Creating an estimate form that is clear and intelligible to potential customers is an essential part of running your small business. Skynova's free construction estimate template allows you to make and send out professional estimate sheets in a matter of minutes. This empowers small businesses to quickly handle all of the necessary clerical work and focus on the next construction project.

With Skynova's editable estimate template, you can send online estimates to customers that can be accepted or declined online, without any downloading necessary. This allows customers to quickly approve or deny the estimate form so that you can begin the construction process.

Compared to creating an estimate using a Microsoft Word or Microsoft Excel template, Skynova's platform greatly reduces the time you would normally spend creating an estimate form. Plus, it's easily exportable in printable and PDF formats and can be automatically turned into an invoice when the estimate is accepted. If you're a contractor, check out the template we've made below just for your business:

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How to Create a Contractor Estimate

Reviewing the cost estimate of a construction project ensures that customers understand what they will be required to pay and why. A simple estimate form should explain to customers the project costs they will be expected to cover and why.

Follow these steps to make a professional estimate using Skynova's free estimate template:

  1. Include a Business Address and Customer Address

    First, you'll need to add the correct contact information to your estimate. Your customer should be able to quickly recognize your company name, address, phone number, and email address. Providing recognizable contact information ensures that your customer knows that the email is coming from your business, preventing confusion and the possible discarding of your email.

    We also recommend that you double-check both contact names and addresses. You'll want to ensure that your customer's name is spelled correctly and that you have the correct address. Additionally, you may want to add your email address and phone number if they need to reach you quickly.

  2. Upload a Logo for Your Business

    Adding a logo to your contractor estimate adds a level of professionalism to your business. Thankfully, adding a logo to the estimate sheet is simple and can be achieved in seconds. Simply click "Show Customization Options" and select "Logo." Once you have selected "Logo," you will be able to "Browse" your device for the logo.

  3. Attach an Estimate Number

    Next, you will want to add the estimate number to the job estimate template. Attaching a number to your estimate form allows you to track and refer to it in the future. Attaching numbers to your estimates will ensure that all of your estimates are easy to find for future reference.

    The Skynova free estimate template allows you to type in custom estimate numbers. It's important to create a consistent system for numbering your contractor estimates so that they can be easily located, and you can avoid duplication. Additionally, you might consider avoiding estimate numbers that indicate experience. For instance, instead of having an estimate number of "00001," you might want to start with "20001," so it's not obvious that this would be your first contractor estimate.

    We also recommend adding a purchase order (P.O.) number for tracking purposes. Similarly to adding a logo, click "Show Customization Options" and then "P.O. #" to access this feature. Adding a P.O. number is also important if you would like to utilize the invoice feature. With our estimate form, you can quickly send customers estimates online. Once they have accepted the estimate, you can automatically convert estimates to invoices by using Skynova. This allows business owners to focus on the construction job at hand instead of focusing on administrative work.

  4. Include an Estimate Date

    In this step, you will need to add an estimate date. The estimate date should be the day that the contractor estimate was created or sent out. By dating the work estimate, you make it easier for both you and the customer to find and reference in the future.

  5. Keep Track of Supply Costs

    Any construction project will include several supplies that you might need to charge customers, especially if the supplies are unique to that project. Cost estimating should include the cost of the materials and supplies you will need to complete the job.

    In this step, it's critical that you describe the parts and materials in understandable terms. Since not every customer has a construction background, you should avoid part names that not everyone can understand. The description box is a great place to note the exact materials and even explain them in layman's terms.

    To add a line item to explain materials and supplies, you should start by using the "Item" drop-down and selecting "Product." Next, explain what the exact line item is in the job description. Once you have completed these steps, you are ready to put in the unit price. For instance, in a construction project, you might need five hard hats. In this case, the "Unit Price" would be $8 for the cost, and the "Quantity" would be "5" for the number of hard hats, which would leave you with an "Amount" of "40."

  6. Don't Forget to Include the Cost of Your Labor

    In addition to the cost of supplies, you will need to add the labor costs to the construction cost. As a contractor, you can charge per hour or by the construction project, which is why Skynova's estimate allows you to do both. Similar to the step above, you will just need to select "Service" or "Hours" in the "Item" section.

    In this step, it's also important to use the description box. This allows you to explain to your customer what they are paying and why. If you charge an hourly fee of $60 an hour, you will put "60" in the "Unit Price," and the number of hours worked would be placed in the "Quantity" box.

  7. If You Offer Discounts, Include Them

    If you choose to provide a new customer discount, loyalty discount, or referral discount, you can quickly add a discount to the estimate sheet. Select "Discount" and use the description to explain the discount. Next, you will need to add the "Unit Price," which will be the discount. If you would like to apply only one discount, the "Quantity" would be "1."

  8. Describe Your Work or Relevant Information

    Lastly, you should add notes to the "Note" section of the estimate form. This way, you can explain additional information to your customer or elaborate on any costs or discounts that you listed previously. Explaining costs in the notes can avoid any confusion and help speed up the approval process, ultimately helping you get paid faster.

    Adding a note that explains possible additional costs is also important. Since not every incident can be prepared for when working on a construction project, the customer might need to pay additional costs. In the spirit of transparency, it's important to explain that this is merely a work estimate and that total costs are sometimes subject to change.

Tips and Best Practices for Contractor Estimates

Our work estimate template simplifies the process of creating an accurate estimate, while the entire Skynova platform streamlines administrative tasks for small businesses. The quote template can be integrated to automatically create invoices so that you can get paid faster.

In this next section, we'll offer some helpful suggestions for your contractor business. These tips aim to help you through some of the more difficult aspects of running your business so that you can put your best foot forward.

  • Expedite the Invoice Process

    Use Skynova's contract template to expedite the invoice process. Our estimate form allows members to automatically convert, edit, and send out invoices in a matter of minutes. This helps you and your team get paid faster for the construction project.

  • Know How Much Materials Cost

    It's also important to stay on top of the current costs of materials. This can help you when creating estimate forms in the future, as you will already know the basic costs of materials.

  • Be Honest About Potential Issues

    As a construction contractor, it's important to be transparent and communicate potential issues or pitfalls before starting any project. Using the note section of the estimate form can help you cover any issues that may increase the overall cost and time of the construction process.

  • Focus on Quality

    In addition, you will want to provide the best quality product that you can. This means that you may need to invest in better materials for the project. Noting why materials and supplies might be more costly in the description is a great way to ensure that your customers know that you are focused on the quality of the project.

  • Provide the Best Customer Service

    Lastly, as any small business, you should work to provide the best customer service. By using Skynova's products, such as a professional proposal template, you can ensure that your customers are getting great service in a timely manner.

Make Your Contractor Business the Best It Can Be With Skynova's Estimate Template

Skynova's estimating software helps you deliver the administrative paperwork to your customers more quickly than alternative methods. Not only does this convey a level of professionalism, but you are also speeding up the process of getting paid for your great construction work.

Our products empower small businesses to tackle administrative work quickly with an invoice template and accounting options so that you can focus on the construction projects that you started your business to complete.

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