Plumbing estimate follow-up script

Call as the shop the same business hour the plumbing estimate went out, then days 2, 4, 7 and 14. Confirm it arrived, ask what they are still weighing, and log a yes, a named no, or a next date. The reminder already went out. The call is the script.

This is the script for a 2-to-10 truck plumbing shop whose water heaters, tankless conversions, and repipes go quiet after the visit.

What an unsigned plumbing estimate actually is

An unsold plumbing estimate is still open until someone sells it, dismisses it, or the customer approves it. On r/Plumbing, homeowners still post that shops came out, promised a quote, and never called back.

Status	Follow up?
Sent, awaiting response, or Open	Yes
Second bid, insurance, permit, or still making hot water	Yes, on the date they gave you
Sold or approved	No. Book the install
Lost, declined, or hired someone else	No. Log the reason and stop

The Better Business Bureau (read 2026-10-12) tells homeowners to gather at least three written quotes on the same criteria. A second bid is the usual next step, not a no.

Filter Follow Up, awaiting response, Pipeline, or Pending for water heater, tankless, repipe, sewer, and slab leak. ServiceTitan’s path is a person clicking Call the customer (help, updated 2026-07-11).

Why a plumbing quote goes quiet

Name the hold-up before you pitch.

What they said	What it usually is	Next date
Need to think about it	Unnamed hold-up, often a second bid	Stay on the cadence until they name it
Getting other quotes	The usual two or three	The day the other bid lands
Still making hot water	Wait-until-fail	A season date, or stay on the cadence
Tank versus tankless	Conversion, not a swap	After they see gas, vent, and electric on both options
Insurance, slab leak, or repair-instead	A third party, or the leak is patched	The date they hear back; book the repair

What to say when a customer needs to think about the quote names the hold-up. If a rebate is on the estimate, name the program and the date. Never invent one. ENERGY STAR (Feb 2, 2024, read 2026-10-12) says consider replacing a tank more than 10 years old before an emergency.

A cadence a small shop can run

One CSR job post for this work asks for a callback within 30 minutes, then days 2, 4, 6 and 7. Five live attempts over two weeks is enough.

When	What you do	What you are trying to learn
Same business hour (day 0)	Call. Confirm the estimate arrived	Did they get it, and is there a first question
Day 2	Call. Text if you cannot reach them	Who else needs to see it, and is a second bid in play
Day 4	Call. Offer the next two open install slots	Timing vs price vs the other bid
Day 7	Call. Ask what is stopping them	Wait-until-fail, tankless, insurance, or a polite stall
Day 14	Last call. Close it won or lost	A reason in the notes, then dismiss

If they already gave you a date, park it and call then. If nobody answers, leave a short voicemail with your name, the shop, the address, and a callback number. Do not pitch into the mailbox. How many times should a contractor follow up on an estimate? is the count. There is no reliable public number for close rate.

What to say on the call

Call as the shop, by the company name. Read the plumber’s notes first.

Day 0. “Hi, it’s Maya from Northside Plumbing. Luis was out at 18 Maple this morning on the 50-gallon water heater. I wanted to make sure the estimate came through.”

They need to think about it. “What’s the one thing you’re still weighing?” Then stop talking. Price, spouse, second bid, wait-until-fail, tankless, insurance, and repair-instead are different next steps. Log the actual one.

Still making hot water. “We can book [Tue 8-12] now, or I can put a date this season on the file. Which is easier?” Log wait-until-fail.

Tank versus tankless. “The tank swap and the tankless conversion are different tickets. The conversion often needs a larger gas line, new venting, and an electrician. I can have Luis call you back on those lines.”

Another bid. “When do you expect the other quote? I’ll call then and we can line up brand, model, gallon, expansion tank, permit, haul-away, and valves, not just the totals.”

Repair instead, or insurance. Book the repair Luis priced and leave the replacement on file. For a slab leak, ask for the date they hear back.

A different tank size or a new price. “I can have Luis call you back on that.” Do not drop the price on the phone.

Day 14. “I’m closing open estimates and wanted a last look at 18 Maple. If you went another direction, I’ll mark it so we stop calling.”

Do not say “I pulled a crew, I need to know today.” On r/Plumbing, homeowners treat that as the reason to pick someone else. Do not invent a leak or a same-day discount. Estimate follow-up email and text templates is the written version. How to follow up when the customer is waiting on financing is that callback.

Compare the other bid line by line

On r/askaplumber, a like-for-like tank swap and a tankless conversion can sit on the same table in the same week. The totals look like the same job. They are not.

Line	What to ask	Why the totals diverge
Brand, model, gallon	Same unit Luis wrote?	“Water heater” is not a model
Tank swap vs tankless	Gas line, vent, electric in the price?	Conversion is a different ticket
Expansion tank	If code calls for one, is it included?	A cheap bid skips it
Permit and inspection	Who pulls it?	A bid without one is a different job
Old tank hauled away	Included, or extra later?	Disposal shows up on the second bill
Repipe vs spot repair	Drywall, cabinets, service line?	A pinhole and a whole-house are different tickets

How to track why customers turn down estimates is the reason you write when the row ends.

What the FSM already sends

The field-service app wins the reminder. It does not forget. Jobber quote follow-ups (updated 2026-08-06) on Connect and up email or text up to twice. Housecall Pro Pipeline (dated 2026-08-06) can resend, then decline. Workiz Automations (updated 2024-01-31, read 2026-10-12) emails three days after send. Keep those on. Add the five calls.

When to stop

Stop the day they decline, hired someone else, reply STOP, or ask you not to call. The FCC (updated 2026-02-27) prohibits telemarketing calls to the home before 8 a.m. and after 9 p.m. local time, and says telemarketers must comply immediately with a do-not-call request. This is not legal advice. Check with your own counsel. Five attempts in two weeks, then a logged no, ends this estimate.

Four ways shops actually keep plumbing quotes moving

The plumber who was in the house wins the first call when they can make it. A CSR can run days 2 through 14 if the notes are in the ticket. One person has to own the list.

1. Run the FSM as designed

Work Follow Up, quote reminders, Pipeline, or Pending every morning, highest dollar first.

2. The plumber calls from the truck

Same-hour check-in from the person who wrote the quote. Best first call.

3. Hire someone whose job is the list

Job posts from 2025 list a sales VA for estimate follow-up at about $700 a month and an estimator or lead converter at about $400 a month. You still hire, train them, and check they log a named hold-up.

4. Put unsigned water heaters on a daily call list

The open 50-gallon quotes are already in the FSM. Someone still has to dial and write the hold-up. We make Escloser, which does this, so weigh that suggestion accordingly. Ask who is on the phone, and whether every no names the actual reason.

How to tell this week

Yesterday’s unsold water heaters should have a same-day call, second bids a next date, and lost jobs a reason. If Friday’s list is longer than Monday’s, nobody is calling.

Open last month’s water heater, tankless, and repipe estimates. Lay the open ones next to the phone. Start there.