How customers request and accept a quote
What a trade buyer does on your storefront: the Request a quote button, quotes in progress, the emails they get, and accepting a price to check out.
Trade and bulk buyers often want a price before they order. On your storefront they can gather the products they want, send you the list, and accept the price you send back. This guide covers what your customer does, from the Request a quote button to paying at the quoted price.
Considerations
- Quotes are included in the Enterprise plan. On other plans the buttons and the account section do not appear at all.
- Your customer has to be signed in. A guest never sees the quote buttons.
- You cannot raise a request yourself. Every request starts with a customer.
- A quote your customer is still building is private. You do not see it until they send it.
- The quote number is given out when the request is sent, not while it is being built.
Where your customer asks for a quote
Two buttons appear on your product pages and in the basket once a customer signs in.
- Request a quote: sends those items straight to you.
- Add to quote: puts the product on a quote the customer is still building.
Request a quote opens a box listing the items and their quantities. Your customer can add a Message to the store (optional), then click Submit request. A message confirms the quote number and says you will get back to them with pricing.
Note: If your product pages are built with the page builder, add the Add to Quote Button element to the template. Without it, that button does not show on those pages.
Build a quote from the account area
Your customer can also start in their account, under Quote requests.
- Click Start a new quote. The quote builder opens.
- Type a Quote name, such as Q3 restock.
- Type in Add products to search your catalogue, then click a result to add it. Products with options ask which one.
- Set the quantity on each line, or click Remove.
- Pick a Preferred delivery method, or leave it on No preference.
- Add a Message to the store.
- Click Send to the store.
Unsent quotes sit under Quotes in progress, each with Open, Duplicate and Delete. A customer with more than one in progress is asked Add to which quote? when they click Add to quote.
What happens in your dashboard
The request arrives under Orders, then Quote Requests, with the status Submitted. You also get an email with the subject New quote request and the quote number. It goes to the addresses set for quote notifications. A store that has set none gets it at the owner's address.
Price the lines and click Send quote. See Handling quote requests.
What your customer gets when you send the quote
Your customer gets an email headed Your quote is ready, with the full quote attached as a PDF. If you revise the price, the same email goes out again with Updated quote in the subject line.
In their account the quote now shows every line with its unit price, discount and total, then the subtotal, the delivery charge and the total. Download this quote (PDF) saves a copy. Valid until shows the last day they can accept.
Accepting a quote and checking out
- Your customer opens Quote requests in their account.
- They click Accept and check out.
- If their basket already holds other items, they choose Clear basket and continue or Keep my basket.
- The basket is rebuilt from the quote and checkout opens.
A note at the top of that basket names the quote and says the prices are as quoted. Items and quantities are fixed, and discount codes do not apply. Leave this quote and shop normally empties the basket. It does not cancel the quote, so they can accept it again later.
Declining and expiring
Your customer can click Decline and give a reason. Declining is final, but you can send them a new quote. You get an email telling you the quote was declined, with their reason if they gave one.
A quote that runs past the validity you set is marked expired within the hour. An expired quote cannot be accepted or checked out. Send a new one instead.
When you decline a request, your customer gets an email headed About quote with the number, plus your reason if you wrote one.
What each status means to your customer
- Draft: still being built, and private to them.
- Awaiting pricing: sent to you and waiting for your price.
- Quote ready: you have priced it and they can accept.
- Accepted: they accepted and the basket is waiting to be paid for.
- Ordered: you have prepared an order from the quote.
- Declined by store: you turned the request down.
- Declined: they turned your price down.
- Expired: the validity period ran out.
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