How should a fence company follow up after measuring the yard?
After you have measured and priced a fence, the follow-up call is what separates a quote that gets answered from one that fades. The homeowner often has other estimates on the counter next to yours. The company that checks back with an offer to answer questions is the one still in the conversation when they are ready to choose, while the one that waits for the homeowner to call often never hears back.
Why does a fence estimate go quiet after the site visit?
A fence estimate goes quiet for ordinary reasons. The homeowner may be waiting on other estimates, or on approval from a homeowners association, or on a talk with the neighbor who shares the back line. Some are working out the budget, and some want the fence in before a new dog arrives or before summer and have not yet decided whether that date is real.
Often the homeowner has not picked anyone yet, and the decision is sitting on the kitchen counter with everything else in their week. When nobody checks back, the estimate slides further down the pile, and the next company to call about it has a good chance of getting the job.
What has a fence company already spent by the time the quote goes out?
Think about what goes into one estimate. Someone drove to the house, walked the property line with the homeowner, measured every run, talked through where the gate should go and which material would hold up, and then priced it all that evening or the next morning. In a busy spring that can be a good part of a day for one quote.
The follow-up is the cheapest step in the whole process, and it is also the easiest one to skip, because by then the owner is already out measuring the next yard. Letting a quote fade after all that work throws away the time that has already been spent on it.
What should the follow-up after a fence estimate be about?
It should be about the homeowner's questions. A follow-up that only asks whether they are ready to sign feels like pressure, while one that offers to walk through the materials, the gate, or where the install sits on the schedule reads as good service. Homeowners comparing several estimates often cannot tell why one number is higher than another, and the company that takes the time to explain its quote gives them something to weigh besides price.
How soon to check back and how long to keep going is its own question, and it is covered in how long to wait before following up on a quote. In short, a homeowner who has not replied has not said no, so keep following up until they give you an answer.
How can a fence company tell which estimates are still open?
In many fence companies the answer lives in a notebook in the truck, a folder of emailed quotes, and a string of text messages on the owner's phone. That works in February. By May, with estimates going out every day, nobody can say which ones are waiting, which were won, and which were lost.
Every estimate needs to sit in one list with the customer's name, the amount, and the date it went out. With that list in front of you, the open quotes are easy to see at a glance, and a quote that has had no reply for a while stands out before it fades. The same habit works for painting companies and any other trade that prices a job at the house and then waits for the homeowner to decide.
What a fix looks like
In a fence company that has fixed this, the owner starts the morning with one list of open estimates, each with the homeowner's name, the amount, and how long it has been out. When a quote is due for a call, the reminder is waiting in the office, and whoever makes the call has the estimate in front of them and can talk through the gate or the material without digging for paperwork. A homeowner who says yes goes onto the install schedule, and one who says no has her answer recorded, so the list only ever shows the quotes still waiting on a decision.
If you write your fence estimates in Housecall Pro, the Home Service Guild Marketing Operations System sends the follow-up reminders on those same estimates as part of following up on every inquiry and quote, so nobody enters a quote twice.
Questions owners also ask
What if the homeowner is waiting on approval from their homeowners association?
Then the quote is still alive, and it should stay open in your list. Write down when they expect to hear back, so someone checks in around that time and your estimate is fresh in their mind when the approval comes through.
Should a fence company send the estimate the same day as the visit?
Sending it while the visit is fresh in the homeowner's mind helps, because they still remember the conversation about the gate and the material. The longer the gap, the more the estimate looks like every other one in the pile.
Do homeowners always choose the lowest fence estimate?
Price matters, and so does how the homeowner felt about the company that measured the yard. A company that explains its quote and checks back gives the homeowner a reason to choose it that has nothing to do with the bottom line.
What should happen to a fence estimate the homeowner turned down?
Close it, record the answer, and keep the homeowner on your list of past contacts. Their neighbors may need a fence someday, and a homeowner who liked how you handled the estimate may pass your name along even though they went with someone else.
