Reviews
Quote templates: a source log layout for every number in a price
A source log layout for quote templates: a reopenable source and a capture date for every number, a filled line, and a re-check when a client returns.
A quote template holds fields, but the numbers in those fields come from somewhere. When a client asks months later where a figure came from, a file that cannot answer turns the price into a guess. A source log answers it line by line.
What to take away
- A number is sourced only if you can open its source again.
- Every line gets a named source and a capture date, not last year's file.
- Keep the sources in one log, so a follow-up in March finds the same page it did in November.
- Travel lines are the easiest to sourceuse the published government rate tables.
- When a client returns, compare capture dates and re-source only the lines that moved.
A source is something you can open again
A source is something you can reopen: a supplier price list, a published index, a signed subcontractor bid, or a government rate table. If you cannot reopen it, it is not a source, and a number resting on it cannot be defended.
Sourcing every cost line
- List every cost line in template
- Write origin beside each line
- Record the capture date
- Mark controlled vs third-party lines
- Flag unsourced lines, delete or range
Clients rarely raise a stale number at signature. They raise it when the work starts and the invoice arrives. That gap is where margin disappears, so the fix is not prettier fields. It is a source and a date behind each figure.
One row per cost line
Keep the log as a table beside the template, with one row for every cost line above your threshold. Smaller lines can sit under one general note. Each row records what you opened and when, so anyone can repeat the lookup.
| Cost line | Source you can reopen | What to record |
|---|---|---|
| Metals and plastics | Mill or distributor list | File name and the list date |
| Freight | Carrier surcharge notice | The notice date and a saved copy |
| Skilled labor | Union or pay scale | The scale date |
| Subcontractor work | Signed bid | The bid's own expiry date |
| Travel and lodging | Government rate table | City and fiscal year |
Validity periods by cost line
Cost line
- Metals and plastics
- Weekly
- Freight
- Weekly
- Skilled labor
- Annual
- Subcontractor bids
- Per project
- Travel and lodging
- Monthly
Movement
- Metals and plastics
- 14-30 days
- Freight
- 14 days
- Skilled labor
- 90-180 days
- Subcontractor bids
- 30-60 days
- Travel and lodging
- 30 days
Suggested validity
- Metals and plastics
- Mill list
- Freight
- Carrier surcharge notice
- Skilled labor
- Union or pay scale date
- Subcontractor bids
- Signed bid expiry
- Travel and lodging
- Government rate table
What to re-check
- Metals and plastics
- Freight
- Skilled labor
- Subcontractor bids
- Travel and lodging
How soon a source needs reopening depends on how fast its inputs move. How long each window should run is set out in the guide to a quote expiry date.
The log layout, with one line filled in
Copy the layout below beside your quote template. Square brackets are yours to fill. Each row answers the question a client will ask: where did this number come from, and when was it captured.
SOURCE LOG Quote [ref] Issued [date] Re-source by [date]
Line Source you can reopen Where saved Captured Valid until Changed?
[line] [list / index / bid] [file or URL] [date] [date] [yes / no]
[line] [list / index / bid] [file or URL] [date] [date] [yes / no]
A filled line reads like this on the quote itself:
Structural steel, 18 tons, priced from the fabricator's mill list dated 3 February 2027, valid 30 days, repriced at order.
That one line tells a client three things: where the number came from, when it was captured, and when it stops applying. The log row behind it holds the saved copy of the list. The "Changed?" column is what you fill in when a client returns.
Travel lines come from two public sources
Travel lines are the easiest to source and the most often guessed. The GSA sets the per diem rates, which it describes as the rates federal agencies use to reimburse lodging and meals and incidentals on official travel within the continental United States.
Mileage lines should follow the standard rate the IRS publishes for business use of a car. Log the rate and the year beside the line, so a later reader sees which table you used.
Writing the source into the quote itself
The note on the quote line is the visible half of the log row. Repeat the pattern for every line above your threshold, and let smaller lines share one general validity clause.
The fields that carry these notes are laid out in the quote template fields guide. Keep the log with the quote, so the note and its source are never separated.
Keeping the log where a follow-up can find it
A sourced quote directory is the log kept somewhere shared, with one entry per quote. When a client comes back in March, reopen it first. Compare each capture date against the current quarter and re-price only the lines that moved.
Send a short cover note with the original quote, the new date, and the lines that changed. Clients accept this when the reason is visible. If the client is still weighing a rough figure against a committed price, read choosing between quotes and estimates before you reissue.
Validity checklist before sending
- Every line above threshold has named source
- Every source has capture date this quarter
- Headline validity matches shortest line validity
- Quote states what happens after expiry
- Scope and exclusions attached, not summarized
- Every line above your threshold has a named source in the log.
- Every source can be reopened today.
- Every capture date is recorded beside its line.
- Travel lines name the rate table and its year.
- Scope and exclusions are attached rather than summarized.
For worked layouts, dated and sourced pricing pages show the log in a finished quote.
Common questions
What counts as a source?
Anything you can open again and that names its own date: a price list, a published index, a signed bid or a government table. A remembered number does not count, however recent.
What if a supplier will not publish a price list?
Ask for a written quote with its own expiry date and keep it in the log. A dated email from a named contact beats an undated list.
Does a sourced quote replace a contract?
No. It records price and time. Scope, exclusions, and payment terms still belong in the agreement, and the quote should point to it.
