Quotes that convert (and protect you)
A quote is a promise with edges. The template's job is making the edges explicit: what is included, until when, at what tax.
What it must contain
- Quote number and issue date
- Validity period — prices expire, say when
- Itemized scope with quantities
- Tax treatment shown (estimated per destination)
- Acceptance line — how the customer says yes
- Reference to terms of sale
In SeroBooks an accepted quote converts to an invoice in one click, lines intact.
The mistakes that cost money
An estimate with no expiry date is a price you have offered forever, which matters when supplier costs move. An estimate that does not state what is excluded invites the argument later — delivery, installation, disposal of the old unit.
And an estimate that looks identical to an invoice gets paid or filed as one. Label it clearly, number it in its own sequence, and state plainly that it is not a request for payment.
When a template stops being enough
The moment you have several open estimates, the question stops being 'what did I quote?' and becomes 'which of these is still live, and what are they worth?'. A folder cannot answer that, so the pipeline lives in someone's memory.
The other break point is conversion: re-typing an accepted estimate into an invoice is where transcription errors enter, and they always favour the customer.