What Happens When You Send a Quotation to a Client in CrmLeaf
All editions. Core feature - no add-on required.
Availability: All editions. Core feature — no add-on required.
What's New NEW
R26.10 · Oct 2026New plain-language answer to the questions customers ask most about sending a quotation: what the client gets, what the public link is, how the client approves or rejects, what happens after each decision, and how the invoice is created. The article marks clearly which points are confirmed and which still need product confirmation.
Overview
Short answer: when you send a quotation, CrmLeaf changes its status from draft to waiting and makes a signed public link for it usable by your client. The client opens the link, reviews the quotation and approves or declines it, with no CrmLeaf login. If the client approves, CrmLeaf records their signature, sets the status to accepted and creates an unpaid invoice for you automatically. If the client declines, the status becomes declined and no invoice is created.
In CrmLeaf a quotation is the document labelled Quote on screen. Older guides and some editions call it an Estimate. They are the same record.
How It Works
Send → Status becomes waiting → Client opens the public link → Approve or decline → Invoice created, or no invoice
| Question | Answer | Status of the answer |
|---|---|---|
| What changes when I press Send? | The quote moves from draft to waiting and the client's signed link becomes usable. | Confirmed |
| What is the public link? | A signed, unguessable address (/estimate/{hash}) that opens that one quote for the client, with no login. | Confirmed |
| How does the client approve? | Opens the link, reviews the quote and approves it. Approval records a signature. | Confirmed flow; exact button wording not confirmed |
| How does the client reject? | Declines on the same page. The status becomes declined. | Confirmed flow; exact button wording and whether a comment can be added not confirmed |
| What happens after a reject? | No invoice is created. You agree changes, cancel the old quote and send a new one. | Confirmed |
| What happens after an approval? | Status accepted, signature stored, unpaid invoice created. You review and send the invoice. | Confirmed |
| How do I create the invoice from an approved quote? | You do not need to. CrmLeaf creates it on approval, once only. | Confirmed; a manual convert action is not confirmed |
| What does the email to the client say? | Not documented. Whether Send emails the client, from which address and with what text has not been confirmed. | Not confirmed |
Who Can Use This Feature?
User
- Send a quote, watch its status and follow up with the client.
- Open the invoice created when the client approves.
Client
- Open the public link and approve or decline the quote. No CrmLeaf login is needed.
Access depends on the modules and role assigned by your Administrator. Your view of quotes and invoices follows the ownership-based permission scope set for your role.
Prerequisites
- A saved quote (status
draft) addressed to a client. See QTC-14 if you have not created one yet. - A correct email address on the client record, in case the client is to be contacted by email.
- A valid-till date that has not passed.
For Users
Step 1: Check the quote before you send
What to do: Open the quote and check the client, currency, valid-till date, line items, tax and discount. The client will approve exactly these figures, and approval creates the invoice from them.
What to verify: The totals are final. If not, use Edit while the quote is still a draft.
Step 2: Send it
What to do: Use the Send action on the quote's row in the list, or open the quote and choose Action → Send.
What to verify: The status reads waiting.
Step 3: See what your client sees
What to do: Before relying on this with real customers, send a test quote to a test client whose email address you control. Check your mailbox, note whether a message arrives, who it is from and what it says, and open the link it contains. Approve it, then look at the invoice.
What to verify: You know exactly what email text and approval page your own customers get. Write it down for your team, because this is the one part of the flow this manual cannot describe for you.
Step 4: Track the quote
What to do: Open the quotes list and check the status, and check last_viewed on the quote to see whether the client has opened it.
What to verify: You can tell whether the quote is unopened, opened but waiting, accepted or declined. See QTC-18 for chasing.
Step 5: Act on the decision
What to do: If the status is accepted, open the invoices list, find the new unpaid invoice, review it and send it (QTC-17). If the status is declined, speak to the client, then cancel the old quote and send a new one if the conversation continues (QTC-15).
What to verify: Only one live document exists for the work: the new invoice, or the new quote.
Expected Result
The quote shows waiting after Send, the client can open it on the public link without a login, and the client's decision moves it to accepted with an unpaid invoice, or to declined with no invoice.
