Give customers a pricebefore the first call
An online price estimator gives a customer an indicative price based on their answers. Your team gets the job details and pricing context before calling, so the first conversation can start with what the customer actually wants done.
The estimate is the start of the enquiry, not the final quote.
The team can confirm details, arrange a site visit, and prepare a formal quote where needed.
How it works
How a customer-facingestimator works
The customer answers questions about the job, receives an estimate, and the business gets a structured enquiry to review.
- 01
Ask for details the customer knows
Ask about the job, property, preferences, location, and timing. Keep technical decisions for the team to confirm.
- 02
Set a fair pricing rule
Use the answers that genuinely affect price. Be clear that the result is an estimate when a site visit or closer inspection may change the final quote.
- 03
Review the enquiry before calling
The team sees the customer's answers and estimate context, then chooses the next step: call, request more detail, arrange a visit, or prepare a formal quote.
- 04
Keep follow-up and the outcome visible
Track the conversation through to won or lost. Use follow-up tools where they fit, then hand a won job to the software used to deliver it.
When it fits
When does an estimatormake sense?
Use one when the price can be fair
Start with whether a customer can answer the questions needed for a useful estimate. A heat pump business might ask about the home and the work requested. If the right price depends on details only an installer can assess on site, do not force an estimate. Collect the details that will make the first call useful instead.
Make it part of the enquiry process
An estimator is most useful when it fits the business's pricing approach, gives customers a clear expectation, and feeds details into a team process that can handle the enquiry. It is one way to capture demand that already exists. It does not bring visitors to the website.
Strelve combines a customer-facing price estimator with enquiry tracking and follow-up through to the sale. It does not prepare formal quotes or manage jobs after they are won. Read how Strelve works alongside job-management software.
Common questions
Questions tradebusinesses ask
- Does an online price estimator replace a formal quote?
- No. It gives the customer an indicative price based on the answers and pricing rules the business has set. The team can then confirm the job details and prepare a formal quote when the work needs one.
- Which trade businesses are a good fit?
- It suits businesses that can give a credible starting price from information a customer can provide. If key pricing details require a site visit or technical inspection, use the form to collect useful job information without promising a price the business cannot stand behind.
- What does the business get from the form?
- The team receives the customer's contact details, answers about the job, and the estimate context before making the first call. That gives the conversation a more useful starting point than a name and a request to call back.
- Is this the same as a quote calculator?
- A quote calculator often helps the business work out a price while preparing a quote. A customer-facing estimator lets the customer answer questions and receive an indicative price before the team calls. Some businesses need one type, some need the other, and they are not interchangeable.
Next step
See whether an estimatorfits your enquiry process
Explore the demo or compare the Free and Professional plans for your trade business.