You sent the quote. Now what?
If you’re like a lot of contractors, the answer is “nothing.” You wait for the customer to call back, and when they don’t, you assume they went with someone else.
But the quote is often still undecided, not lost. A quick, friendly follow-up within 24 hours keeps you in the running while the customer is still deciding.
The follow-up gap
Most contractors fall into one of three categories:
- Never follow up: Send the quote and hope for the best
- Follow up once, awkwardly: Call a week later, feel pushy, give up
- Systematic follow-up: Timed sequence, multiple touches
Category 3 gives every quote more chances to close. Often the difference isn’t the quality of the work or the pricing. It’s the follow-up.
A simple follow-up timeline
Day 0: Send the quote
Send it within a couple of hours of the site visit, while the job is fresh in the customer’s mind.
Day 1: Check in (24 hours later)
“Hi [name], just checking if you had a chance to look over the quote I sent yesterday. Happy to answer any questions!”
This is usually your most valuable follow-up.
Day 3: Add value
“Hi [name], wanted to mention — we have availability next week if you’d like to get started. The quote is good through [date].”
Create urgency without being pushy.
Day 5: Last touch
“Hi [name], just a final check on the quote for [project]. No pressure either way — just didn’t want it to slip through the cracks. Let me know!”
This catches the customers who genuinely forgot.
After day 5: Stop
If they haven’t responded to 3 follow-ups, they’re not interested right now. But they might be later — add them to your seasonal marketing list.
Why contractors don’t follow up
“I don’t want to seem pushy”
Following up isn’t pushy. It’s professional. Doctors follow up on test results. Lawyers follow up on contracts. You’re following up on a project the customer specifically asked you to quote.
The customer asked for the quote. They’re expecting to hear from you.
“If they wanted to move forward, they’d call”
No they wouldn’t. Homeowners are busy. Your quote is sitting in a text thread behind 50 other messages. They meant to respond Tuesday but forgot. Your follow-up is doing them a favor.
“I’m too busy to follow up on every quote”
This is the real reason — and it’s the easiest to solve. Automated follow-up sequences send these messages for you. Set them up once, and every quote you send gets the same professional follow-up without you thinking about it.
The math on follow-ups
Let’s say you send 20 quotes per month at an average of $3,000. Every extra quote that closes because you followed up is $3,000:
- 1 extra job a month = $3,000/month, $36,000/year
- 3 extra jobs a month = $9,000/month, $108,000/year
Your numbers will differ — but 3 automated text messages per quote cost you almost nothing to send.
What NOT to do
- Don’t call. Text. Many homeowners prefer text over calls. Your call goes to voicemail; your text gets read when they have a minute.
- Don’t discount. Never lead with “I can take 10% off.” That signals desperation and trains customers to wait for discounts.
- Don’t follow up more than 3 times. After 3 touches, you’re being pushy. Move on.
- Don’t wait a week. The magic window is 24-48 hours. A week later, they’ve already hired someone else.
The system
The best follow-up system is one you don’t have to think about:
- Send the quote
- Automated text at 24 hours
- Automated text at 72 hours
- Automated text at 120 hours
- If the customer accepts at any point, the sequence stops automatically
- If they don’t respond, they go into your re-engagement list for seasonal marketing
This runs in the background for every single quote. No sticky notes, no reminders, no “I should really call that guy back.”
Your job is to show up, do great work, and send accurate quotes. The software handles the rest.
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