For a home-service business (pressure washing, window cleaning, house washing, gutters, holiday lighting, or house cleaning), follow up on an unanswered quote two or three days after you send it, again about a week later, and one last time around two weeks in to ask whether you should close it out. Then stop, unless they’ve asked you to check back later.

That’s three touches over about two weeks. Keep every message short, make it easy to reply, and text only customers who’ve agreed to get texts.

Why do customers stop responding after I send a quote?

Silence usually isn’t a no. These are the usual reasons, most of them named by owners in a Window Cleaning Resource thread on estimates that get no response (2016):

• They’re still comparing quotes from other companies.
• Saying no feels awkward, so they say nothing.
• The price surprised them.
• Life got in the way, or the job is waiting on something else, like painting or a trip.
• They need to check with someone else.
• They never saw it. Quote emails get buried.

Only price is close to a real no, and a smaller option can sometimes fix that. The rest just need a reminder.

How soon should I follow up on a quote?

Two or three days after you send it. In a Pressure Washing Resource (PWR) thread on following up on quotes (2022), most owners said day 3. One warned that after a week, the customer may already have had the work done.

Two habits help:

1. Say when you’ll check in. Add one line when you send the quote: “I’ll check in Thursday in case you have questions.” Then the follow-up is expected, not pushy.
2. Call sooner if you know they’ve looked. One owner in a PWR thread on follow-up calls (2019) calls within 24 hours of a customer opening the estimate.

How many times should I follow up, and when do I stop?

Three times over about two weeks, then close the loop. Owners don’t agree on the number: some make one call and move on, and one owner in the 2022 PWR thread follows up around days 3, 8, and 13. Most of them stop chasing within about two weeks.

Stop sooner when:

• They reply, even with a no. Turn off any automatic messages for them right away. A “just checking in” after they’ve told you they hired someone else looks careless.
• They give you a date. “Check back in March” means March.
• They ask you to stop.

Sample follow-up timeline (illustration only). A starting point to adjust, not a rule:

What do I say when a customer hasn’t responded to my quote?

Keep it short, friendly, and about them. No “offer ends Friday” unless it really does. Every message should be easy to answer in a word or two.

First follow-up (text, day 2–3):

Hi [Name], it’s [Your name] with [Business]. Just making sure your [service] quote came through: [link]. Any questions I can answer?

Second follow-up (text or email, about a week):

“Hi [Name], [Your name] from [Business] again. Does the quote fit what you had in mind? If the price or the timing isn’t right, tell me. I may have a smaller option that works.”

If price is the problem, offer less work, not a lower price for the same work. Good, better, and best options make this easy: point them to the smaller package. More in our guide to pricing packages and bundles.

Last follow-up (email, about two weeks):

Subject: Should I close out your [service] quote?

“Hi [Name], I haven’t heard back, so I’ll guess now isn’t the right time. If you still want it done, just reply “yes” and I’ll pick it back up. Thanks for considering us.

[Your name], [phone] “

Phone call:

“Hi [Name], it’s [Your name] with [Business], following up on the [service] quote you asked for. Do you have any questions about it?”

Then stop talking and let them answer. They asked for the quote, so a call isn’t a bother (the advice in the 2019 PWR thread). If they’re ready, offer a day.

Voicemail:

“Hi [Name], [Your name] with [Business] about your [service] quote. No rush. Call or text me at [number] if you have questions.”

Should I text, email, or call?

Use more than one, and switch channels on the second touch.

• Email carries the quote link and the details. It’s a good first and last touch.
• Text is quick to read and quick to answer. Only text customers who agreed to get texts.
• Call for bigger jobs and the jobs you really want, like a street you’re trying to break into. A call is also the best move right after a customer opens the quote.

You don’t have to call. One owner in the 2019 PWR thread sends the quote, a follow-up email, then a text, and then marks the lead dead.

What about quotes from months ago?

For a one-time job, an old quote is still a warm lead: the customer asked you once. One owner in the 2022 PWR thread has had quotes come back a year later. Owners in a Window Cleaning Resource thread on the summer slowdown (2021) call spring leads that never booked when work slows down.

1. Pull the list: every quote still open from last season.
2. Re-check the price, and send an updated quote if your costs have changed.
3. Tie it to the season: house washing in spring, gutters in fall, holiday lighting before the season starts.
4. Send one message and one follow-up. Then let it go.

Example message (illustration):

“Hi [Name], [Your name] with [Business]. Last spring you asked about a house wash at [address]. We’re starting this year’s jobs now. Still want it done? I can send an updated quote.”

How do I keep follow-up going when I’m on a job all day?

This is where most follow-up dies. You’re on a ladder, Tuesday’s quote is three days old, and nothing reminds you. A solo window cleaner on the Window Cleaning Resource forum (2025) put it plainly: software can send the first messages, but a person still has to handle the replies.

So automate the reminders and keep the conversations. Write your messages once, let them go out on a timer, get an alert when a customer opens the quote, and stop the automatic messages the moment someone replies. And get contact details with every quote, including instant quotes from your website. You can’t follow up with someone you can’t reach.

How ResponsiBid handles it. ResponsiBid is quoting software for home-service businesses, and follow-up is built into how it tracks quotes:

• Follow-up for open quotes. Quotes the customer hasn’t accepted sit in an “Open” status. The Follow-up Builder sends the emails (and texts, to customers who opted in, once texting is set up) you’ve set for that status, on timers you choose. You write each message and pick the subject line and send-from address. When a customer accepts the quote on their proposal, it moves out of Open, so the open-quote reminders stop.
• One sequence at a time. A customer gets the follow-up for their current status. Change the status, and the old follow-up stops and the new one starts.
• “Call back later” statuses. Create your own status, like “Call back later,” and write the messages that go out from it. When a customer says “check back in March,” move them to it. Quoting over the phone? Save the quote straight into that status.
• An alert when they look. Each user can turn on a notification for every time a customer views their proposal.
• Control over one customer. On a customer’s profile, you can edit an unsent follow-up email (to add something you talked about on the phone, say) or send a step right away. To stop their reminders, change their status.
• Old quotes in one list. The Bids Feed filters quotes by status and date created, so you can pull every open quote from last spring and download the list.
• An honest close rate. ResponsiBid works out your close rate and average ticket from statuses. Mark a quote “Declined” when the customer says no, and the open-quote reminders stop.

Want follow-up that keeps going while you’re on a job? Book a free demo, and we’ll show you how ResponsiBid follows up on your open quotes for you.