Reply to new website leads instantly
“People fill out the contact form on our site, but by the time I reply a few hours later, they've already booked with someone else.”
Lead Management
Re-engage stalled quotes and cold estimates automatically
“We send out dozens of quotes and bids every month, but never have time to follow up before leads go cold.”
The short answer
Build a 48-hour automated quote revival sequence that detects unviewed or unaccepted proposals and sends a friendly, value-first follow-up via SMS and email. Most service bids are lost not on price, but because the customer got distracted or a faster competitor followed up first. Automating two timed touchpoints revives high-intent buyers without requiring your sales reps or field technicians to manually remember who to call.
- ~5 hours/week back (estimated)
- 20 minutes to set up
- Easy difficulty
How we estimated that: Assumes ~5 hours a week previously spent reviewing sent quotes in spreadsheets and typing out individual follow-up emails. This is a model, not a measurement — check it against your own numbers, because if the assumption does not match your business the figure will not either.
What you'll need
- OpenPhone
Sends automated SMS follow-ups from your primary business number when a quote milestone triggers.
Watch the pricing: Starter is $15/user/mo billed annually ($180/yr per seat) or $19/user/mo billed monthly; Business is $23/user/mo billed annually or $33/user/mo monthly.
Pricing checked 2026-08-02 — source. - Make free tier leanest paid option
Listens for quote status changes in your estimating or CRM tool and schedules the 48-hour follow-up.
Free until: Free plan includes 1,000 operations/month.
Watch the pricing: Core tier starts at $9/mo billed annually ($10.59/mo monthly) for 10,000 operations.
Pricing checked 2026-08-02 — source.
We are not paid by any tool listed here. If a cheaper or better option exists, that's what you'll see.
Pricing above was checked on 2026-08-02. Vendors change their terms without notice, and free tiers do get withdrawn. We take no money from any vendor listed here. If something on this page is out of date, tell us and we will correct it.
How to set it up
- Tag Quotes as Sent in Your Billing or Estimating Tool
When an estimate is emailed to the client, record the timestamp and customer phone number into a central tracking table or CRM webhook.
- Create a 48-Hour Delay Trigger in Your Automation Engine
Set a timer in Make or Zapier to wait exactly 48 hours after quote delivery before evaluating client status.
- Filter for Unaccepted Proposals
Verify that the proposal status has not changed to 'Accepted', 'Paid', or 'Declined' before proceeding with the outreach step.
- Send a Single Clarification Follow-up via SMS
Deliver a short, personalized SMS: 'Hi [Name], just checking in on the estimate we sent over Tuesday for [Job]. Do you have any questions on the scope or timeline before we reserve crew slots?'
Common questions
- Will automated quote follow-ups feel spammy to commercial clients?
- No, because the message references the exact project name, comes from a real local number, and asks a genuine question about scope and timeline rather than applying aggressive sales pressure.
- How many automated follow-up messages should we send?
- Two touchpoints maximum: one SMS at 48 hours and a brief email recap at day 5. If they do not respond, archive the quote to keep your pipeline clean.
- What if the customer replies directly to the SMS?
- The text arrives in your business inbox (like OpenPhone or your shared email) so your dispatch or sales team can take over the conversation immediately.
Last reviewed 2026-08-04. Tools change — if something here is out of date, tell us and we'll fix it.
Related fixes
Bring back past clients automatically
“Clients come in once or twice and then drift away, and I don't have time to personally reach out to hundreds of people.”
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