You spent an hour on-site. You measured up, worked out the materials, typed up a detailed quote, and sent it through. That was eight days ago.
Nothing. No yes. No no. No "we went with someone else." Just silence.
You think about following up but it feels awkward. Pushy. Like you're desperate for the work. So you don't. The quote sits in your sent folder. The job goes to whoever did follow up.
This happens to every tradie. Most don't realise it's a system problem, not a sales problem.
Quote follow-up is the most overlooked revenue leak in trades businesses. Unlike missed calls — which feel urgent — cold quotes feel like lost causes. They're not. A significant percentage of them are still winnable, weeks after you sent them.
Why quotes go cold
A quote going cold rarely means the customer chose someone else. More often it means one of these:
They got busy
The job wasn't urgent enough to act on immediately. They meant to reply but life got in the way. A single prompt is enough to bring them back.
They're comparing quotes
They sent the same job to three tradies. They're waiting to see who else responds and at what price. Following up signals you actually want the work — which matters more than most tradies think.
They had a question they didn't ask
Something in the quote confused them or they wanted clarification. Rather than reply with a question, they went quiet. A follow-up that invites questions unlocks these.
The timing changed
The job got pushed back — budget, scheduling, other priorities. A follow-up three weeks later catches them when the timing is right again.
Industry data consistently shows that 20–30% of cold quotes are still winnable with a single follow-up. For a tradie sending 10 quotes per month at an average job value of $600, that's 2–3 recovered jobs worth $1,200–$1,800 per month from one follow-up message.
The three-touch follow-up sequence
Three follow-ups is the right number. Too few and you leave recoverable jobs on the table. Too many and you damage the relationship. Here's the exact sequence, timing, and message for each touch.
Touch 1 — 48 hours after sending
Channel: SMS
Purpose: Catch the people who got busy and forgot. Keep it short and low-pressure.
Message template
"Hi [Name], just following up on the quote I sent through on [day]. Happy to answer any questions if anything's unclear. No worries if you've gone another direction — just let me know either way. — [Your name], [Business name]"
Touch 2 — 5 days after sending
Channel: SMS
Purpose: Catch the quote comparers. Add a small piece of value to differentiate from competitors who haven't followed up.
Message template
"Hi [Name], checking in on the quote for [job type]. We've got availability in [timeframe] if you'd like to lock something in. Happy to walk you through anything on the quote if it helps. — [Your name]"
Touch 3 — 10 days after sending
Channel: Phone call (or SMS if no answer)
Purpose: Final touch. Close the loop either way. A phone call on the third touch signals genuine interest and separates you from every other tradie who gave up after one SMS.
Call script
"Hi [Name], it's [Your name] from [Business]. Just calling to follow up on the quote I sent through — wanted to make sure you got it okay and see if you had any questions. Completely fine if you've gone a different direction, just didn't want to leave you hanging."
If no answer — SMS fallback
"Hi [Name], tried to call just now — no worries. This is my last follow-up on the quote for [job]. If the timing works in the future, you've got my number. — [Your name]"
What to automate vs what to do manually
The honest answer is that most tradies won't run this sequence manually. Not because they don't want to — because they're on the tools all day and the follow-up keeps getting pushed to tomorrow.
That's why the sequence needs to be automated. Here's how to split it:
Automate these
Do these manually
The automation handles the repetitive touches. You handle the conversations that actually need you. This is the correct division of labour — it means you're only spending time on warm leads who are ready to talk, not chasing cold ones manually.
The numbers — what this is worth
Let's put a real number on it. These are conservative estimates based on typical trades business metrics:
| Scenario | Quotes/month | Cold rate | Recovery rate | Monthly gain |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Solo plumber | 8 | 25% | 30% | $540 |
| 2-truck electrician | 15 | 25% | 30% | $1,013 |
| HVAC business | 20 | 30% | 30% | $1,800 |
Based on $450 average job value for plumber/electrician, $750 for HVAC. Recovery rate of 30% on cold quotes with a three-touch sequence.
These numbers assume you're only recovering 30% of cold quotes — which is conservative. The actual recovery rate depends on how quickly you follow up, the quality of your messages, and how competitive your pricing is. Some businesses see recovery rates of 40–50% with a well-timed sequence.
Revenue Leak Calculator
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Frequently asked questions
How many times should you follow up on a quote?
Three times is the sweet spot for most trades businesses. The first follow-up at 48 hours catches people who got busy and forgot. The second at 5 days catches people who were comparing quotes. The third at 10 days is the last touch — after that, the lead is cold and further follow-up does more harm than good.
What's the best way to follow up on a quote without being pushy?
Frame every follow-up as helpful, not desperate. Ask if they have questions rather than asking if they've decided. Give them an easy out — 'no worries if you've gone another direction' — which paradoxically increases reply rates because it removes pressure.
Should I follow up by phone or SMS?
SMS for the first two follow-ups, phone call for the third. SMS has a 98% open rate and doesn't require the customer to be available at a specific time. A phone call on the third touch signals that you're genuinely interested in their job — not just running an automated sequence.
The bottom line
Cold quotes aren't lost jobs. Most of them are waiting for someone to follow up. The tradie who follows up three times — with the right message at the right time — wins a significant percentage of jobs their competitors have already given up on.
The system above works. The problem is running it manually while you're on the tools. That's where automation earns its keep — or where a managed service like Vorticon runs the sequence for you so you never have to think about it.