Quotes – Create and Send

To learn how to create and send Quotes to your customers, see the video below. Or, if you prefer, scroll past the video to view our step-by-step text instructions.

Quotes let you propose work and pricing to a customer and get their approval before you start. You build the quote in Skimmer, send it by email or print it, and Skimmer tracks whether the customer approves or rejects it.

Once a quote is approved, you can create related work orders and invoices straight from it.

The Quotes page

The Quotes page is where you create, find, and manage every quote. To open it, click Quotes from the left navigation menu.

The tiles across the top show the dollar value of quotes sent, expired, approved, and rejected in the last 30 days.

Below the tiles, the All Quotes tab lists every quote, and the Draft tab lists quotes you haven't sent yet. Each row shows the quote's date, number, customer, total, expiration date, status, invoice total, and work orders. To narrow the list, filter by start date, end date, status, customer, quote number, or tags.

From each row, you can:

• View a quote - Click the view icon on the quote's row.
• Take a quick action - Click the more icon on the quote's row, and then choose Convert to Job, Send Quote, Mark As Approved, Mark As Rejected, Edit, Duplicate, Preview, Print, Archive, or Delete.
• Work with several quotes at once - Select the checkbox next to each quote, and then choose an action above the list: Send Quote, Mark as Sent, Print, Archive, Unarchive, Add Tags, Remove Tags, or Delete.

Quote statuses

Quote icons

Quote icons provide an easy visual cue for important information. Hover on an icon to view more information.

Icon	Where it appears	What it means
Alert	To the right of the status	The customer doesn't have an email address on file. Sending the quote marks it as Sent without emailing it. To email the quote, add an email address to the customer's profile. Hover over the icon to see the message.
Rejected reason	To the right of the status	The customer rejected the quote. Hover on this to view the reason.
Overdue invoices	To the right of the customer name	The customer has past due invoices. Hover over this icon to see how many.
Tags	To the right of the invoice number	The customer account has been assigned tags. Hover on this to view the tag names.

Tips & tricks

• Margin - Skimmer calculates margin as ((rate − cost) / rate) × 100. It only shows when every line item has a cost, so enter 0 for any item without one.
• Numbers - The Qty and Cost fields don't accept commas. Enter 1500, not 1,500.
• Expiration dates - Use an expiration date for work with costs that change over time. To reopen an expired quote, edit it and set a new expiration date.
• Rejected quotes - Edit the quote, for example to add a discount, and send it again. The status returns to Sent and the rejection reason clears.
• Defaults and reminders - Set your default customer message, approval alerts, email defaults, and automatic reminders in your quote settings. For more information, see Quotes – Select Settings.
• Copying a quote - To reuse a quote for another customer, click the more icon on the quote's row, and then click Duplicate. For more information, see Quotes – Manage Options.
• Quotes in the field - Techs with the right permissions can create quotes and collect signatures in the mobile app. For more information, see Quotes – Create and Approve on Mobile.

Create a quote

Creating a quote consists of choosing the customer, adding quote details such as parts, fees, and labor, saving the quote, and sending the quote to the customer.

1. From the left navigation menu, click Quotes.
2. In the top-right corner of the Quotes page, click Create Quote.
3. Select the customer:
   • Existing customer - Click the Select Customer field and choose the customer.
   • New customer - Click Add New next to the Customer field, and then fill in the Add Customer page. This works well for prospects who aren't customers yet. For details, see Add a new customer from a quote below
4. On the Create Quote page, review the billing address and phone number. Skimmer fills them in from the customer's profile.
5. (Optional) Click the Tags field and choose any tags for the quote. Customers don't see tags.
6. Confirm the Quote Date. It defaults to today, but you can pick a different date.
7. (Optional) Select an Expiration Date. After this date, the customer can't view or approve the quote.
8. Under each service location the quote covers, click Add New to add a line item.
9. Fill in the line item details, and then click Apply:
   • Item - Select an item from your product catalog.
   • Description - Describe the work or product.
   • Qty - Enter the quantity.
   • Cost - Enter what your company pays. Customers don't see the cost.
   • Rate - Enter what you charge the customer.
   • Taxable - Check this box to apply tax.
10. Repeat steps 8 and 9 for each line item you need. As you add line items, Skimmer updates the quote total and the margin. The margin is for your team only and doesn't appear on the customer's quote.
11. Review the Message to Customer. It starts with the default message from your quote settings. Any changes you make here apply to this quote only.
12. (Optional) To include a PDF, image, or video with the quote, click Attach File next to Message to Customer. You can attach up to five files per quote, up to 25 MB each.
13. (Optional) In Internal Notes, add anything your team needs to know, like where you are in the sales process. Customers never see internal notes.
14. (Optional) To add a deposit, a discount, or a fee, click Add next to Deposit, Discount, or Fee, and enter a flat amount or a percentage. Continue to Save and send the quote to complete your quote.

