Set up QuoteCloud for your trade business
Your price list, your five most common jobs as templates, payments and compliance blocks, then the whole team quoting from their phones.
- 5/5 on G2
- 4.2 on Capterra
- Building QuoteCloud since 2013
Setting up QuoteCloud for a trade business means four things: importing your rates and parts into the product catalogue, building templates for your most common jobs, connecting Stripe or PayPal and your job management app, and setting up roles before the team quotes on site. One template is converted free in your trial, and paid plans include 45-minute training.
Two sample set-up screens for a fictional business, Ridgeline Trade Services: its five users and roles (owner, office, plumber, air-con technician and apprentice) with what each can do, and in front a supplier price list being imported into the product catalogue, each column mapped to a catalogue field, 46 rows ready and 2 to check.
A sample plan, from price list to every van
How a five-person electrical, plumbing and air-con business might set up. Timings are a sample, not a promise; most of the work is yours and quick.
-
Phase 1, Week 1
Price book
- You bring
- Your call-out fee, hourly rates by trade and your supplier's parts list as a CSV.
- QuoteCloud gives you
- Catalogue import with column mapping and validation, categories, cost and margin.
- Done when
- Every rate and the parts you use are in the catalogue, priced.
Essentials and up
Price book: call-outs, labour & parts -
Phase 2, Week 1–2
Your top job templates
- You bring
- A quote you've sent for each of your five most common jobs.
- QuoteCloud gives you
- One template converted free in your trial, and the editor for the rest.
- Done when
- Each job has a template with scope, options, add-ons and deposit.
-
Phase 3, Week 2
Payments and company blocks
- You bring
- Your Stripe or PayPal account, licence and policy numbers, warranty and safety wording.
- QuoteCloud gives you
- Deposit settings per quote or template, and content library blocks you can lock on Business.
- Done when
- A test quote is signed and a test deposit is paid.
-
Phase 4, Week 3
Job management and accounting
- You bring
- Your ServiceM8, simPRO or other job app login, and Xero or QuickBooks.
- QuoteCloud gives you
- Zapier or Make on Essentials, native accounting on Business, and set-up help if you want it.
- Done when
- A signed test quote creates a job in your job app.
-
Phase 5, Week 3–4
The team, on site
- You bring
- Your technicians and their phones or tablets, and your discount limit.
- QuoteCloud gives you
- Custom roles, the 45-minute training session and the discount approval on Business.
- Done when
- Every technician has quoted a real job on site.
Sample planning for a fictional business. Your own timing depends on how many jobs and parts you quote.
What changes after the set-up
The value is in the jobs you quote every week, not in the software.
Help from the QuoteCloud team
Do it yourself with the User Guide, or bring us in for the parts you'd rather not.
Free template conversion
Send us one existing quote template during your trial and we convert it for you (Essentials, Business and Enterprise). More are a paid add-on.
45-minute training
A complimentary virtual Q&A session on paid plans, for you and the office. More 60-minute sessions are a paid add-on.
User Guide
Hundreds of step-by-step guides at support.quote.cloud, from price tables to payments.
Onboarding services
What each plan includes, from your first converted template to implementation support on Enterprise. See onboarding services.
Integration set-up
Consultancy for Zapier, the API and other platforms from our professional services team.
Premium support
Email support is included; Premium 24×7 support is a paid add-on.
Week one done: the price book is live
After the import, the catalogue holds every rate and part with its cost and margin. Old parts are marked Inactive, a new kit waits in Draft, and every template draws from the same list.
