Estimate Statuses
Understand estimate states from draft through accepted, rejected, or expired.
Estimate statuses show whether a proposal is still being prepared, waiting on a customer, accepted, rejected, or no longer current.
Use statuses to decide the next action. Do not treat an estimate as won until it is accepted.
Keep statuses current before sales review. Old statuses hide whether a quote needs follow-up, revision, billing handoff, or loss analysis.
Draft
Draft estimates are internal. Use draft while preparing the proposal, checking line items, choosing a template, and confirming the scope.
Keep drafts internal until pricing, expiry, approval requirements, and customer details are ready.
Preview drafts with realistic line items and terms before sending so the first customer version does not contain internal placeholders.
Sent and Viewed
Sent estimates have been shared with the customer. Viewed estimates indicate that the customer opened the estimate experience.
If the customer says they cannot find the estimate, confirm the recipient email and resend the estimate or share the public estimate link.
Viewed does not mean approved. Use viewed status as a follow-up signal, not as a reason to start work or billing.
Pending
Pending estimates are waiting for customer action. Use this state to follow up without treating the estimate as won or lost.
If a pending estimate is old, check whether it should be followed up, revised, or allowed to expire.
Add a task for important pending estimates so follow-up does not depend on someone manually scanning the list.
When following up, check whether the estimate is still current. Pricing, availability, taxes, and scope may need revision before another reminder.
Accepted and Rejected
Accepted estimates can be converted to invoices when the work should be billed. Rejected estimates should not be converted unless the customer later approves a new or revised estimate.
After acceptance, review the accepted version before creating invoices, projects, or onboarding tasks.
Do not edit accepted estimates casually. If scope changes after acceptance, create a revised estimate or document the approved change before billing.
If the customer verbally approves after rejecting or letting an estimate expire, send an updated estimate or duplicate the old one. Keep the accepted record aligned with the actual approved scope.
Expired
Expired estimates are no longer current. Create or send an updated estimate when pricing, availability, or scope has changed.
Do not ask customers to approve expired pricing. Duplicate or revise the estimate and send the newest link.
If an expired estimate was accepted verbally, record that context and send a current version before converting to an invoice.
Status Cleanup
During cleanup, avoid changing status just to make the list shorter. Each status should match the customer and billing reality. If a customer went silent, follow up or let the estimate expire. If the customer declined by email, mark it rejected and add the reason if it helps reporting.
Status Review Routine
Review estimates weekly:
- follow up on sent or viewed estimates with no customer action
- update pending estimates with clear next steps
- expire or revise outdated pricing
- convert accepted estimates only after checking scope and line items
- record why rejected estimates were lost when that context matters for sales reporting