Add a new customer from a quote

If the quote is for someone who isn't in Skimmer yet, you can add them without leaving the quote.

1. On the Create Quote page, click Add New next to the Customer field.
2. On the Add Customer page, fill in each section:

   Section	What to enter
   Customer Info	Required: first name, last name, and billing address, including city, state, and zip. You can also add a company, customer code, phone numbers, and email addresses. Check Send invoices under each email address that should receive invoices. To show the company name instead of the person's name, check Display As Company.
   Tags	(Optional) Any tags you use to group customers.
   Service Location Info	Required: the service location's address, including city, state, and zip. If it's the same as the billing address, check Make same as billing address. You can also add a location code and select a sales tax group.
   Body of Water Info	Required: at least one body of water you service at this location: Pool, Spa, or Water Feature. Pool is selected by default. You can add more later.

3. Click Save. Skimmer returns you to the Create Quote page with the new customer selected and their service location ready for line items.

Save and send the quote

When the quote is ready, click the arrow next to the Save button in the top-right corner of the quote details page and choose what happens next:

To send the quote by email:

1. Click the arrow next to Save, and then click Save & Send.
2. In the Save & Send Email window, review the To, Subject, and Message fields. Changes here apply to this email only and don't affect your default template.
3. Click Save & Send. The quote's status changes to Sent. Your customer gets an email with the quote total, deposit, and expiration date, and a Review and Respond button that opens the full quote.

Send quotes from the Quotes page

You can also send one quote or multiple quotes from the list of quotes on the Quotes page:

• Send one quote - Click the more icon on the quote's row, and then click Send Quote.
• Send multiple quotes - Select the checkbox next to each quote, and then click Send Quote above the list. The Bulk Send Quotes by Email window shows how many quotes will be sent and lists any that won't, with the reason. To receive a quote, a customer needs an email address on file or quote texts turned on. Click Continue to send the quotes that can go out.

If the customer doesn't have an email address on file, sending one quote from its row marks it as Sent but doesn't email it. However, if your company and customer are set up for texting quotes, Skimmer texts the quote.

In a bulk send, Skimmer skips that quote unless the customer has quote texts turned on. Add an email address to the customer's profile to email the quote.

Print quotes

You can print one quote or several at once. If you're handing a printed quote to the customer instead of emailing it, save it with Save & Mark As Sent so its status shows Sent.

To print one quote, click the more icon on the quote's row, and then click Print.

To print several quotes at once:

1. On the Quotes page, select the checkbox next to each quote you want to print.
2. Above the list, click Print. A loading indicator appears while Skimmer prepares your quotes, and one combined PDF with all the quotes you selected opens when it's ready.

What a printed quote shows

Every printed quote uses the same layout, and long customer messages print in full. The signature block always stays on the same page as the totals.

The Name & signature and Date lines at the bottom depend on the quote's approval:

FAQ

What does my customer see?

Your customer sees the line items, rates, total, deposit, expiration date, and your message. They don't see your costs, margin, internal notes, or tags.

How does my customer approve a quote?

They click Review and Respond in the email, review the quote, and approve or reject it. For more information, see Quotes – Customer Approval Process.

Can I change a quote after it's approved?

Only the internal notes. Everything else is locked, but you can still create related work orders and invoices.

Can I collect a deposit?

Yes. Add a required deposit when you create the quote. The customer pays it when they approve. For more information, see Quotes – Deposits.

Can I text a quote instead of emailing it?

Yes. Turn on Send 'Quote' texts when quote is ready on the Service Text Settings page (Settings > Services Texts), and check Send quote texts for the customer.

What comes next after approval?

Create the work from the quote. For more information, see Quotes – Create Related Work Orders and Quotes – Create Related Invoices.