A plumber in Phoenix quotes a water heater replacement over text message: 'Around $1,500, can do it Thursday.' The homeowner says yes. Thursday comes, the job takes longer than expected, and the bill is $1,800. The customer disputes it — there's no written quote, no clear scope, just a text message. The plumber either eats $300 or fights with an unhappy customer who writes a 1-star review.
This scenario plays out thousands of times daily across the trades. HVAC technicians, electricians, plumbers, roofers — they're skilled at their craft but terrible at documentation. Most quotes are verbal, texts, or handwritten notes. When scope creep happens (and it always does), there's no paper trail. Disputes cost money and reputation. Meanwhile, professional quoting software like ServiceTitan costs $200+/month and requires a computer — but these contractors live on their phones.
Jobber ($49-149/mo) and Housecall Pro ($49-129/mo) are full field service platforms. But many tradespeople don't want a CRM, scheduling, invoicing, and dispatching — they just want to send professional quotes from their phone. Joist (free/$15-30/mo) is close but dated. The gap is a mobile-first quote generator at $15-29/mo: snap a photo of the job, voice-to-text the scope, auto-generate a branded PDF quote, and text it to the customer with digital signature. Simple, fast, legally binding.
💰 Revenue Blueprint
Three-tier value ladder to monetize from day one
5 quotes/mo, basic template, SMS delivery
Unlimited quotes, custom branding, photo attachments, voice-to-text, digital signature
Team quotes, follow-up reminders, analytics, convert to invoice, payment collection
📊 Market Evidence
The Market Gap
Full field service platforms ($49-200/mo) are overkill. Joist is simple but dated. No modern, mobile-first quote-only tool at $15-29/mo with photo attachment, voice-to-text, and digital signature.
🏆 Competitor Landscape
How existing players stack up in this market
| Competitor | Pricing | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Jobber | $49-149/mo | Field service management + quotes |
| ServiceTitan | Contact sales ($200+/mo) | Enterprise trades software |
| Housecall Pro | $49-129/mo | Home service pros, easy quoting |
| FieldPulse | $65-99/mo | Field service + estimates |
| Joist | Free / $15-30/mo | Contractor estimates and invoices |
Field service management + quotes
Enterprise trades software
Home service pros, easy quoting
Field service + estimates
Contractor estimates and invoices
🛠️ Recommended Tech Stack
Suggested tools and technologies to build this idea
Why this stack: Mobile-first is critical — tradespeople are on job sites, not desks. Voice-to-text reduces friction. SMS delivery with digital signature creates legally binding quotes.
Score Breakdown
Good market signals with room for growth
Market (20%) + Revenue (20%) + Trend (15%) + Competition (15%) + Build (15%) + Pricing (15%)
🚀 Start Building
Copy a prompt into your favorite AI coding tool and start building this idea right now.
Build a SaaS product called "Secure Quote Generator for Trades". ## Product Overview Fast branded quotes with recipient validation ## Problem Fast branded quotes with recipient validation ## Solution Build Secure Quote Generator for Trades ## Target Audience indie hackers, small businesses, and solopreneurs ## Tech Stack - Next.js 15 (App Router) with TypeScript - Tailwind CSS v4 for styling - Supabase for auth, database, and storage - Vercel for deployment - shadcn/ui for UI components - Framer Motion for animations ## MVP Features to Build 1. Landing page with clear value proposition 2. User authentication (sign up, sign in, forgot password) 3. Core product functionality based on the solution above 4. Dashboard for users to manage their data 5. Pricing page with at least 2 tiers (free + paid) 6. Basic settings/profile page ## Known Competitors Jobber, ServiceTitan, Housecall Pro, FieldPulse, Joist ## Key Risks to Address Standard market entry risks ## Deployment 1. Set up Supabase project and configure environment variables 2. Deploy to Vercel with `npx vercel --prod` 3. Set up custom domain 4. Configure Supabase RLS policies for security ## Instructions Start by creating the project structure, then build the landing page first. Use server components where possible. Make it mobile-responsive from the start. Focus on getting the core value loop working before adding polish.