Task to automate
Automate quote requests with AI
Answering a quote request often means a lot of manual work: reading, asking follow-up questions, looking up prices and formatting a quote. An AI automation can prepare all of that, so you only need to review and send.
What does this task involve?
A quote request comes in by email, through a form on your website, via a chat message or over the phone. Then the real work starts: you read what the customer wants, ask for what is missing, look up your prices and standard texts, format the quote, send it and keep track of whether you get a reply.
In many businesses this is mostly done by hand, in between other work. Because requests are similar but never quite the same, it is a task where AI can really help with the preparation.
Why does it take so much time?
- Requests arrive through different channels and are often incomplete
- Emails go back and forth to ask about sizes, quantities, address or timing
- You look up and retype prices, line items and standard texts again and again
- Every quote has to be formatted in your own house style
- Replying quickly is hard while you are on the job, so requests pile up
- Follow-up slips when you have to remember it yourself
How an automation works, step by step
An example of how such a workflow can run. We tailor the exact steps to the way you work and the software you use.
- 1
A request comes in
Emails and form submissions are picked up automatically, however the customer gets in touch.
- 2
AI reads the request
Customer details, the type of work or product, quantities, preferred timing and what is still missing.
- 3
Ask for missing details
Information missing? A draft email with the right follow-up questions is ready for you.
- 4
Prepare a draft quote
Based on your own price list, standard texts and quote template, in your own layout.
- 5
You review and send
You check the quote, adjust where needed and decide yourself whether and when it goes out.
- 6
Follow-up and records
The request is added to your customer list or CRM, and you get a reminder if there is no reply.
Example scenario · fictional
An example of how it could work in practice
A small painting business receives this request through the form on its website:
“We would like to have the living room and hallway painted. Could you send us a quote?”
- The automation recognises the type of work (interior painting) and the rooms, and sees that the surface area, the preferred timing and the address are missing.
- The owner gets a draft email with exactly those three follow-up questions, reads it and sends it.
- When the customer replies, the automation prepares a draft quote using the line items from the business’s own price list and its standard texts.
- The owner notices that a ceiling also needs to be included, adjusts one line item and sends the quote personally.
- The request is in the customer list, with a reminder to call if there is no reply.
This is a made-up example for illustration, not a customer case and not a measured result. How it works for you depends on your way of working, your software and the kind of requests you receive.
What you keep checking yourself
- Every quote and every draft reply before it goes to a customer. AI output may be incorrect or incomplete.
- Prices, discounts, extra work and exceptions
- Whether the request was understood correctly, especially for unusual jobs
- Commitments about timing, delivery and conditions
- Which requests you do or do not take on
This is also in our terms and conditions: you remain responsible for checking AI output, such as draft emails and quotes, before it is used or sent.
Which software is often connected?
Email and calendar
The email program where requests arrive, such as Gmail or Outlook, and your calendar for appointments and reminders.
Website and forms
The contact or quote form on your site, or a chat channel customers use to reach you.
CRM or customer list
A CRM package or a simple customer list where requests and follow-ups are tracked.
Quoting and accounting software
The program you now use for quotes and invoices, or a document template in your house style.
Price list or spreadsheet
Your rates, products and standard line items, for example in a spreadsheet.
Scheduling
A planning tool or shared calendar, if a quote also includes a provisional date.
The programs mentioned are only examples of commonly used software. What can be connected depends on what you use; we look at that in the scan.
Frequently asked questions about automating quote requests
Does the AI send quotes to customers on its own?
Not by default. The automation prepares a draft quote or draft email and you decide what gets sent. Only if you want it to can a simple step, such as an acknowledgement of receipt, be sent automatically.
Does it work with my current quoting or accounting software?
Often, yes, but it depends on what your software can connect to. In the free scan we look at which programs you use and what is possible with them.
What do I need to get started?
Your price list or rates, a few examples of previous quotes and your standard texts, and access to the channel where requests come in, such as your mailbox or website form.
What happens with an unclear or unusual request?
You can have it flagged for manual handling. The automation then prepares, for example, only a summary and follow-up questions, and you put together the quote yourself.
Is this worth it for a small business?
Mainly if you regularly receive similar requests. If you only get a request now and then, or every job is completely different, automation pays off less. We will tell you that honestly in the scan.
What about privacy and the GDPR?
We work with the GDPR in mind and only process the data needed to handle the request. We make clear agreements about this in advance. Read more in our privacy policy.
What does it cost?
That depends on what your quoting process looks like and which software needs to be connected. After the free scan you receive a tailored proposal, with no obligation.
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Curious what this could do for your quotes?
In the free 30-minute scan we look at your quoting process together and at what you can automate.
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