CentriWebFollow up a quote three or four times over two to three weeks, then close it off. Send a short check-in a day or two after the quote goes out, a useful nudge at the end of the first week, and a final message in week two or three. If there’s still no answer, mark it lost and move on.
That’s the whole schedule. The rest of this guide covers what to say at each step, which channel to use, and how to set it up so it runs without you having to remember.
The short answer: three to four touches, then close it
Most people who go quiet after a quote haven’t said no. They’re busy, they’re waiting on another quote, or they need to run it past a partner, a landlord or a strata manager. A follow-up gives them an easy way back to you. Without one, the job often goes to whoever was easiest to deal with.
One follow-up is usually too few. Ten is too many and starts to feel like pressure. Three or four well-timed messages give a busy customer enough chances to reply without feeling chased. The exact number matters less than this: every message should be useful on its own.
| Touch | When | Purpose | Best channel |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Day 1 to 2 | Check the quote arrived and invite questions | Text |
| 2 | Day 6 to 8 | Add something useful: a start date, an option, a clarification | Text, or a call for big jobs |
| 3 | Day 14 to 21 | Last call, and permission to say no | Text or email |
| 4 (optional) | When something changes | A price, schedule or seasonal change worth mentioning | Text or call |
Adjust the timing to the job. An urgent repair might run the whole schedule in a week. A full bathroom renovation might stretch it to a month, because the customer is still saving or sorting out finance.
Day 1 to 2: the ‘any questions?’ check-in
The first follow-up has one job: make sure the quote landed and invite questions. Quotes end up in spam folders. They get opened on a phone at the footy and forgotten. A short text a day or two later catches both problems.
Keep it short and personal. Use their name, mention the job, and ask something they can answer in one line. Don’t ask “Are you ready to go ahead?” this early. It puts them on the spot, and the honest answer is usually “not yet”.
If they reply with a question, answer it the same day. A quick, clear answer at this stage often counts for more than a small difference in price.
End of week one: the useful nudge
By the end of the first week the customer has probably had other quotes in. This is where “just checking in” falls flat. Give them a reason to reply instead.
- A start date. “I’ve got a gap the week of the 14th if that suits.” Real dates make the job feel close.
- An option. A cheaper fitting, a staged approach, or doing the urgent part first.
- A clarification. What’s included that other quotes might leave out, such as rubbish removal, compliance certificates or making good.
Only mention a date if it’s real. If you say a slot is filling, it should be. Customers can tell when urgency is made up, and it costs you trust.
For bigger quotes, this is the step to pick up the phone. A two-minute call often brings out the real hold-up, whether that’s price, timing or a question they felt silly asking.
Week two to three: the last call
The final message gives the customer permission to say no. That sounds backwards, but it works. People who have gone with someone else will often tell you, which saves you chasing. People who are still keen get a gentle push to reply.
Say you’ll close the quote off unless you hear back, and leave the door open. Then do what you said. Mark it lost, note the reason if you know it, and stop messaging.
The optional fourth touch is not another chase. It’s for when something genuinely changes: your supplier prices are going up, your schedule opens up, or the season matters for the job. A message a few months later that says “we’re booking spring jobs now, is the deck still on the cards?” can win work back.
Text, email or phone: which works for which job
- Text suits small and medium jobs and quick nudges. It gets read, and customers can reply from anywhere.
- Email suits detail: a revised quote, an options breakdown, photos of similar work, or your terms.
- Phone suits big quotes, anything with an objection, and customers who have asked questions. Talking clears up in two minutes what can take five texts.
A simple rule: text by default, email when there’s an attachment, and call when the job is big enough that losing it would hurt. Builders quoting new homes need a longer, more personal process; see how builders follow up a new home quote.
Templates you can copy
Reword these so they sound like you, and add one detail specific to the job. Customers can spot a canned message.
Touch 1 (day 1 to 2, text)
Hi [Name], it’s [Your name] from [Business]. Just checking the quote for the [job] came through OK. Happy to answer any questions about it.
Touch 2 (day 6 to 8, text)
Hi [Name], [Your name] here. I’ve got a free morning on [day and date] if you’d like to get the [job] sorted. If price is the sticking point, I can also quote a [cheaper option]. Let me know either way.
Touch 3 (day 14 to 21, text or email)
Hi [Name], I’ll close off your [job] quote at the end of the week so it’s not hanging around. If you’ve gone with someone else, no problem at all. If you’d still like to go ahead, just reply and I’ll lock in a date.
Touch 4 (optional, when something changes)
Hi [Name], [Your name] from [Business]. We quoted your [job] back in [month]. Our supplier prices go up next month, so if it’s still on the list, now’s a good time. No worries if it’s already sorted.
Automating the schedule so it runs while you work
The schedule only works if it happens every time, and that’s hard to do from memory when you’re on the tools all day. This is where automated follow-ups earn their keep. The same goes for calls you miss while you work: missed call text back replies to those for you.
Most job management software can do this, and so can a simple CRM. The setup looks like this:
- When you send a quote, the job moves to a “Quoted” stage.
- That stage sends the three follow-ups on the days you choose, from your business number, so replies come back to you.
- The moment the customer replies, the sequence stops and you get a notification to answer personally.
- If they accept, the job moves to “Won”. If touch 3 gets no reply, it moves to “Lost”.
A word on the rules. Under the Spam Act, ACMA says commercial texts and emails need the recipient’s consent, must identify who sent them, and must include a way to unsubscribe. A customer who asked you for a quote has usually given you a reason to contact them about it. To stay on the safe side, name your business in each message, keep follow-ups about their quote rather than general promotions, and stop straight away if they ask. This is general information, so check ACMA’s guidance before sending anything broader.
Putting it into practice this week
- Pull up every quote from the last three weeks that hasn’t had an answer.
- Work out where each one sits on the schedule and send the right message.
- Save the templates in your phone or job software, reworded in your own voice.
- Close off anything older than a month and note why, if you know.
- Decide whether you’ll keep doing it by hand or set it up to run automatically.
If you’d rather the schedule ran from your quoting system, CentriWeb sets up quote follow-up for trades businesses, so every quote gets chased and every reply comes straight to you.