Creating and Managing Quotes

Who this is for: Business owners and office staff handling estimates and sales
Time to learn: 8 minutes
What you'll master: Create quotes, set expiration dates, send to customers, track quote status, convert accepted quotes to scheduled jobs

Why Quotes Matter

Professional quotes help you win more business and set clear expectations. Crewdex quotes automatically:

• Present services and pricing clearly
• Calculate taxes based on your rate
• Track quote status (Sent, Accepted, Rejected)
• Send formatted PDFs to customers
• Convert accepted quotes to scheduled jobs

Real example: Customer requests quote for furnace maintenance. Create quote in 3 minutes with service description ($125 labor + $35 parts), set 30-day expiration, send via email. Customer accepts quote within 2 days, you convert to scheduled job with one click.

Creating a New Quote

Step 1: Navigate to Quotes

Desktop:

1. Click Quotes in left sidebar
2. Click New Quote button (top right)

Mobile:

1. Tap Quotes (bottom navigation)
2. Tap + button (floating action button)

Step 2: Select Customer

If customer exists:

1. Click Customer dropdown
2. Search by name, email, or phone
3. Select customer from list

If new customer:

1. Click Add New Customer link
2. Enter customer name (required)
3. Enter email and phone (at least one required for quote delivery)
4. Save customer

Step 3: Add Line Items

For each service/product:

1. Click Add Line Item button
2. Enter description (e.g., "Furnace Maintenance - Annual Service")
3. Enter quantity (default: 1)
4. Enter unit price (e.g., $125.00)
5. Check Taxable if sales tax applies
6. Total calculates automatically

Common line items:

• Labor (hourly rate × hours)
• Parts (unit price × quantity)
• Service fees (flat rate)
• Equipment (rental or purchase)

Step 4: Set Quote Details

Issue Date: Auto-set to today (can be changed)
Expiration Date: Default 30 days (adjust as needed)
Tax Rate: Auto-filled from your settings (verify if correct)

Quote calculations:

• Subtotal = Sum of all line item totals
• Tax = Subtotal × Tax Rate (only taxable items)
• Total = Subtotal + Tax

Step 5: Add Notes (Optional)

Customer Notes: Visible to customer on quote PDF

• Payment terms (e.g., "50% deposit required")
• Scheduling details (e.g., "Service available Mon-Fri 8am-5pm")
• Warranty information
• Special conditions

Internal Notes: Only visible to your team (not on PDF)

• Sales notes
• Customer preferences
• Follow-up reminders

Step 6: Save Quote

Desktop: Click Save as Draft button (top right)
Mobile: Tap Save Draft button (bottom of screen)

What happens:

1. Quote number generated (format: QTE-2026-0012)
2. Quote saved with "DRAFT" status
3. Redirected to quote detail page

Sending Quotes to Customers

When Quote is Ready

Desktop:

1. Open quote detail page
2. Click Send Quote button (blue button)

Mobile:

1. Open quote detail page
2. Tap Send Quote button (bottom bar)

What happens automatically:

1. Quote PDF generated with your company logo
2. Email sent to customer with PDF attachment
3. Quote status changed to "SENT"
4. Activity logged with timestamp

Email template includes:

• Personal greeting with customer name
• Quote summary (total amount, expiration date)
• PDF attachment (professional quote document)
• Link to online quote (if customer portal enabled)

Tracking Quote Status

Quote Status Workflow

DRAFT → SENT → ACCEPTED or REJECTED

Status definitions:

• DRAFT: Quote created but not sent to customer
• SENT: Quote emailed to customer, awaiting response
• ACCEPTED: Customer approved quote (ready to convert to job)
• REJECTED: Customer declined quote
• EXPIRED: Expiration date passed without acceptance

Monitoring Quote Progress

Desktop: View all quotes in Quotes list page

• Filter by status (Draft, Sent, Accepted, Rejected)
• Sort by date (newest first, oldest first)
• See days until expiration

Mobile: View quotes in Quotes tab

• Swipe between status tabs
• See expiration warnings on cards
• Tap for full details

