How a sales coordinator follows up quotes each week

This story shows a practical response to a weekly list of open quotes and a reason recorded for each loss.

Who this is

This composite follows the sales coordinator in a industrial valves business of about 45 people. Their work crosses several desks, with handwritten registers and messages used alongside digital records. The role is answerable for the state of the enquiry register and for passing exceptions to the sales manager. Calls most often come from people who need a yes, no or reliable date before they can continue.

The task here is how a sales coordinator follows up quotes each week. The responsibility is limited: this person can check and record facts within their role, then seek approval when money, safety, customer promises or rules require it.

The moment

The enquiry register is open, but nobody can identify the next owner. The issue now being examined is a weekly list of open quotes and a reason recorded for each loss. The sales coordinator has to decide what can move now and what must wait. The information comes from missed call list, sales mailbox and WhatsApp enquiries. A quick answer is tempting, especially when the next team is already standing nearby, but an unverified status can become a commitment.

The first action is to put the current source on the desk or screen. It may be a job card, a supplier message or a bank entry. The sales coordinator compares the source with the last approved record. A difference is recorded openly. The role then asks who can verify it, rather than inventing a missing value.

This particular moment turns on three small decisions: review pending quotes by age and promised follow-up, record reason for loss or next contact, and stop chasing opted-out contacts. Their order matters. A later approval does not repair a wrong quantity or an unsafe condition discovered after work has started.

What they check, in order

1. Confirm the case. Review pending quotes by age and promised follow-up. Look at missed call list, sales mailbox and WhatsApp enquiries. Write the reference next to the question instead of keeping it only in chat.
2. Check the original evidence. Verify customer name, drawing or item, quantity, requested date and next contact. If two records disagree, keep both and record what needs reconciliation.
3. Look for downstream effects. Record reason for loss or next contact. Tell the affected team which job, payment, batch or person is waiting. Avoid giving a firm time without evidence.
4. Apply the authority boundary. The sales manager reviews exceptions involving an altered commitment or a decision outside the normal limit. A verbal approval should be documented.
5. Keep the next action visible. Stop chasing opted-out contacts. Show the person, deadline and the record that will prove the task is done.
6. Verify closure. Find enquiry number and the source message. If it is missing, keep the item open and make it the first check at the next review.

The checks are intentionally small. They should fit into the person's existing shift instead of creating another report. More detail is useful only when someone will read it and act on it.

What they wish they knew earlier

They would prefer to have customer name, drawing or item, quantity, requested date and next contact before the request becomes urgent. A short update from the previous team can prevent repeated calls. The hard part is deciding whether the update is current and authorised.

For repeat cases, keep the previous decision visible. Otherwise staff cannot tell a new event from an old one. Separate a new enquiry from a confirmed order. An unanswered question about the specification must remain visible.

The one sheet that helps

A small enquiry register brings the question, the evidence and the next person together. The rows below are examples only. They are neither a real company's records nor measured results.

Update the sheet when something changes, even if that change is a revised promise or a failed check. Do not erase the original instruction. For a reusable version, open Quote follow up message.

If you do this job

1. Tomorrow, select one real case that matches Quote follow up routine. Keep the original source visible while you make the check.
2. Record who owns the next move. If the evidence is missing, mark the case open and state the exact document or physical check needed.
3. Before hand-over, tell the next role which part is confirmed and which part still needs a decision. Use Enquiries not followed up to investigate any repeated gap.

Read next

• Enquiries not followed up
• Quote follow up routine
• Quote follow up message