Guide · For trades firms
You sent the quote, then never heard back. Now what?
You measured up, priced it fairly, sent it over, and then nothing. No reply, no booking, no idea why. For most trades firms that silence is where the job quietly dies, not because the price was wrong, but because nobody went back to ask.
The short answer
Follow it up. The silence is rarely a no.
A quote nobody follows up is usually a job quietly slipping away.
Most of the time the silence is not a rejection. The customer got busy, or they had one small question they never asked, and the firm that goes back to them usually gets the work. A polite nudge a few days after the quote, and another a week or so later, costs nothing. The problem is finding the time to do it, every time, when you are on the tools all day. An AI agent follows up every quote you send, politely and in your firm's voice, answers the customer's questions about it, and books the job in when they say yes.
The problem in one line
Why do quotes go quiet?
From the customer's side, nothing dramatic happened. The quote arrived, it looked fine, and then the week took over. They meant to reply. A fortnight later, replying feels awkward, so they don't. Or they had a question, does that include the tiling, could it wait until October, and never got round to asking it. The firm that answers that question usually gets the job.
From your side, chasing feels like pestering, so it gets put off. And when it does happen, it happens at nine at night from the van, which is exactly the admin you went self-employed to avoid.
- The customer had one small question about your quote and never asked it. Another firm answered theirs.
- The quote landed on a busy week and sank under school runs and work emails. Nobody nudged it back to the top.
- You meant to chase everything on Friday. Friday turned into a boiler swap and two call-outs.
What an AI agent does with your quotes
What does following up actually look like?
Ryku keeps on top of every quote you send, without you thinking about it.
- Follows upA short, polite nudge a few days after each quote, in your firm's voice, and another later if it stays quiet.
- Answers questions"Does that include materials?" and "when could you start?" answered quickly from your own quote and details.
- Books it inWhen the customer says yes, the booking goes into the diary, not into a voicemail you hear at six.
- Knows when to stopA customer who says no, or asks to be left alone, is left alone. A nudge or two, never a campaign.
- Every quote gets the same careThe small repair and the full bathroom get followed up with the same politeness, so nothing slips because it looked minor on a busy week.
The options, compared
Following up quotes: the ways trades firms do it.
| Option | Every quote followed up | Questions answered quickly | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Not chasing at all | No | No | The jobs that go quiet |
| Chasing yourself, evenings | The ones you remember | Next time you stop | Your own time |
| An AI agent (Ryku) | Yes, every one | Yes, straight away | A flat monthly fee |
Will it pester my customers?
It nudges. It does not nag.
A couple of polite follow-ups, sensibly spaced, and anyone who says no is left alone.
It sounds like your firm
The follow-up reads like a message from you, not a call centre script, because it is written from your own details and your own quote.
It respects a no
A couple of polite nudges, sensibly spaced. Anyone who declines or asks to be left alone is left alone, and you can see every message it sent.
The tricky ones come to you
If the customer wants to haggle, change the job, or talk something through, that conversation is passed straight to you. Price and scope stay yours.
Frequently asked
The questions trades firms ask first.
Will following up annoy people?
What if they want to negotiate the price?
Do I have to remember to tell it about each quote?
How do I try it?
Get started
Stop losing the jobs you already quoted.
Enter your website address and hear Ryku answer in your firm's voice, before you commit to anything.