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New-inquiry scripts, for the first reply and the questions that follow

Six messages for the stretch before a job exists — a same-hour reply that keeps you in the running, the questions that decide if it’s quotable, an honest answer to “what’s this roughly cost,” and a polite way to say no — fill in your details once at the top of this page and every script below rewrites itself.

Most of what decides whether you get a job happens before a number exists — in how fast you reply, and whether that reply asks the right questions instead of guessing. A quote sent a week after someone first got in touch is quoting into a gap that whoever answered first has usually already filled.

These six scripts cover that stretch: a same-hour first reply for email, a one-line version for a text sent from wherever you’re standing, the questions that turn a vague ask into something you can actually price, an honest way to answer “can you just give me a rough price,” confirming a visit once it’s booked, and a polite decline for the jobs that aren’t worth taking on. Fill in your name, your business, and the client’s name once at the top of this page, and every script below updates to match.

Scripts

Script 01 · The same-hour reply

Email

Subject: Got your message, [Client name] — here’s what happens next

Hi [Client name], Thanks for reaching out to [Your business] — got your message and wanted to get back to you quickly. To put a proper number on this I’ll need a couple of things: [photos of the area, the address, roughly when you’re hoping to get it done]. Send those over and I’ll come back with next steps, usually within [a day or two]. Talk soon, [Your name]

Why it works Replying within the hour, even with no price attached yet, is what actually keeps you in the running — a fast “got this, here’s what’s next” beats a slower message that shows up with a number already on it.

Script 02 · The one-line reply from the van

Text

Hi [Client name], it’s [Your name] at [Your business] — got your message, on a job right now but I’ll call you back by [time]. Thanks for your patience!

Why it works A one-line text sent between jobs buys the same reply-speed advantage as a full email, without needing to be at a desk to write one.

Script 03 · The questions that decide if it’s quotable

Email

Subject: A few quick questions before I can quote this

Hi [Client name], To put together an accurate number, I need a bit more detail: what exactly needs doing, and where; whether anything might make access tricky (stairs, parking, timing); roughly when you’re hoping to get it done; and whether you’re the one making the final call, or if someone else needs to sign off too. Send those over whenever’s easy, and I’ll get back to you with next steps. [Your name]

Why it works Asking these four things together turns a vague inquiry into one you can actually price, instead of guessing now and re-quoting later once something on site changes the number.

Script 04 · The honest answer to “can you give me a rough price?”

Email

Subject: A rough number, and why a visit still matters

Hi [Client name], Happy to give you a starting point: jobs like this usually land somewhere around [a rough range], depending on [the specific thing that moves it — size, condition, access]. I can’t lock in an exact number without seeing it in person — [that same thing] is the kind of detail that only shows up on site — but a quick visit gets you a firm quote instead of a guess. Want me to come take a look? [Your name]

Why it works Naming a band plus the one thing that moves it gives a real answer instead of a brush-off, while still protecting you from being held to a number you gave before you’d seen the job.

Script 05 · Confirming the site visit

Email

Subject: Site visit confirmed — [date and time]

Hi [Client name], Confirming the visit for [day and time] — it should take about [how long]. If you can have [what’s needed — access, the area cleared, whoever’s deciding available] ready, that lets me get a proper look and have a number back to you quickly. See you then. [Your name]

Why it works Spelling out what you need on site before you arrive turns the visit into fifteen minutes instead of a half-hour spent working around something nobody mentioned.

Script 06 · Turning down a job that isn’t the right fit

Email

Subject: Not able to take this one on — but thank you

Hi [Client name], Thanks for thinking of [Your business] for this. [This one’s outside my usual area / smaller than what I typically take on / not quite my trade], so I don’t think I’m the right fit this time. [If useful: a specific person or type of business to try instead]. Hope it gets sorted quickly. All the best, [Your name]

Why it works A specific, one-line reason reads as an honest no rather than a brush-off, and costs nothing — a job you can’t take still keeps the door open for one you can.

Questions

How fast do I actually need to reply?
Same day, ideally within the hour. For a smaller job, a client is often messaging more than one business at once, and the first one back is usually still in the running once the others have gone quiet. A quick “got this, here’s what happens next” does more for you than a slower, more polished reply a day later.
The inquiry went quiet before I got a quote out — what now?
That’s a step further down the line than this pack covers. Once a quote actually exists, chasing a decision on it is a different job with its own scripts, in the quote follow-up pack. This pack is for the stretch before a number exists at all — the reply, the questions, and deciding whether the job’s worth quoting in the first place.
Is it too much to ask all these questions before quoting?
Not if you ask them together instead of one at a time. Four questions sent in a single message read as someone who quotes properly; the same four trickled out over three separate emails read as someone stalling. Batch them, and most clients answer in one reply.

Keep reading

First contact

Responding to a new inquiry — the reply that keeps you in the running

The job is often decided before a quote exists — in how fast you reply, and whether that reply asks the right questions instead of guessing a number.

 Quoting

How to write a quote that wins the work (and becomes the invoice)

Line items, deposits, and terms up front — so the quote a client signs turns straight into the invoice you send, with nothing retyped.

 Quoting

How to price a job so the number holds up

A pricing method that survives contact with the actual job — covering your real costs, your time, and enough margin that a slow week doesn’t sink the good ones.

 Staying organized

Cancellations and no-shows — the policy that keeps the diary honest

A hole in the diary costs more than the job would have paid — it’s the work you turned away to hold that slot. One clear policy, stated before anything goes wrong, is what turns a moved booking into a five-minute fix instead of a fight.

Want every new inquiry landing in one place?

You still write and send these yourself — nothing here should sound like it came from software. What actually goes missing is the inquiry itself, not the reply: a text sent while you’re on a roof, a voicemail that never made it past your phone. BizBinder’s requests inbox keeps every new inquiry, however it came in, on one list, so none of them quietly gets lost in a channel you weren’t checking — and turning one into a quote is the next step once you’re ready to reply.

A human reads every one. No newsletter, ever.

Filed

You are on the list.

A person reads every request. You will hear from us within one business day.

  1. 01 A person reads your note — not a queue.
  2. 02 You get an invite as spots open.
  3. 03 Your admin starts filing itself.

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