Product catalogue: Essentials and up
Price book: call-outs, labour & partsCSV import supplier-prices-oct.csv · 46 parts updated, 2 marked inactive
| Product | Price | Unit | Cost | Margin | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Call-out & first 15 minutesCALL-STD · Call-outs | $95 | per visit | $38 | 60% | Active |
| Licensed electricianLAB-ELEC · Labour | $125 | per hour | $72 | 42% | Active |
| Licensed plumberLAB-PLMB · Labour | $118 | per hour | $69 | 42% | Active |
| After-hours rateLAB-AH · Labour | $185 | per hour | $96 | 48% | Active |
| RCBO safety switchPRT-RCBO · Parts | $68 | each | $41 | 40% | Active |
| Tempering valve, 20 mmPRT-TV20 · Parts | $185 | each | $112 | 39% | Active |
| Hot water install kitKIT-HWS · Kits | $140 | per job | $84 | 40% | Draft |
| Ceramic fuse carrierPRT-FUSE · Parts | $18 | each | $9 | 50% | Inactive |
Cost and margin are for your team only: they never appear in the client's document
Start the set-up in a free trial
Free for 14 days, no credit card required. Send us a quote to convert and import your price list.
Decide these before you start
A few choices shape the whole set-up. Make them once with the owner and the office, and the rest goes quickly.
- Your five most common jobs: they become the first templates
- Your deposit: a percentage, a fixed amount or full payment, and Stripe or PayPal
- Your discount limit for technicians, and who approves above it (Business plan)
- Which job app the signed quotes go to, and whether you need Xero or QuickBooks natively (Business) or through Zapier (Essentials)
- Who in the office owns the price book and the company blocks
Implementation: questions
How long does it take to set up QuoteCloud for a trade business?
It depends on how many jobs and parts you quote. A small team can import a price list, build templates for its most common jobs, connect payments and start quoting on site within a few weeks. The plan on this page is a sample, not a promise; the trial lasts 14 days.
Can I import my existing price list?
Yes. Import your rates and parts into the product catalogue from a CSV file, mapping each column, such as part number, description, cost and sell price, to a catalogue field. QuoteCloud validates the rows before importing. The catalogue is on Essentials and above.
Will QuoteCloud set up my templates for me?
During the trial QuoteCloud converts one of your existing templates for free on the Essentials, Business and Enterprise plans; more conversions are a paid add-on billed per template. On Enterprise, implementation support helps plan and run a larger rollout.
Is training included?
Yes. Paid plans include a complimentary 45-minute virtual training and Q&A session for you and the office, with more 60-minute sessions available as a paid add-on. The User Guide at support.quote.cloud has hundreds of step-by-step guides, and email support runs in business hours, Monday to Friday.
Can someone set up the ServiceM8 or simPRO connection for us?
Yes. QuoteCloud's professional services team offers consultancy and integration set-up for Zapier, the API and other platforms; contact sales for a price. Many trade businesses set up the Zapier connection themselves by choosing the trigger and the action, matching the fields and testing it with a sample quote.
Everything you'll set up
Each step of the plan, in more detail.
-
Price book: call-outs, labour & partsCall-out fees, hourly rates by trade and parts with your margin, added to any quote in a tap.Explore
-
Job templates for tradesSwitchboard upgrades, hot water replacements, split-system installs: priced once, reused every time.Explore
-
Teams, roles & discount approvalsOne price book for every van, roles for the office and techs, and approvals for big discounts.Explore
- Quoting on site from a phone or tabletPhotos, a job template and the price, built in the browser while the customer is standing there.
- Good, better, best optionsThree ways to do the job in one quote. The customer picks one and the total follows.
- Quote tracking & follow-upSee who opened which quote, what they looked at and which quotes are about to expire.
- Signed and deposit paid on the spotThe customer signs with a finger and pays the deposit by card or PayPal before you leave.
- Maintenance & service agreementsService levels, a visit calendar, repeating charges and a clear expiry date, signed once.
- Licences, insurances, warranties & safetyYour licence numbers, insurances, warranty terms and safety statements as reusable blocks.
- Job management & accounting integrationsWon quotes into ServiceM8 or simPRO through Zapier, and into Xero or QuickBooks.
- FAQQuestions trades ask about quoting on site, deposits, agreements, integrations and plans.
Quoting on site within the month
Free for 14 days. No credit card required.