A message arrives saying how much for a new bathroom. That is the whole message.
The business replies asking for photographs, measurements, a rough idea of what is wanted and whether a site visit would be convenient. It is a reasonable reply and it contains no numbers.
Nothing comes back. The person asked three businesses. One said a bathroom of that kind is usually between two figures, depending mainly on whether the layout moves, and asked two short questions. They got the job.
Script 1: the typical range
A bathroom like that usually comes to between these figures. What moves it most is whether the plumbing positions change. Immediate, honest and useful.
Script 2: the starting point
Our smallest complete jobs start around this figure. Somebody expecting a third of that now knows, and somebody expecting twice it is reassured.
Script 3: the two narrowing questions
Ask the smallest number of questions that would meaningfully tighten the range, and give the tighter range straight back rather than holding it.
Script 4: when a visit is genuinely needed
Say what the visit would establish and why the figure cannot be tightened without it, then offer one. That is a reason rather than a refusal.
Script 5: the enquirer who is well below
Say so kindly, immediately, with a suggestion of what could be done for their figure or who might help. Both parties gain from ending it in one message.
Script 6: the cheaper quote elsewhere
Ask what is included in it. Most cheaper quotes cover less, and establishing that respectfully is more persuasive than defending the price.
Script 7: the can you do it for this amount conversation
Explain what could be reduced in scope to reach the figure. This produces a smaller job rather than no job, which is usually the right outcome.
Rule 1: never answer a price question with only a question
The single most common mistake. It reads as evasion even when it is diligence, and the enquirer has already messaged somebody else.
Rule 2: publish something before anybody asks
Typical project costs on a page, which is the foundation described in what a small business should publish before anything else.
Rule 3: keep the figures consistent
Quoted from memory while distracted, the same job gets different answers, and customers who compare notice.
Rule 4: answer immediately or lose it
Price enquiries are almost always sent to several businesses at once, and the first credible answer starts the relationship.
Rule 5: separate price from affordability
Some people asking about price want to know whether it can be staged, financed or phased, which is a different and frequently solvable question.
Rule 6: treat the answer as qualification
The questions needed to narrow a range are the same ones that establish whether the job is worth having, which is why answering is faster than deflecting.
Answer the price question in the first reply
An assistant carrying the typical ranges and the drivers answers immediately and consistently, asks the two narrowing questions, filters out the enquiries well below the range and passes the rest on with the detail already gathered. The sector version sits in pricing questions home service customers ask first, the handover in handing over enquiries when you hire your first employee, and the approach in ai receptionist pricing questions. Start at try, see features, and the sector view sits under small business.