Word templates or solar quotation software?

Where a template works

If you quote rarely, or every job is bespoke, a good template with your branding and clauses is simple and familiar. You can shape the document exactly as you want.

Where the manual steps add up

Documents are written, not calculated, so the weak points are the numbers and the history:

• Totals and tax are typed or pasted, so arithmetic errors survive into the file
• Last month's quotation is copied and edited, so old customer details can slip through
• Versions multiply as files named final, final copy and latest
• Nothing tells you whether an old file is still the one the customer holds

What changes with Bharat Solar Venture

Numbers are calculated from your price book and the customer's state, the layout is fixed across five pages, and revisions are tracked under one serial number. The old link stops working when a newer revision is sent, so there is one current version.

You give up free-form layout. You can edit your terms and your bill of materials, but the page structure is the product's.

Common mistakes

• Typing or pasting totals and tax

  Arithmetic errors typed into a document survive into the file the customer receives.

• Starting from last month's quotation

  Copying and editing an old file lets previous customer details slip through.

• Letting file names stand in for versions

  Names such as final, final copy and latest do not tell you which file the customer holds.

• Expecting free-form layout

  You can edit your terms and your bill of materials in Bharat Solar Venture, but the page structure is the product's.

What to check before you send

• Every total and the tax were calculated, not typed
• The customer's name, address and state belong to this customer, not the previous one
• Only one file is the current version, and you know which
• Your own clauses are in the terms before you send
• The customer will receive a link that opens a PDF, not a Word file