- What you are doing, in the customer's words not yours
- What is included and what is explicitly not
- The price, and whether it is fixed or an estimate
- What happens if the job changes once you have started
- How and when you expect to be paid
Example conversation with Writing
You
Turn this into a proper quote: rewire a three-bed semi, 5 days, £4,200, they want it done before they move in on the 14th.
Writing
Full rewire, [address]
What is included: complete rewire of all circuits, new consumer unit, sockets and switches replaced like for like, certification on completion, and making good to plaster.
What is not included: redecoration after making good, and any upgrade to the incoming supply if the DNO requires it.
Price: £4,200. Fixed, not an estimate.
Timing: 5 working days. Starting the 6th completes the 12th, two days before your move.
If anything is found once the floors are up, I will price it and get your approval before doing it.
Payment: 30 percent on start, balance on certification.
What is included: complete rewire of all circuits, new consumer unit, sockets and switches replaced like for like, certification on completion, and making good to plaster.
What is not included: redecoration after making good, and any upgrade to the incoming supply if the DNO requires it.
Price: £4,200. Fixed, not an estimate.
Timing: 5 working days. Starting the 6th completes the 12th, two days before your move.
If anything is found once the floors are up, I will price it and get your approval before doing it.
Payment: 30 percent on start, balance on certification.
The two lines that stop the argument are the ones nobody writes.
The fifth point is the one that prevents the argument. Put payment terms on the quote, not on the invoice.
Paste this to LUKE
Write me a quote for this job: [describe it]. Price is [amount]. Include what is covered, what is not, and my payment terms of [terms]. Keep it short and plain.
Try it on your business
Every lesson ends with a question to hand to a Greymill specialist, who answers with what it knows about your business.
More in Pricing and profit
- Working out what to chargeNot what competitors charge. What covers your costs and leaves a margin.Read the lesson
- Is this job actually profitable?The one where the answer is usually no, and it is always the same type of job.Read the lesson
- Raising your pricesYou will lose some customers. That is usually the point.Read the lesson