AI Quoting for Tradies — Quote from Your Phone

Quoting shouldn't take your evenings

Quoting is where a lot of trade businesses leak time and money. You measure up on site, carry the details in your head or on a scrap of paper, then sit down at night to type it all into a template — if you get to it at all. Every day a quote sits unsent is a day the customer might call someone else. Good tradie quoting software should close that gap: capture the quote when you're on site and get it out the door fast, not on Sunday night.

The problem with most quoting tools is that they still expect you to stop, open an app, and fill in a form. On a busy day, that doesn't happen. offsider takes a different path: you build the quote by messaging an AI assistant on WhatsApp, and a PDF lands back in your chat ready to forward to the customer — see what AI for tradies does for the bigger picture.

From site walk to a PDF in your chat

The quoting flow in offsider happens entirely in natural language on WhatsApp, in three steps: build the variation, price the line items, generate the PDF.

Step 1 — Create the variation. A variation is the change-of-scope record that holds your line items. Start one the moment you know what you're quoting:

"Create a variation for 8 Marion St — add 6 downlights and a new circuit, confirmed with the owner."

offsider logs the variation against the site and records who signed off on the scope.

Step 2 — Add the line items. Each job in the variation has a name, quantity, and rate (ex-GST). Add them one message at a time, or all at once:

"Add: supply and install LED downlights, qty 6, rate $95 each. And: run new 20A circuit to kitchen, qty 1, rate $320."

Need a discount? Just say so:

"Add a 10% discount to V2."

You can also tell offsider to hide individual line pricing on the PDF if you'd rather the customer only sees the total — useful when you don't want to invite line-by-line negotiation.

Step 3 — Generate the quote PDF. When the line items look right:

"Generate the quote PDF for V2."

offsider confirms the 20-credit cost and, once you say yes, builds the PDF using your ABN, company name, and address from your Settings — then sends it straight back to you on WhatsApp as a document. Check it over. If anything needs adjusting, reply and fix it, then regenerate at no extra charge (the 20 credits covers the quote, every regeneration, and the tax invoice for that variation). When you're happy, forward it to the customer yourself.

That whole flow can happen before you've left the driveway. And because you did the pricing while standing in the job, the numbers are accurate — not approximations reconstructed from memory at 10pm.

Speed here isn't just convenience — it's win rate. The tradie who quotes on the spot, or that same evening, often beats the one who takes three days, simply by being first and looking organised. A fast, tidy quote signals to the customer that you're on top of your business, which makes them more comfortable handing you the job. When quoting is a one-minute message instead of an hour at the kitchen table, you quote more jobs, quote them sooner, and win more of them.

See how quoting fits with the rest of your admin on the features page.

Variations and invoices — same record, no re-keying

Quoting isn't a one-shot event — jobs change. The client adds a power point, the scope grows, the original price no longer holds. This is where quoting normally falls apart: the variation gets agreed verbally and forgotten, and you're out of pocket at invoice time.

offsider keeps the whole money trail on the same variation:

Quote the variation to get the scope agreed in writing before the work starts.
Variation quotes when the scope changes mid-job — create a new variation, price the extras, generate another PDF. Documented, not a "she'll be right" you eat later.
Tax invoice when the work's done — ask offsider to generate the invoice for the same variation. It uses the same line items, same ABN details, same document number sequence. No re-keying, no arguments about what was agreed. And because you already paid the 20 credits when you generated the quote, the invoice costs nothing extra.

Undocumented variations are one of the quietest profit leaks in the trades. The extra hour here, the added fixture there — agreed with a nod on site, never written down, and forgotten when the invoice goes out at the original quoted price. Over a year that adds up to real money left on the table. Capturing each variation as its own quote the moment it's agreed turns those verbal "she'll be rights" into documented, billable work, and gives the customer a clear paper trail so nobody's surprised at the end.

Your ABN and company details, set once

offsider doesn't ask for your ABN or bank details over chat — that's deliberate. You set your business name, ABN, address, and any other details once in Settings → Quote & Invoice, and every PDF pulls from there. So the first time you generate a quote it looks professional, not like a draft. If those details aren't filled in yet, offsider will tell you to complete Settings before proceeding — it won't generate a blank or incorrect document.

GST is calculated automatically on the PDF. If you're not registered for GST you can adjust that in Settings; the agent doesn't make assumptions.

Works on voice too

You don't have to type. offsider understands voice notes in English, so if you're on a roof or your hands are dirty you can record what you need:

[voice note] "Add a job to V3 — supply and fit exhaust fan in main bathroom, one unit at $210."

offsider transcribes the note, shows you what it heard, and acts on it. Same as text — no special commands, just plain English.

Pricing that fits sole traders

Traditional quoting software charges a monthly subscription whether you send two quotes or two hundred. For a sole trader or a small crew, paying a fixed fee every month for software you use in bursts doesn't add up.

offsider is pay-as-you-go. You get 200 free credits when you sign up, and top up with credit packs from $10. Generating a quote and invoice for a variation costs 20 credits total — roughly the cost of a coffee for a complete, professional quote-to-invoice paper trail. You pay for what you use and nothing when you're quiet. The exact packs and credit amounts are on the pricing page.

Start free — 200 credits and send your next quote from the job site instead of the kitchen table.

FAQ

Can I really build and send a quote just by messaging?

Yes, though there are a couple of steps. You create a variation for the scope, add the line items (each with a quantity and a rate), then ask offsider to generate the quote PDF. The PDF lands in your WhatsApp chat — check it, fix anything, then forward it to your customer yourself. The whole process is plain-language messages; no forms or slash commands.

Does offsider email the quote to my customer?

No. The PDF is sent to you on WhatsApp. You decide when and how it goes to the customer — forward it in WhatsApp, send it by email, or hand it over in person. That keeps you in control of the conversation with your client.

What happens when the job scope changes?

You message offsider to create a new variation for the extra work, add the jobs and rates, and generate another quote PDF. It's documented against the same site and linked to your client, so the extra work is agreed in writing and flows through to a separate variation invoice when the time comes.

How does GST and my ABN appear on the quote?

Your ABN, business name, and address are pulled from Settings → Quote & Invoice — you set them once and every PDF uses them automatically. GST is calculated on the PDF totals. offsider doesn't ask for or store business details over chat.

Is there a subscription for the quoting software?

No. offsider is pay-as-you-go on AI credits — 200 free to start, then packs from $10. Generating a quote (and later the tax invoice) for a variation costs 20 credits once, covering all regenerations too. You only pay when you use it. See pricing for details.