What actually works
6 things that move the number.
Speed is the whole game. Customers rarely pick the cheapest quote; they pick the first credible one. The steps below take the thinking out of pricing so the quote can go out from the van.
Build a rate card once
Call-out fee, hourly rate, the twenty jobs you do most with a fixed price, and your standard parts. Pricing from a list is minutes; pricing from memory is an evening.
Quote from the enquiry, not from a blank page
The customer already told you what, where and when. A quote that starts pre-filled with those details needs only the line items.
Send a link, not an attachment
A quote the customer can open on their phone and accept with one tap converts better than a PDF they have to reply to. And you see when it was opened.
Make the quote the start of the job
Accepted quote → job with the same line items → invoice from the job. Re-typing anything is where extras get lost.
Chase at day two and day five
Most quotes are not rejected, just forgotten. A short “still want this doing?” at day two and a last one at day five recovers work you had already earned.
Put a validity date on it
“Valid 14 days” gives the customer a reason to decide and you a reason to chase.
The shortcut
Service Business OS does this for you.
Every step above is built into the Service Business OS — seeded for a trade business, running the day you launch it, with your approval on anything that reaches a customer.
Quotes from your rate card
Line items priced from your services and parts; the quoting agent drafts the first version from the enquiry text.
Share link the customer can accept
Every quote has a public link — accept or decline on their phone, and you see the decision.
Quote → job → invoice
An accepted quote converts to a work order; the invoice is raised from the job with the extras that were actually logged.
Follow-up that doesn’t forget
Open quotes are chased for you; you approve the message before it goes.
This is the live Service Business OS running right now with demo data — the system your trade business version is configured from. Open it full-screen →
Common questions
Questions worth asking.
Can I quote from my phone?
Yes. The rate card, the quote and the share link all work from a phone, so the quote can go out from the van before the next job.
What if the customer wants changes?
Edit the line items and re-send; the link stays the same and shows the latest version. Once accepted, it becomes the job.
Does the customer need an account?
No. The share link opens without login; accepting or declining is one tap.
Features reflect the current platform as of August 2026 and continue to expand — the live demo above always reflects what's actually deployed.
More guides
Other Service Business OS problems, answered.
Your trade