What homeowners see in the walkthrough
The estimate walkthrough is designed to feel less like a form and more like a friendly chat through the property. It's short — no account, no install, no jargon, and no pricing surprises along the way. Whether the homeowner sees a price at the end is the painter's call, made on each invite: by default they see none, and the estimate comes from the painter afterwards. If the painter switches it on, the homeowner sees a rounded starting range once they've sent the walkthrough — never a quote.
This article walks through what the homeowner sees, in order. Useful if you're a painter wanting to coach a client over the phone, or a homeowner getting ready to start one.
Before you start: the invite
The homeowner gets an email from the painter's business — branded with the painter's logo (if one's been uploaded), business name, and brand colour. The email explains that before the painter visits, they'd love a quick walk-through of the place: photos of the spaces they want painted, and anything worth knowing. There's one big button: Start the walkthrough. Tapping it opens the link in their browser. No login screen.
The link is unique to them and the invite says so explicitly: "this link is just for you — you can come back to it any time." That matters because it removes the only-one-shot feeling. The homeowner can start, get distracted by dinner, and pick up exactly where they left off later that evening — or the next day, or the next week.
Adding spaces
There's no upfront "how big is the job" form. The homeowner starts with an empty walk-through and adds one space at a time. A "space" is whatever they want quoted — a room inside (kitchen, hallway, bedroom) or a side or feature outside (the front of the house, a deck, a fence).
To add one, they tap Inside or Outside — each shown with plain examples — and the space is added to their list. They can add as many as they like, in any order, rename them, and remove any they change their mind about. A running list shows what they've added so far, so it always feels like progress rather than a long form.
Walking through each space
This is the heart of the walkthrough. For each space they've added, the homeowner:
- Names it — "Master bedroom," "Front of house," "Kids' room." Whatever makes sense to them. If they leave it blank, it gets a friendly default like "Room 2" or "Outside 1."
- Takes a few photos — wide shots are best. The AI looks at each photo and suggests what surfaces it can see. The homeowner doesn't have to be a photographer — phone shots are exactly the point.
- Picks the surfaces — the same row of surfaces you see on your own area screen: walls, ceilings, doors, windows, skirting, render, cabinets and the rest, with a More row for anything less common and a custom surface for anything else. What the photos spotted is offered in its own row. They tap whatever they want painted.
- Measures them — one surface at a time, on the same keypad you use, with your pricing settings hidden. A plain sentence says what to measure, in m² or feet depending on their locale, and rough is fine. Trim and gutters open on a typical size they can change, so only the length is typed. A bedroom takes a few minutes: this is a real measure, the same one you would do, so what you import is what you would have measured yourself.
- Adds a note — there are quick-tap chips for common things (colour change, wallpaper, garden against walls, hard access, high areas, pets on property) plus a free-text box.
Every surface they pick needs sizes before they can send, because a surface with no sizes cannot reach a price; a row says what is missing. They can take a surface off the list if they would rather leave it to you. Cabinets and stairs are the exception: they count them and measure what they can, and you price those on site, so they never hold up the send. When they're ready they tap Add another space to keep going, or Done — review to move on.
Timing
One question: when do they want the work done? Four options — as soon as possible, next month, 2–3 months out, or just getting prices. No pressure. The painter sees this to help with scheduling.
Ready to send
The final screen is a confirmation, not a quote. It shows a tidy summary — how many spaces, how many photos, the timing — followed by a list of everything that'll be sent to the painter: each space with its photos, the surfaces picked (with any measurements), and the homeowner's notes. There's no price on this screen.
Two calm explainer boxes sit alongside it. One says the painter will review what's been shared and come back with an estimate, usually with a quick site visit first. The other two list what the painter's quotes typically include (labour, quality paint, standard prep) and what's usually priced separately (scaffolding and access equipment, waste disposal, other site-specific costs). It sets expectations without putting a number on anything.
The button reads Send to [painter's name]. Tapping it submits the walk-through, and the painter is notified to begin reviewing.
After they send: an estimate, if the painter chose to show one
The homeowner lands on an All sent! screen. What comes next depends on one switch the painter sets on each invite — Show them an estimate when they complete the walkthrough. It's off by default, and invites sent from the lead widget always have it off.
- Off — the homeowner sees no price at all. The painter reviews what was shared and comes back with an estimate.
- On — the homeowner sees Your indicative starting range: a rounded low-to-high figure worked out from the painter's own rates, with the spread covering surfaces in good condition through to ones needing heavy prep. It's clearly labelled as a starting range, not a quote, shown before tax, and sits beside a short list of what can move the final price. The same range appears if they come back to their link later, and in their confirmation email.
Either way, the real price is the painter's estimate, usually after a quick site visit.
Things homeowners never see
To keep the walkthrough honest and pressure-free, several things are kept out of the homeowner's view entirely:
- Any price while they're filling it in — and none at the end unless the painter switched the starting range on for that invite
- An exact figure — even when the range is on, it's rounded, never the number behind it
- The painter's cost rates or margins
- Any breakdown of labour vs materials
- The painter's internal notes about the job
What they see is their own job, described clearly, ready to hand over. Nothing more.
Tip for painters — on or off? Leave the range off when you'd rather your estimate be the first number the client sees: there's no anchor to argue against, and your price arrives backed by a painter who's reviewed their photos and walked the job. Switch it on when a ballpark will help — a client who wants to know they're in the right range before booking a visit, or one comparing painters. Because the range comes from your own rates, check those are right before you send; the rates the range uses are shown just above the switch.