How Clients Accept Quotes with E-Signatures

When your clients are ready to move forward, they can accept your quote right from their portal with a simple electronic signature. No printing, no scanning, no faxing - just a few clicks and you're both ready to go.

This guide walks you through exactly what your clients experience when they accept (or decline) a quote, and what happens behind the scenes.

The Accept and Decline Buttons

At the bottom of every pending quote, your clients see two clear action buttons:

• Accept Quote - A green button that opens the e-signature form
• Decline - A gray button that opens the rejection form

These buttons appear only when:

• The quote status is "Sent" or "Viewed"
• The quote hasn't expired yet

If a quote has passed its validity date, the buttons disappear and your client sees a message asking them to contact you for updated pricing. This protects you from clients accepting outdated quotes.

The E-Signature Process: Four Simple Steps

When your client clicks "Accept Quote," a clean modal window walks them through signing. Here's what they experience:

Step 1: Review the Agreement

The modal clearly displays:

• The total amount they're agreeing to
• A confirmation that by signing, they accept the terms of your quote

There's no fine print to hunt for - everything is upfront and clear.

Step 2: Type Their Signature

Your client enters their full name in the signature field. This typed name serves as their legal electronic signature.

The field is clearly labeled "Your Full Name (Electronic Signature)" so there's no confusion about what they're doing.

Step 3: Read the Legal Acknowledgment

Below the signature field, they see a straightforward legal notice:

By clicking "Sign & Accept," you agree that your electronic signature is the legal equivalent of your manual signature on this quote.

This makes the intent crystal clear - they're entering into a binding agreement.

Step 4: Click to Submit

A tap or click on "Sign & Accept" submits their acceptance. A brief "Processing..." message appears while the request goes through.

And that's it - four simple steps to a signed quote.

What Gets Recorded (Your Audit Trail)

Every acceptance creates a comprehensive record. Here's exactly what SemaQuote captures:

This audit trail provides solid documentation if you ever need to verify when and how a quote was accepted. It's the kind of record that holds up.

What Happens After They Accept

Once your client successfully signs, here's the sequence:

1. Confirmation appears - A green "Quote Accepted" banner with a thank you message
2. Buttons disappear - The accept/decline options are replaced by the acceptance confirmation
3. Automatic redirect - After a moment, they're taken back to their portal dashboard
4. Quote moves to history - It now appears in their "Accepted Quotes" section

The whole experience feels smooth and professional.

You're Notified Instantly

The moment a client accepts a quote, you'll know. In your SemaQuote dashboard, you'll see:

• The quote status updated to "Accepted"
• When they signed
• The signature name they provided
• The IP address on record

This immediate notification means you can start scheduling work right away - no waiting, no wondering.

Pro tip: Once a quote is accepted, you can convert it to an invoice with a single click to keep the momentum going.

When a Client Declines

Sometimes clients say no - that's part of business. Here's how the decline process works.

The Decline Modal

When your client clicks "Decline," a confirmation modal asks:

• "Are you sure you want to decline this quote?"
• An optional text field for providing a reason

Why Feedback Matters

The reason field is optional, but when clients fill it out, you get valuable intelligence. Common reasons include:

• "Price is higher than my budget allows"
• "Going with a different contractor"
• "Project is on hold for now"
• "Need different scope of work"

This feedback helps you understand what's working and what might need adjusting in future quotes.

After They Decline

Once confirmed:

• A red "Quote Rejected" banner appears with "This quote has been declined"
• Your client is redirected to their portal dashboard
• You receive notification of the rejection (including any reason they provided)

Even a "no" gives you closure and information to move forward.

If Something Goes Wrong

Network hiccups happen. If there's an issue during acceptance (connection problems, server delays), your client sees:

• A clear error message explaining what happened
• A "Retry" option to try again
• Their typed signature stays in place - no need to re-enter

The experience is designed to be forgiving of technical issues.

The Legal Validity of E-Signatures

You might wonder: are these signatures actually binding? Yes.

The electronic signature process in SemaQuote is designed to be legally valid under laws like ESIGN (in the U.S.) and similar regulations worldwide. Here's why it holds up:

• Explicit consent - Clients acknowledge their signature is legally binding
• Clear intent - The typed name serves as a deliberate signature
• Documented timestamp - Exact time and date on record
• IP address tracking - Additional verification of who signed
• Complete audit trail - Everything logged for reference

This combination provides strong evidence that your client intentionally and knowingly agreed to your quote terms.

Signing on Mobile Works Perfectly

Your clients can accept quotes from anywhere. The mobile experience is designed for touch:

• View the full quote on their phone
• Tap "Accept Quote"
• Type their name with the on-screen keyboard
• Tap to complete the signature

Buttons and input fields are sized appropriately for fingers - no frustrating tiny tap targets.

Tips for Getting Faster Signatures

Want to increase your acceptance rate? These practices help:

Send quotes while the conversation is fresh. The sooner you send after discussing the work, the more likely clients are to act.

Set reasonable validity periods. 14-30 days gives clients time to decide without creating urgency that backfires. Too short feels pushy; too long lets quotes get forgotten.

Follow up on viewed quotes. If you see a quote has been viewed but not responded to after a few days, a friendly check-in often does the trick.

Use your client's preferred channel. Some people check email constantly; others live in text messages. Send the portal link where they're most likely to see it quickly.

When you make it easy to say yes, more clients do.

Related guides: See what clients experience when viewing quotes or learn how to send and share quotes effectively.