Quotation Email Template
Send a clear, professional price quote to a customer.
Tips for your Quotation Email
- State clearly what is and is not included.
- Add a validity date to encourage a decision.
About this Quotation Email template
Send a quotation when the what is settled and only the how much is open — the customer has told you the item, the quantity and roughly the timeline. If you still need to convince them your approach is the right one, that is a business proposal, not a quote. Quoting too early forces you to price a job you do not understand yet, and you will either lose it or regret winning it.
Your customer is almost certainly reading this next to someone else’s quote, hunting for the difference. Two quotes with the same headline number are not the same offer, and the exclusions line is where that becomes visible — so make it explicit. Say what is included, what is not, whether the figure includes tax, the lead time and the payment terms. The validity date matters for the same reason: it protects you from cost changes and signals a considered figure rather than an opening position.
The common mistake is a bare total with no breakdown and no exclusions, followed by extras appearing on the invoice. Nothing destroys a new customer relationship faster, and it invites the price negotiation you were trying to avoid. Itemise, spell out the boundaries, and make accepting a single reply.
Frequently asked questions
Should a quote have an expiry date?
Yes. It protects you when your own costs move, and it gives the customer a reason to decide rather than leaving it in a folder for six months.
Is a quotation legally binding?
It varies by country and by how the quote is worded, but a quote is generally treated as a firmer commitment than an estimate. If your figure is genuinely provisional, call it an estimate and say so.
Should I show a breakdown or just the total?
Show the breakdown. It lets a customer remove a line rather than reject the whole thing, and it makes your number look considered instead of invented.
What if the customer says the price is too high?
Change the scope rather than the rate where you can. Discounting on request teaches customers that your first number was never real.
Should tax be included in the figure?
State it either way, explicitly. "Excludes VAT" in the email is a sentence; the same information discovered at invoice time is a dispute.