An instant quote on a roofing website is a short set of questions that ends in a price range. The homeowner picks the job, gives the roof size and mentions any extras. They see a guide figure built from your rates, and you get their details and the job details as an enquiry. You don’t need a new website to add one.
What the homeowner sees
A good instant quote asks only what changes the price:
- The job. A repair, a replacement or a new roof, and whether it’s pitched or flat.
- The covering. Tiles, slate, felt, EPDM rubber or GRP fibreglass.
- The size. Roof area in m², set with a slider. Anyone who isn’t sure can say so, and the enquiry comes to you for a review rather than a guessed price.
- The extras. A chimney stack, a Velux or difficult access, typed in plain words and priced from your own allowances.
At the end they see a range, for example £9,700 to £14,350 for a concrete tile re-roof of about 85 m² with a chimney stack, worded clearly as a guide that a survey confirms. You choose whether they see the figure first or leave their details first.
What you get
Each completed estimate becomes an enquiry: the homeowner’s name and contact details, the type of job, roof shape, covering, size, anything they typed in the notes, and the figure they were shown. When you ring back, you both start from the same number.
Where to put it on your site
On your homepage
As a section of the page, near the top. The first thing a visitor can do is get a figure, rather than hunt for a contact form.
Next to your enquiry button
A “Get an instant quote” button beside your existing contact button, opening the tool over the page. This suits sites where the homepage is already busy.
On your service pages
On the flat roofing page or the re-roofing page, where people are already reading about that job. Someone reading about GRP flat roofs is close to asking what theirs would cost.
Most companies start with one place and add the others once they’ve seen enquiries come through.
How it goes on, whatever your site is built with
Firstprice is added with a short snippet of code, sent to you ready-made with your company name, your colour and your rates. Whoever looks after your website pastes it where you want the tool to appear. If nobody does, I’ll help you add it.
- WordPress
- A Custom HTML block in the page editor, or a widget area for a site-wide button.
- Wix
- Embed Code, then Embed HTML, placed on the page where you want it.
- Squarespace
- A Code block on the page. Some plans don’t allow scripts in code blocks, so we check yours first.
- GoDaddy Website Builder
- An HTML section added to the page.
- Webflow
- An Embed element on the page.
- A site your web designer built
- They paste the snippet into the page template. It takes them a few minutes.
Every builder handles embedded tools a little differently, so before it goes live we check it on your actual site, on a phone and a computer.
Getting the figures right before it goes live
The estimate is only as good as the rates behind it. You send your price per m² fitted for each covering, plus allowances for chimneys, roof windows, access and your minimum job. Then we put around ten of your real past quotes through it and compare. If a range is off, you see it on paper, not from a customer, and the rates are adjusted until you’re happy.
Jobs it shouldn’t price
Some jobs need eyes on them. If a homeowner mentions asbestos, a listed building or signs of structural damage, the tool doesn’t guess. It tells them a survey is needed and passes the enquiry to you.
Checklist
- Decide where it goes first: homepage, beside your contact button, or a service page.
- Send your rates and allowances.
- Check the ranges against ten of your past quotes.
- Choose price first or details first, for repairs, replacements and new roofs.
- Paste the snippet, or have it pasted, and test it on a phone.