How to Continue After a Quote
How to Follow Up On a Quote and Why You Should: A Simple Guide
You got a great lead, sent out a detailed quote or estimate, b ut haven't heard back…now what? Though it might seem like you have to call it a day and move on to greener pastures, you still have a shot at turning an unresponsive lead into a committed client. You just need to use the right approach.
Sending customized and timely quote follow-ups is one of the best ways to transform stale quotes into clients who can help you grow your business.
Here's how follow-ups can scale your business:
- According to some business owners, it's not hard to have a successful business as long as you show up and follow through. It's the secret sauce behind this entrepreneur's record-breaking year for revenue and profit .
- If you win the customer's heart, you'll likely win the contract . Following up can really impress your prospects and help them make an easy decision.
- Software can automate follow-ups , so your clients will get personalized emails and texts without you doing any extra work.
So where do you begin?
When it comes to quoting follow-ups, you've got questions, and we've got answers.
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Why should I follow-up on quotes?
When you follow-up on a quote, you keep the line of communication open between you and your prospect.
Maybe they missed your email, or maybe they want some clarification on a specific aspect of the job before committing. If you don't check-in, you'll never know!
READ MORE: How to make a quote for a job: free price quote template and examples
This can be challenging to keep track of. So, either keep solid notes in your calendar, or rely on a good field service management software like Jobber. Jobber automatically follows up with the customer when you finish a visit or a job.
"Jobber has filled the gap between me and my customers. They feel like they have a relationship with TurFresh. I can't be thankful enough for the software. It's really helped me connect with customers and grow my business."
John Pla , TurFresh
Read about how Dan Holliday uses Jobber to follow up with his clients
"I can use the app on-site to make a quote instead of taking notes, going home, and typing it into Excel. Then, I email it directly using the templates Jobber created."
Check out his story
Why are quote follow-ups important?
Sending a follow-up demonstrates that you're organized, on the ball, and that you care about customer satisfaction. That goes a long way in creating lifelong customers.
Your potential customers are looking for someone who wants their business, not someone who's indifferent about whether or not they sign a contract.
If you're not convinced that taking a customer-first approach is important, don't forget that if you win the customer's heart, you win the contract. Follow-ups turn quotes into customers.
Most follow-ups only take a couple of minutes, too. When you compare that time spent following up to how much you'd make from a potential job, it's a no brainer—follow-ups pay for themselves many times over.
READ MORE: Should you offer free estimates or paid quotes? Find out here
Do follow-ups work?
The short answer is yes. Absolutely!
Just like anything else, quote follow-ups only work if they're done the right way. Here's how you can get started:
1. Demonstrate your professionalism
Your message should be short, sweet, and free of typos.
Bonus points if it's branded with your logo, company name, and addresses the job your prospect wanted your expertise for.
2. Follow up in a timely manner
Sending a follow-up too early or too late will leave an undesirable impression.
Send your first quote or estimate follow up 2-3 days after a quote, if you haven't heard back yet.
3. Keep client (and prospect) information organized
Past clients shouldn't get quote reminders and leads shouldn't get requests for reviews. In order for your follow-ups to be impactful, you need to be organized and on the ball when it comes to client management. Jobber's field service CRM tracks all of your customer information for you. Providing a full client history, including quotes, jobs, visits, and invoices, available at your fingertips.
Take it from John Pla, owner of TurFresh , who firmly believes in following up.
"Everything is about follow up. I've had a successful career in home improvement. I've always said to all my friends and colleagues that it's not hard to have a successful business as long as you show up and follow through."
"If you follow-up immediately with a customer, say, 'Hey, how did we do? Are you happy? If you're not, we're willing to make you happy.'"
Following up means that John knows how pleased his customers are with a quote or a job, and it helps him understand how well his team is really doing on the jobsite and with his customers.
It's the secret sauce behind his record-breaking year for revenue and profit.
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How do I follow up on quotes?
There are three ways to follow up on quotes you've sent out to potential customers: email, text, or a phone call.
1. Follow up by email
Emails are one of the most common ways that service providers communicate with clients.
