Quotation or estimate?
They are the same document type in Hectile. Choose the title your customers expect; the workflow, numbering and conversion are identical.
Create an Estimate
Validity and customer review
The customer reviews the issued Estimate — by email, secure link or PDF. Hectile does not record a decision on the customer’s behalf; your team records it once you hear back.
An open Estimate past its validity date shows Expired. If the customer still wants to proceed, issue a fresh Estimate with current dates rather than reviving the old one.
Record the outcome
Accepted
Record acceptance when the customer confirms, or the customer accepts from the secure link. The Estimate shows Accepted. Nothing else happens automatically — no invoice is created and nothing is sent.
Declined
Record a decline to close the Estimate. It remains a record with its number; you can duplicate it into a new Draft if the conversation reopens.
Create the invoice from an accepted Estimate
When you are ready to bill, create an Invoice from the Estimate. This produces a separate Invoice Draft that copies the lines, notes, terms and payment instructions — you review it like any other Draft.
- The Estimate stays Accepted while the linked Invoice is a Draft.
- Finalizing the linked Invoice marks the Estimate Converted.
- The Invoice gets its own number from the Brand’s invoice sequence.
- The Estimate’s currency carries into the Invoice Draft without currency conversion. Review its lines, taxes and totals before finalizing; changes to the Draft can change its totals.
State example
Step through a fictional Estimate to see which state changes when.
The Estimate is finalized and shared. It is open until the customer answers or the validity date passes.
Common questions
Yes, if you want: the secure link of an open Estimate shows Accept Estimate and Decline, with a confirmation step, and the Estimate shows the customer's answer. Your team can still record the outcome in Hectile. There is no customer account or portal.
Create the Invoice Draft from the Estimate and edit the lines before finalizing — a Draft is fully editable. The Estimate is marked Converted when that invoice is finalized.
Issued Estimates are locked. Duplicate it into a new Draft, make the changes, finalize the new Estimate and record a decline on the old one if appropriate.
No. Expiry applies to open Estimates that pass their validity date. Once you record acceptance, the Estimate stays Accepted until its invoice is finalized (Converted) or it is cancelled.