1 October 2026 · 6 min read · Oscar Markham
Three kitchen quotes, and no way to compare them
A customer with three kitchen quotes is holding three documents that use different language, include different things and arrive at different totals. They have no way to tell whether the cheapest is good value or missing half the job. So they do the only thing available and compare the number at the bottom.
Itemise what is actually included
Carcasses and what they are made of, doors, worktop, sink and tap, appliances or not, handles, lighting, the removal of the old kitchen, making good, fitting, and who does the plumbing and electrics.
A quote that lists all of it is comprehensible. One that says 'fully fitted kitchen' is not, and it loses to a cheaper one that was never comparing like with like.
Name the things that are usually excluded
Tiling, flooring, plastering, moving services, painting after. These are the costs that appear later and turn a happy customer into an angry one.
Saying upfront what is not included is more reassuring than pretending the question does not exist, and it is the thing the other two quotes will not have done.
Explain what drives the price
Size, the door and finish, the worktop material, the appliance spec, how much making good the room needs.
A customer who understands the levers can make an informed decision about where to spend. One who does not simply asks for the cheapest version of everything.
Show the design, not just the total
A rendered layout of their own room does more than any specification list. It proves the quote was made for them rather than taken off a price list.
It is also the document they will show other people, which means your name stays in the conversation.
Then follow up once, to clarify
A call a few days later offering to walk through the quote is not a discount call and should not become one.
Most customers are confused rather than unconvinced, and the company that resolves the confusion is usually the one that gets the job.
Written by Oscar Markham, founder of Dublin Growth Digital. We run lead generation for Irish estate agents and trades, reported every Friday in enquiries and booked work.