Important Notes
- Menu names and their position can differ between product editions and can be customised for your account, so your sidebar may not match these paths exactly. Use Search or your Quick Access items if you cannot find a screen.
- This article does not state what the client's email says, because that has not been confirmed. Do not promise customers specific wording until you have checked it with a test quote.
- Anyone who has the public link can open that quote. Share it only with the intended client.
- Approval creates an invoice. Do not ask the client to approve until the figures are final.
- Only quotes create an invoice on approval. An approved proposal does not.
Common Scenarios
Example: a customer asks what happens next. A prospect asks, “What happens when you send me a quotation?” A suitable reply is: “You receive a secure link to the quotation. You do not need an account to open it. You can review the items and totals and approve or decline it there. If you approve, your invoice is raised from the same figures.” Do not add what the email contains until you have checked it.
Example: a client declines. The client declines because one line is too high. You agree a revised price, cancel the declined quote, create a new one with the corrected line and send it. The client approves the new quote and only that quote creates an invoice.
Troubleshooting
| Issue | Possible Cause | Resolution |
|---|---|---|
| The client says they received nothing | The email address on the client record is wrong, the message went to spam, or Send does not email the client in your setup | Check the client's email address and spam folder, and confirm with a test quote what Send does in your account. Give the client the link another way if needed. |
| The client cannot open the link | The quote is still a draft, has expired, or the link was copied incompletely | Send the quote, check the valid-till date, and give the client the full link. |
The status stays waiting | The client has not opened the link, or opened it without deciding | Check last_viewed and follow up. See QTC-18. |
The quote is accepted but you see no invoice | A filter is applied on the invoices list, or your permission scope hides it | Clear filters, search by client, and ask your Administrator to check your invoice scope. See QTC-17. |
| The client approved by mistake | Approval records a signature and creates an invoice | Treat the quote as final and handle the invoice as described in QTC-05. |
Frequently Asked Questions
What happens when I send a quotation to a client in CrmLeaf?
The quote's status changes from draft to waiting, and the client's signed public link becomes usable. The client can then review and approve or decline the quote without logging in.
What details does the email to the client contain?
This has not been confirmed. The manual can say that the client reviews the quote on the public link and that the quote carries the client, currency, valid-till date, line items, discount and tax. It cannot yet say whether Send emails the client, from which address, or with what text. Send a test quote to your own email address to see it, and see Information Required below.
What is the public link?
It is a signed address of the form /estimate/{hash} that opens one specific quote for the client. It needs no login and works only for that quote. CrmLeaf records when the client opens it as last_viewed.
How does a client approve or reject a quotation?
The client opens the public link, reviews the quote and chooses to approve it, which records a signature, or to decline it. You do not do either on the client's behalf in this flow.
What happens once the client rejects the quotation?
The status becomes declined and no invoice is created. Agree the change with the client, cancel the old quote and send a new one. Whether you are notified of a decline automatically is not confirmed, so check the quote status. See QTC-16.
What happens once the client approves?
The status becomes accepted, the signature is stored and CrmLeaf creates an unpaid invoice with the quote's figures. You then review the invoice, send it to the client and record the payment.
How do I create an invoice from an approved quotation?
You do not have to. CrmLeaf creates it automatically when the client approves, and only once, even if approval is submitted twice. Open the invoices list to find it. Whether a separate manual convert action also exists is not confirmed. If the invoice is missing, check the quote status first, as described in QTC-17.
Does the client need a CrmLeaf login?
No. The public link works without a login or portal access.
Can I send the quote again?
Use Send again on the row or under Action. Whether that emails the client again is not confirmed.
Related Articles
- How to Evaluate Quoting and Invoicing: The Quote-to-Invoice Workflow
- How to Send Your First Quote in CrmLeaf (Quick Start)
- How Clients Approve a Quote
- How to Find Out When a Client Approves a Quote
- How an Approved Quote Becomes an Invoice
- How to Follow Up on Quotes Waiting for Approval
- How to Create and Send Estimates
Our support team answers on business days. Reference QTC-19 so we can jump straight in.