If you choose email follow-ups, you have two main options: manual and automated emails.
Manual emails
Sending manual email follow-ups means that you will need to write, customize, and send each email individually.
This can be manageable when you only have a few clients or leads to work with, but as your business grows it will become harder to organize and track things like quotes, invoices, and payments.
Don't forget: If your employees need to access emails to stay in the loop, then you'll need the login details for your email account.
READ MORE: Estimate disclaimers – terms and conditions samples
Automated emails
Alternatively, automated emails can be set up using client management software that does the work for you.
Using Jobber's automated email follow-ups , you can write a follow-up message, choose when to send it, and customize who it's sent to.
For example, you could choose to send a simple follow-up email to any clients who haven't confirmed quotes after three days.
With Jobber, handling the admin side of your follow-ups, you'll have more time to focus on getting jobs done.
2. Send follow-up text messages
If your customers prefer communicating via text message then prioritizing quote follow-ups with text messaging will help you close more deals
According to a study we conducted , 84% of homeowners say that being able to text their service provider was important or very important to them.
Plus, 58% of homeowners said they hear back from their service providers within an hour if they texted.
Manual text messages
Manual text messages have the same downfalls as manual emails. Sending out individual texts to clients can be time consuming, messages can get missed, and typos can be made–especially when work gets busy.
Again, this is only viable when you have a small client-base. As your business grows, it'll become harder to send, receive, and respond to all of your prospects while keeping track of who's who.
Automated text messages
Jobber offers the same options for text messages as it does for emails, but with an added bonus: you can have a two-way conversation with your clients through text message.
This option lets you easily keep track of all incoming and outgoing texts in one single message center. Plus, all conversations relating to quotes, invoice, work requests, and more are in one place, so nothing gets left behind.
A big bonus is that all this information and communication can be seen by your whole team when they use Jobber.
Anyone with access to your Jobber account can answer customer questions and concerns. Customers aren't left waiting for a response, and you can give them the type of customer service you want , even while focusing on the bigger picture— growing your business
3. Give customers a call to follow up
Phone call follow-ups are becoming less popular for following up.
While phone calls can add a personal touch, they can also be inconvenient, difficult to track, and time consuming for you and a potential client.
With emails and texts, you can see the conversation history between you and a client, which helps if you ever need to go back and confirm details about a job.
Unless you record each phone call you have with a customer, verbal follow-ups just don't offer the same benefits.
It's best to only phone clients who have specifically requested them.
So, what method should you choose?
When it comes to sending professional follow ups, it's best to follow your customer's lead. Stick with the same method you used to send out a quote, and go with what your individual customers prefer.
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Getting started with quote follow-ups
Before you can follow-up on a quote, you need a way to organize them so that you don't end up contacting the wrong clients, sending too many messages, or following up too late.
That means that you have to get your paperwork in order. It's essential that you keep track of who you contact, when you contact them, and what services you provided
CRM software will do all the heavy lifting for you to help you:.
- Organize all of your customer information in one place
- See past quotes, jobs, visits, invoices, and billing history
- Search for customer accounts with client search
- Attach notes and files to client accounts
- Manage leads and act on leads faster
If you choose a CRM that doubles as field service management software, then you'll be able to build professional quotes and send invoices through email and text messages too . Plus, there's the added bonuses of sending quote and payment reminders.
Setting up your follow-up flow
Each client that you have should follow a similar path in terms of your communications to them from the first time you talk to each other to how you plan to keep in touch after a job is finished.
Ideally, you want your main communication strategy to look something like this:
On site or virtual estimate ➡️ Quote ➡️ Contract ➡️ Invoice ➡️ Payment
Throw in follow-ups, reminders, and promotions as needed to nudge a client from one step to the next.
Follow-ups are an easy and straightforward way to get more customers, but only if they're done well.
Software that keeps clients organized, automates follow-ups, and facilitates conversations makes you look like a professional, legitimate, and dedicated business owner.
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Originally published 10/2020. Last updated on 10/06/2021
Source: https://academy.getjobber.com/resources/articles/follow-up-on-quotes/
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