A quote in a handbag
A couple spend an hour in your showroom on Saturday. They sit on three sofas, choose a fabric and ask for a price on a corner sofa with a footstool. The sales person writes it out, or prints it from the till, and hands it over. They say they will measure up and think about it. The quote goes into a handbag.
On Monday, the sales person is with other customers. Nobody calls the couple. They visit two other shops over the next fortnight, and one of them emails a quote with photos, then rings to ask if they have any questions. That is where they buy.
Why quotes are not followed up
- Quotes are on paper or in the till, not in a list anyone reviews.
- Customer contact details are not always taken.
- Sales staff work shifts, so the person who made the quote may not be in.
- There is no reminder to follow up, and no agreed timing.
- Nobody can see how many quotes turn into orders.
A furniture quote is a customer who has chosen a piece, a size and often a fabric. They are close to buying. Letting it go cold wastes the time spent in the showroom.
What cold quotes cost
| Gap | Result |
|---|---|
| No follow-up | Customers buy from the retailer who did follow up |
| Paper quotes | Customers lose them or cannot share them at home |
| No open quote list | Managers cannot see the pipeline |
| No record of outcome | No idea why quotes are lost |
How we keep quotes warm
- Quotes are built on a tablet or the till and saved as a record with the customer's name, email and phone, taken with their agreement.
- The customer gets the quote by email straight away, with photos of the product in their chosen fabric, the price, lead time and a link to order online or book a call.
- Follow-ups are sent at points you set, such as a couple of days later with an offer to answer questions, then again before the quote's price is due to change.
- Each sales person gets a daily list of their open quotes, sorted by value and age, with a note of any that the customer has opened or clicked.
- When a quote is converted, online or in store, it is linked to the order and the sales person.
- Quotes that are lost can be marked with a reason, such as price, lead time or bought elsewhere, and the reasons are reported.
The following week, done differently
The couple leave the showroom with the quote already in their inbox, with photos of the corner sofa in the fabric they chose. On Tuesday, they get a friendly email asking if they managed to measure up, with a link to the access guide. The sales person's list shows they opened the quote twice, so she calls them on Wednesday. They have a question about the footstool size. She answers it, and they order online that evening from the link in the quote.
Getting the timing right
Not every customer wants to be chased. Follow-ups can be switched off for a customer who asks, and the wording is always yours. The sales person can pause the automatic follow-ups on a quote if they are in touch in another way. Promotions ending, price changes and new fabric books are natural reasons to get in touch, and the system can remind staff of them for open quotes. How you use customer contact details is covered by your privacy notice.
Managers get a view they never had before: open quotes by branch and by sales person, how many convert and the reasons others are lost. That helps with training, and it shows whether a promotion or a change to lead times affects how many quotes turn into orders.
Signs your quotes go cold
- Quotes are handed over on paper.
- Nobody follows up quotes systematically.
- You cannot list open quotes and their value.
- Sales staff do not know if a customer looked at their quote.
- You do not know why quotes are lost.