Converting Accepted Quotes to Jobs

When Customer Accepts Quote

Option 1: Customer accepts via portal (automatic)

• Quote status automatically changes to "ACCEPTED"
• You receive notification

Option 2: Manual acceptance (phone/email approval)

1. Open quote detail page
2. Click Mark as Accepted (overflow menu)
3. Select approval method (Phone, Email, In Person, Other)
4. Add optional note
5. Click Mark Accepted

Converting to Job

Desktop:

1. Open accepted quote detail page
2. Click Convert to Job button (green button)
3. Select scheduled date and time
4. Click Create Job

Mobile:

1. Open accepted quote detail page
2. Tap Convert to Job button (bottom bar)
3. Select scheduled date and time
4. Tap Create Job

What happens automatically:

1. Job created with all quote line items
2. Customer linked to new job
3. Quote marked as "CONVERTED_TO_JOB"
4. Job scheduled with selected date/time
5. Redirected to new job detail page

Editing and Managing Quotes

Editing Draft Quotes

You can edit:

• Line items (add, remove, modify)
• Customer notes
• Internal notes
• Issue date
• Expiration date
• Tax rate

Desktop: Click Edit Quote button
Mobile: Tap Edit in overflow menu (⋮)

Resending Quotes

If customer didn't receive or lost quote:

1. Open quote detail page
2. Click Send Again button
3. Confirm resend

What happens:

• Same PDF regenerated and emailed
• Activity logged (resent timestamp)
• Status remains "SENT"

Previewing Quote PDF

Before sending or anytime:

Desktop:

1. Open quote detail page
2. Click Preview PDF button (Actions card)

Mobile:

1. Open quote detail page
2. Tap ⋮ overflow menu
3. Tap Preview PDF

PDF preview features:

• View in browser
• Download to device
• Open in new tab
• Same PDF customer receives

Deleting Quotes

You can delete quotes with these statuses:

• DRAFT
• SENT
• REJECTED

You cannot delete:

• ACCEPTED quotes
• CONVERTED_TO_JOB quotes

To delete:

1. Open quote detail page
2. Click Delete Quote (overflow menu)
3. Confirm deletion

Quote Best Practices

Creating Effective Quotes

✓ Do:

• Use clear, customer-friendly descriptions
• Break down labor and materials separately
• Set realistic expiration dates (30 days typical)
• Include payment terms in notes
• Add warranty information if applicable

✗ Don't:

• Use internal codes or abbreviations
• Quote too low to win job (hurts profitability)
• Set expiration too short (pressures customer)
• Forget to include all costs (travel, disposal, etc.)

Following Up

Recommended timeline:

• Day 3: Friendly check-in ("Did you receive the quote?")
• Day 7: Answer questions, offer to discuss
• Day 14: Final follow-up before expiration
• Day 28: Offer to extend expiration if still interested

Converting More Quotes

Increase acceptance rate:

• Respond quickly to quote requests (within 24 hours)
• Present professional, detailed quotes
• Explain value, not just price
• Make approval easy (online portal, email, phone)
• Follow up consistently
• Build trust with clear communication

Troubleshooting

Quote Won't Send

Problem: "Send Quote" button disabled or error message

Solutions:

1. Verify customer has email address
2. Check quote has at least one line item
3. Ensure quote total is greater than $0
4. Verify internet connection

Customer Didn't Receive Quote

Problem: Customer says they didn't get the email

Solutions:

1. Check customer email address is correct
2. Ask customer to check spam folder
3. Resend quote from quote detail page
4. Download PDF and send via text/other method

Cannot Edit Sent Quote

Problem: Edit button is disabled after sending

This is expected behavior.

Solutions:

1. Create new quote with revised pricing
2. Mark old quote as "REJECTED"
3. Send new quote to customer
4. Add note explaining revision

Quote Expired Before Customer Responded

Problem: Quote shows "EXPIRED" status

Solutions:

1. Contact customer to ask if still interested
2. Create new quote with updated expiration date
3. Send new quote (don't reuse expired quote)

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