How to Create Your Own Price Book in QuoteTree

A well-organized price book is the foundation of profitable, efficient quoting. It ensures consistency across your estimates, maintains your target margins, and dramatically speeds up the quote creation process. This guide will walk you through creating your first price book in QuoteTree and share best practices we've learned from thousands of successful contractors.

What Is a Price Book and Why You Need One

A price book is your personalized product catalog with your actual costs from distributors or suppliers. Instead of looking up prices each time you create a quote, everything is pre-loaded and ready to use. More importantly, it allows you to:

• Maintain consistent pricing across all quotes
• Apply your markup strategies automatically
• Update prices from distributors in bulk
• Track which products you use most frequently
• Ensure you're using current, accurate costs
• Speed up quote creation by 10x or more

Before You Start: Gather Your Information

Before creating your price book in QuoteTree, collect the following:

• Current price lists from your primary distributors (PDF or CSV format)
• Your typical markup percentages for different product categories
• Product SKUs or model numbers for items you use regularly
• Any special negotiated pricing or volume discounts
• Labor rates for different types of work

Step 1: Access the Price Book Manager

From your QuoteTree dashboard, navigate to the Price Book section:

• Click on your profile icon in the sidebar
• Select "Price Book" from the menu
• Click "Create New Price Book" or "Import Products"

You can maintain multiple price books for different distributors or product lines. This is especially useful if you have a primary distributor for most items and specialty suppliers for specific products.

Step 2: Choose Your Import Method

QuoteTree offers two methods for building your price book:

Method A: CSV Import (Recommended)

If your distributor provides price lists in Excel or CSV format, this is the fastest method:

• Download your distributor's price list
• Ensure it contains columns for: Product Name, SKU, Description, Cost, and Category
• Click "Import from CSV" in QuoteTree
• Map the columns from your file to QuoteTree's fields
• Review and import (typically 500+ products in under 2 minutes)

Method B: Manual Entry

For smaller product catalogs or specialty items, you can add products manually:

• Click "Add Product" in your price book
• Enter product name, SKU, description
• Input your cost
• Assign a category
• Add any notes or specifications
• Save and repeat for additional products

Manual entry works well for labor rates, service charges, or unique custom products you frequently quote.

Step 3: Organize with Categories

Proper categorization makes products easy to find and enables category-specific markup strategies. We recommend organizing by product type:

• Cameras (IP Cameras, Analog Cameras, PTZ Cameras)
• Recording Equipment (NVRs, DVRs, Video Servers)
• Access Control (Card Readers, Controllers, Strikes/Locks)
• Alarm Systems (Panels, Sensors, Keypads)
• Network Equipment (Switches, Routers, POE Injectors)
• Cabling & Infrastructure (Cat6, Coax, Connectors)
• Mounting Hardware
• Power Supplies & Accessories
• Labor (Installation, Programming, Training)

Good categorization also helps QuoteTree's AI make better product recommendations when you describe projects.

Step 4: Set Your Markup Strategy

This is where profitability is won or lost. QuoteTree allows you to set default markup percentages at multiple levels:

Category-Level Markups

Set different margins for different product types based on market rates and your business model:

• Equipment: 25-40% (lower margin, higher volume)
• Specialty items: 40-60% (higher margin, more value)
• Labor: 50-100% (accounts for overhead, insurance, expertise)
• Consumables: 30-50% (wire, connectors, misc items)

Product-Level Overrides

Some products warrant custom pricing. For example, you might:

• Apply lower margins to high-ticket items to remain competitive
• Increase margins on commoditized products where clients won't compare
• Price strategically on products where you have unique expertise

Step 5: Create Markup Presets

QuoteTree's markup presets let you save different pricing strategies for different client types or project sizes:

• "Standard Commercial": Your baseline pricing for most projects
• "Property Management": Reduced margins for repeat, large-volume clients
• "Emergency Service": Premium pricing for rush jobs
• "Government/Municipal": Pricing aligned with prevailing wage requirements
• "Residential Premium": Higher service margins for homeowner projects

When creating a quote, simply select the appropriate preset, and all markups are applied automatically. You can still adjust individual line items if needed.

Step 6: Keep Your Price Book Current

Distributor prices change regularly. Build a habit of updating your price book:

• Quarterly: Full price list refresh from distributors
• Monthly: Check commonly used products for price changes
• Ad-hoc: Update immediately when you discover outdated pricing
• Annual: Review and remove discontinued products

QuoteTree makes updates easy—simply re-import your CSV, and it will update existing products while preserving your markup settings.

Step 7: Managing Multiple Price Books

As your business grows, you might maintain multiple price books:

• Primary Distributor: Your main source for 80% of products
• Secondary Distributor: Backup pricing or regional alternatives
• Specialty Supplier: High-end or niche products
• Labor & Services: Your internal rates and services

When creating quotes, you can pull products from multiple price books. QuoteTree will show you which book each product comes from, helping you make informed sourcing decisions.

Best Practices for Price Book Success

After working with thousands of contractors, here are the habits that separate profitable, efficient businesses from those constantly struggling with quotes:

1. Start Small, Expand Over Time

Don't try to import your distributor's entire 10,000-item catalog. Start with the 100-200 products you use most frequently. You can always add more as needed.

2. Use Descriptive Product Names

Instead of cryptic model numbers, use searchable descriptions: "4MP Dome Camera with IR" is better than "DS-2CD2143G0-I" for quick searching.

3. Include Your Labor Rates

Add labor items to your price book (e.g., "Security Camera Installation - Per Unit", "Access Control Programming - Hourly"). This ensures you never forget to include labor in your quotes.

4. Document Your Markups

In the notes field for each product or category, document why you chose that markup percentage. This helps maintain consistency as your team grows.

5. Review Your Most-Quoted Products

QuoteTree tracks which products appear most frequently in your quotes. Periodically review this data to ensure your most common items have the most competitive pricing and up-to-date information.

Troubleshooting Common Issues

Issue: CSV Import Fails

Ensure your CSV file uses standard encoding (UTF-8) and has clear column headers. Remove any special characters or formatting from Excel before saving as CSV.

Issue: Products Not Appearing in Quotes

Check that products are marked as "Active" in your price book. Inactive products won't appear in searches or AI recommendations.

Issue: Margins Too Low/High

Review your industry benchmarks and local market conditions. QuoteTree's preset templates are starting points—adjust them based on your actual win rates and profitability.

Ready to Build Your Price Book?

Creating your first price book takes 30-60 minutes for most contractors, but it's an investment that pays dividends every single day. You'll quote faster, more accurately, and more profitably.

If you haven't already, start your free trial of QuoteTree today. Our onboarding team can help you get your price book set up during your first week—book a free setup call when you sign up.