How to send a quote from your phone (before you leave the driveway)

Most customers get two or three quotes. The one that turns up first, while they still remember meeting you, has a real head start. Writing the quote on your phone before you leave the driveway is the simplest way to be first.

Why quote on the spot

• The customer is still interested. They just walked you round the job. An hour later they are back at work and the next tradie is booked for Thursday.
• You remember the details. Access, the damaged downpipe, the step down into the laundry. Write it while it's in front of you, not from memory on Sunday night.
• It looks organised. A clean quote that arrives before you've left the street says a lot about how you'll run the job.

Not every job can be priced on the spot. If you need a supplier price, an engineer or a second look, tell the customer when the quote is coming ("I'll have it to you by Wednesday") and send it by then.

What to capture before you open the quote

Five minutes on site saves a phone call later:

1. Contact details. Name, mobile, email and the site address (spelt right).
2. Measurements. Lengths, areas, heights, counts. Note them as you go.
3. Photos. Anything that changes the price: access, existing damage, old wiring, the meter box, a tight side gate.
4. Scope in plain words. What you're doing, and just as important, what you're not.
5. Timing. When they want it done, and any dates that won't work.

Write it fast without cutting corners

A quote from your phone should still have everything a quote needs. Our how to write a quote checklist covers the full list. The short version:

• Your business name, ABN and licence number
• A short title the customer will recognise ("Downlights and a new power point, 12 King St")
• The work, in sections or lines, with prices
• GST shown clearly if you're registered (see GST on quotes)
• What's not included
• How long the price is valid
• The deposit and how to pay it (see deposits for tradies)
• How the customer says yes

The fastest way to price on a phone is to stop typing the same items every time. Keep your common items and your costs saved, add your profit on top, and pick lines instead of writing them. A free quote template works for the odd job. A quoting app is quicker once you quote every week.

Email or text?

Send it the way the customer contacted you:

• Text gets opened fastest. It lands on their lock screen with a link to the quote.
• Email suits bigger jobs, and gives them something to forward to a partner or a body corporate.
• Both is fine, and covers the customer who never checks email.

Add one personal line ("Good to meet you today, the quote has the two options we talked about"). It reads like a person, not a system.

Make it easy to say yes

A customer who has to print, sign, scan and email a quote back often just doesn't. Give them one tap:

• An Accept button on the quote, with their name or signature
• The deposit right there, by card, bank transfer or PayID
• Options they can tick (a better tap, an extra power point) so they don't need to ring you for a new quote

Then follow it up

Most quotes aren't lost to a cheaper price. They're lost to silence. A short, friendly message two or three days later wins a lot of them back. Our guide on how to follow up a quote has messages you can copy.

Sending a quote from your phone with Karven

Karven runs in the browser on your phone, so there's nothing to install. You type the job, your trade's common items come up with your prices, and you tap Preview & send to see exactly what the customer will see. Send it by email, text or both, or send it at 8am tomorrow if it's late. The customer opens it on their phone, ticks any options, accepts and pays the deposit. You can see when they've opened it, and a quote that goes quiet shows up for a follow-up. See quoting and sending quotes by email and text for the details.