Christmas Light Quoting Software: Photo to Signed Quote
Christmas light quoting software should get you from a photo to a signed quote without retyping a number. GlowBid measures a photo you own from 1 known length, prices the runs from your rate card, and sends a quote PDF the homeowner signs on their phone with a Stripe deposit. Every run carries a source tag and a confidence level. The quoting loop is in Core at $299 a year founding.
Here is what each step records, in the order the job happens.
| Step | Record | What it carries |
|---|---|---|
| Measure | Run on the canvas | Type, length, storeys, source tag (reference-scaled or manual), confidence, foreshortening warning |
| Price | Line item | Footage times your per-foot rate, peak and storey premiums, flat jump and peak charges, add-ons, minimum job |
| Quote | Quote PDF | The drawing, footage by run, line items, scope block, estimate disclaimer, your terms |
| Sign | Signed agreement | Signature from the customer's phone, SHA-256 fingerprint of the signed document |
| Deposit | Stripe payment | Deposit at signing through Stripe Connect, fee shown before you connect |
| Invoice | Invoice with ledger | Balance owing, every payment recorded, partial payments never lost |
How do you measure from a photo you own?
Take the photo from the street, or upload the one the homeowner sent. Mark one known length, a 16-foot garage door, a 36-inch entry door, or a tape measurement you took on the walk-up. Every run drawn after that is scaled from it. Draw roofline, ridge line, peak, ground, tree and jump as their own runs, and the footage adds up by type as you go. The method, with the angles that trip people up, is in how to measure a roofline from a photo.
Honesty is built into the record. This is what rides along with every run and every quote.
| Tag | What it means | On the quote |
|---|---|---|
| Reference-scaled | Measured on the photo from a known length you marked | Footage shown with its confidence level |
| Manual | A length you typed from a tape or a known dimension | Footage shown as entered |
| Foreshortening warning | The run angles away from the camera, so the photo shortens it | Flagged so you confirm it on site |
| Estimate disclaimer | Photo measurements are estimates confirmed on site | Printed on every quote |
| Materials buffer | Optional percent added to the order, 10 by default | Your choice, shown as yours |
Why not measure from satellite or Street View?
This is a design choice we made on purpose. Google's terms do not allow storing, caching, compositing or measuring Street View and map imagery, and we build inside those terms. In GlowBid, Street View is a live preview so you can recognise the house when you type the address. It is never saved and never measured. The measuring canvas uses only photos you or the homeowner own. That keeps every quote you send on ground you control, and it means the photo on the quote is the house as it stands today, not as it stood when the car drove by. The rules, with the terms quoted, are in Street View measurement rules.
How does the price come off the drawing?
Footage times your per-foot rate for each run type and product line. Peak and storey premiums are calculated on the base and added. Flat per-jump and per-peak charges count the runs. Add-ons such as controllers and timers price each. A minimum job, your deposit rule and your tax rate finish the total. Every number on the rate card is yours; GlowBid ships defaults as a starting point. The engine is pure and tested on every change, because a wrong price is the one bug an installer cannot afford.
What is on the quote PDF?
The drawing on the photo, footage by run type, every line item with its premiums, add-ons, the minimum job if it applies, tax and the deposit due. A scope block says what is and is not included, so the crew and the homeowner read the same sentence. The estimate disclaimer and your terms print on every copy. A line-by-line example is in the Christmas light installation estimate template.
How do e-sign, deposit and invoice work?
Send the quote by text or email. The homeowner opens it on their phone and signs. GlowBid stores the signed document with a SHA-256 fingerprint, so a later change to the file would not match the fingerprint recorded at signing. The deposit is collected right after signing through Stripe Connect; Stripe processing plus a GlowBid platform margin under 1 percent is shown before you connect your account. The invoice carries a payments ledger: the deposit lands on it, and cash, cheque or e-transfer payments are recorded as they arrive, so the balance is always right.
What does it cost?
The whole quoting loop is in Core. One price per company, US dollars, founding price held while the subscription stays continuous. Package details are on the pricing page.
Core
Quote at the door and get it signed.
$299a year, founding
Regular $499 a year or $69 a month.
Pro
Core plus the pipeline CRM.
$499a year, founding
Regular $899 a year or $119 a month.
Ultimate
Pro plus job management.
$699a year, founding
Regular $1,299 a year or $169 a month.
- 7-day free trial of the whole product. No card to start.
- 30-day money-back guarantee on the first year.
- 100 founding places. The founding price holds while the subscription stays continuous.
- Priced per company, not per seat. US dollars, before tax.
The full product opens November 1, 2026. See the pricing page for what each package includes.
Questions installers ask
- How accurate is a quote measured from a photo?
- Close enough to send, and honest about it. Scale comes from one known length you mark, such as a 16-foot garage door. Every run carries a reference-scaled or manual tag and a confidence level. Runs angled away from the camera get a foreshortening warning. The quote says photo measurements are estimates confirmed on site, and a materials buffer, 10 percent by default, is yours to set.
- Why not trace the roof on satellite or Street View?
- Because Google's terms do not allow storing, compositing or measuring that imagery, and we chose to build inside them. In GlowBid, Street View is a live preview so you recognise the house. It is never saved and never measured. The measuring canvas uses only photos you or the homeowner own. That is a design choice, not a workaround.
- What is on the quote PDF?
- The drawing with the runs on the photo, footage by run type, every line item with its premiums, add-ons, the minimum job if it applies, tax, the deposit due, a scope block that says what is and is not included, the estimate disclaimer and your terms. The homeowner gets the same page you see.
- How does the e-signature hold up?
- The homeowner signs on their own phone from the link you text or email. GlowBid stores the signed document with a SHA-256 fingerprint, so any later change to the file would not match the fingerprint recorded at signing. The signed agreement, the drawing and the price it was signed at stay together on the job.
- What does the deposit cost me?
- Deposits collected through GlowBid run on Stripe Connect. Each one carries Stripe's processing fee plus a GlowBid platform margin under 1 percent. Both are shown to you before you connect your Stripe account, so there is no surprise on the first payout. The deposit rule itself, 30 percent on the default card, is yours.
- Can I record a partial payment on the invoice?
- Yes. Every invoice carries a payments ledger. The deposit lands there on its own, and you record cash, cheque or e-transfer payments as they arrive. The balance owing updates each time, so a customer who pays in three parts is never chased for money already received. Invoicing is in Core at $299 a year founding.
Read next
- Christmas light installation estimate template
What a clean estimate carries, line by line, free to copy.
- How to measure a roofline from a photo
Reference scaling, angles, and the runs to confirm on site.
- Street View measurement rules
What Google's terms allow, and why we only measure photos we own.