re-scope licenses at renewal. If your user count drops, try to maintain the same discount tier to prevent your price from increasing.
Learn more about the best timing for Discounts.
Enterprise Negotiation Tactics for Volume Discounts
Approach your Salesforce deal with a solid game plan. Here are some proven tactics for an enterprise Salesforce pricing negotiation:
- Plan early and know your needs: Start before your renewal. Audit your current usage to determine the exact number of licenses you truly need. This prevents last-minute panic buying or overestimation.
- Benchmark the pricing: Research what similar organizations pay (benchmark data). Knowing market rates lets you confidently demand a fair volume discount and spot an overpriced offer.
- Consolidate demand: Combine your Salesforce purchases across departments. A larger unified deal gives you more leverage; you’re likely to get a bigger break on one big contract than on many small ones.
- Utilize competitive pressure: Engage with other CRM vendors (or at least make it clear that you have options). A credible alternative keeps Salesforce motivated to offer its best volume deal. They won’t take your business for granted if you could walk away.
Conclusion & Call-to-Action
Volume discounts are one of the best ways to tame Salesforce costs at scale – but only if you use them wisely.
Large license volumes (and multi-year commitments) can indeed significantly lower Salesforce prices, as long as they align with real needs and are backed by the right contract protections.
If you want extra assurance that you’re getting the optimal deal, consider bringing in an independent Salesforce licensing advisor to benchmark your proposal and guide your negotiation.
With expert help and solid preparation, you can confidently secure a volume-based agreement that delivers maximum value.
Read more about our Salesforce Contract Negotiation Service.
