Voice estimate app: say the job, get a priced estimate
A voice estimate app writes the estimate from what you say. In Staxen you tap the mic, describe the job the way you would to a helper, answer 3 to 12 one-tap questions, and Eddie the Estimator builds a line-item estimate priced from your own past prices first. You edit any line, then text or email one link where the client e-signs and pays a deposit if your payment schedule has one.
From what you say to a signed estimate
- Tap the mic and say the job. Open New estimate, pick I'll describe it, and tap the mic next to Continue. Say the work, how much of it, where it is and anything unusual, then tap the square to stop. Your words land in the text box, so you can fix a word or keep typing. You can add up to 6 photos, a scope sheet or the plans first.
- See what is missing before you continue. Staxen rates the description from Poor to Excellent and lists up to three things that would make it easier to price, such as how many, where, or what is there now. Length earns nothing. A short description that names the work, the count and the place beats a long one that does not.
- Answer a few one-tap questions. Eddie asks 3 to 12 questions, fewer when your description already says more. Each answer is one tap, the recommended one is tagged, and each shows how much it moves the price. Work you already put a price on is never asked about.
- Eddie prices every line. Each line takes the best price it can find: your own past estimates and saved prices first, then Staxen's job and per-unit price books, with parts from your catalog, a Home Depot shelf price from the store nearest the job, or the national average. A price you said stays at your figure. When nothing has a price, Eddie fills one in and marks it Eddie's estimate.
- Review and edit. You get line items with a quantity, a unit, a Material or Labor tag and a price. Tap a line to change your cost, the client price, the quantity or the unit, or to delete it. Add a line or a phase. An optional profitability check shows what you keep before you pay yourself and before income tax.
- Send one link. Add who it is for, pick Text a link or Email a link, and choose what the client sees: Simplified shows phases and totals, Full detail shows every line and its price. The client opens it on their phone with no app and no login, taps Approve and Sign, types their name, and pays the deposit if your payment schedule has one.
- Follow up. If you emailed the estimate, Eddie drafts follow-up emails 3, 7 and 14 days later and stops when the client signs. By default each one waits for your OK, and you can set them to send on their own once Gmail is connected.
What you say, and the kind of lines that come back
Example. What you say:
Panel upgrade at 418 Maple. Swap the old 100 amp panel for a new 200 amp panel with a new meter base and two ground rods. Add two 20 amp circuits to the garage, about 40 feet of run each. Basement is unfinished, so it is open framing.
| Line | Qty | Kind |
|---|---|---|
| 200 amp main breaker panel | 1 ea | Material |
| 200 amp meter base | 1 ea | Material |
| Ground rods and clamps | 2 ea | Material |
| Panel and meter base swap | 1 ea | Labor |
| 12/2 wire for garage circuits | 80 lf | Material |
| 20 amp circuit, garage | 2 ea | Labor |
An example of the shape, not a price list. Line names, splits and prices depend on what you say, how you answer the questions and the prices you already have in Staxen.
Example scopes by trade
Examples of a scope said out loud, one per trade. Say your own job your own way. What matters is the work, how much of it and where.
Example: Electrical
Kitchen remodel at the Johnson house. Six new LED can lights on two switches, move the fridge outlet, four GFCI outlets along the counter, and a dedicated 20 amp circuit for the microwave. Attic above the kitchen, and the panel has two open slots.
The counts, the circuit size and what is above the ceiling are all there, so the questions can be about fixtures and trim instead of scope.
Example: HVAC
Replace a 3 ton split system in a 1,900 square foot single story. Like for like, gas furnace in the attic, condenser on a pad out back. Reuse the line set if it pressure tests, new thermostat, haul the old equipment away.
Tonnage, fuel, where the equipment sits and what gets reused are all stated, so the price does not rest on guesses.
Example: Plumbing
Replace a 50 gallon gas water heater in the basement, same spot. New expansion tank, new gas flex line and shutoff, and haul the old tank away. Easy access, house is about 20 years old.
It says replace, not repair, plus the size and the fuel. Replace or repair decides whether a new tank is priced at all.
Example: Roofing
Tear off and reroof a 28 square ranch, 6 in 12 pitch, one layer of shingles on it now. Architectural shingles, synthetic underlayment, ice and water at the eaves and valleys, new drip edge, two pipe boots and a ridge vent. Dumpster goes in the driveway.
Squares, pitch and layers to tear off are the measurements a roof is bid on, and they are all in the first sentence.
Example: Painting
Interior repaint, four bedrooms and the hallway, walls and ceilings, about 1,800 square feet of wall. Same colors, two coats, patch the nail holes. Trim and doors are not included, and the owner is moving the furniture.
Saying what is not included keeps trim and doors off the estimate and out of the questions.
Example: Landscaping
Front yard refresh. Pull the old shrubs along the walk, about 60 feet of bed, new steel edging, 6 yards of mulch and twelve 3 gallon shrubs. Grade and sod a 400 square foot patch by the driveway.
Feet, yards and square feet let each line carry a real quantity instead of an allowance.
Voice or typing, honestly
Both go into the same box and Eddie reads them the same way. Here is where each one is better.
| Talking it | Typing it | |
|---|---|---|
| Where you are | Works in the truck, on a ladder or with gloves on. | Easier at a desk or anywhere you cannot talk out loud. |
| Speed | Talking a long scope is usually faster than thumbing it out on a phone. | Fine for a short job you can describe in one line. |
| Numbers and model numbers | A number or a part number can come through wrong. Read the box before you continue. | Exact figures go in exactly as you type them. |
| Noise | A loud site or a running saw can garble words. | Noise does not matter. |
| Detail | Easy to add the extras that cut the questions: what is there now, access, what is not included. | Short descriptions are tempting, and a short one usually means more questions. |
| Language | Speech is recognized in US English today. | Type anything the speech gets wrong, in your own words. |
Use both. Talk the scope while the job is in front of you, then fix the numbers by thumb before you continue.
What it does not do
It never sends on its own
The estimate is a draft until you tap send. Nothing reaches the client before you have seen it.
Follow-ups are emails, not texts
The 3, 7 and 14 day follow-ups only run for an estimate you emailed. An estimate sent by text gets no automatic follow-up.
Photos do not add work
Photos help Eddie understand the job, but only what you describe is priced. Plans go through their own step that measures the sheets first.
Store prices are shelf prices
A Home Depot price is the shelf price at one store on one day, never Pro Xtra or contractor-account pricing. Put your supplier's price in your catalog and it wins from then on.
Frequently asked questions
What is a voice estimate app?
An estimating app you talk to. You describe the job out loud and the app turns your words into a priced, line-item estimate that you edit and send. In Staxen the spoken words go into the same box as typing, so you can mix the two.
Does the estimate really write itself?
Mostly. Eddie reads the description, asks a few one-tap questions, and prices each line from your own prices first. You still review every line, nothing goes to the client until you send it, and any line Eddie had to put a figure on is marked Eddie's estimate.
What should I say to get a good estimate?
The work, how much of it and where, then what is there now, what is included and what is not. Counts and measurements do more than adjectives. The rating on the describe screen tells you what is missing before you continue.
Can my client sign and pay a deposit from the text?
Yes. The text carries one link. The client opens the estimate on their phone with no app or login, taps Approve and Sign and types their name. If your payment schedule has a deposit and Stripe is connected, a Pay deposit button takes a card, or a bank transfer when your Stripe account accepts ACH.
How much does Staxen cost?
Eddie is $59 a month, or all three AI employees are $149 a month, month to month. The first 7 days are free in the app, and new accounts start in the iPhone or Android app.