A simple, consistent way to name things so the business works without depending on what's in any one person's head.
What we're really after. Right now, finding the right project or quote in Scoro often means asking Michael — because Michael's the one who knows which "TSC Construction LLC quote" is the handrail one, which is the main job, which 1NH6392B is the 2024 work vs the 2020 work. That works fine while Michael's there. It doesn't work when:
The goal isn't to add work for Michael. The goal is to capture in the system what's currently only in Michael's memory — so the next person can pick up where the last one left off without playing 20 questions.
How we get there. When you make a quote in Scoro, there's a Quote name box. Right now it's been our habit to type "CompanyName quote" there (over 99% of all our quotes are named this way). Instead, type a short label that says what THIS quote is actually for. Five seconds per quote. Everything else on this page is just showing you which label to pick.
Here's what it looks like right now on Project NF232 (Jacobs) in your Scoro. The naming problem isn't just on quotes — it cascades through orders, invoices, and prepayment invoices too. Literally everything on this project is named "Jacobs":
Click the image to see it full size. From a single project: 7 quotes, 4 orders, 5 invoices, 2 prepayment invoices — all named "Jacobs quote" or just "Jacobs." Without opening each one, you can't tell what any of them are for.
This page focuses on fixing the Quote name field (top section of that screenshot). Once we've got that habit in place, the same idea extends to orders and invoices — we'll work that out as part of the V2 rollout. Start with quotes; the rest follows.
One other example worth noting: Project PHI SOUTH RIVERTON (Nat Com) has three quotes for $27,550, all the same day, all named identically. Probably should have been one quote — but nobody could tell from the list, so the duplicates just sat there.
When you make a new quote in Scoro, this is the form you fill in. Five boxes are numbered. #4 (Quote name) is the only one this page is about.
Open the project in Scoro first, then click "New Quote" from inside the project. That way Scoro pre-fills the Project box (#5) for you and the quote is properly linked from the start.
This is what Michael does today. Anyone else on the team making quotes should do the same. If you start a quote from somewhere else (like the main Quotes screen), you'll have to manually search for and select the project — easier to forget, easier to mis-link.
Type a short label that answers one question: what makes THIS quote different from the other quotes on the same project?
For the first quote on a job. Or the only quote if it's a simple job.
Example: Initial
When you're redoing a quote you already made. Same work, just updating it (price changed, customer asked for an edit, etc.).
Example: Rev 2
When you're quoting extra work that came in on a job that's already running. The customer asked for something additional.
Examples (from your NF232 job): Add: stub ups, Add: FRP supports, Add: shim plates
When you're giving the customer two options for the same work, like a galvanized price and a stainless price, so they can pick.
Examples: Alt: HDG, Alt: Stainless
When a big job was planned in stages from the start. Each phase gets its own quote.
Example: Phase 2
Always used as a pair. When a customer pays half up front (Deposit) and the rest when the job's done (Balance).
Examples: Deposit, then later Balance
Doesn't fit any of these six? Just type something short that says what's different. Aim for under 20 characters.
When a new request comes in, it'll be one of these three situations. Find the one that matches, do what it says.
The customer is calling about a site or job we have nothing on file for.
1NH0912E) or the descriptive site name (like Beaver Stadium) into the project name.Initial.We're already working this site. The project's still in pending or in-progress status. The customer wants to add to the work, or wants a re-quote on something we already quoted.
Add: [what]Rev 2 (or Rev 3, Rev 4…)Alt: HDG + Alt: SSWe have an old project for this site in Scoro, but it's completed/closed. This is fresh work, months or years later. Real example: site 1NH6392B had work in 2020, then more work in 2022, then more in 2024.
1NH6392B - 2024
Initial.Three actual cases from your work, showing what the names would have been if we'd been using the labels from day one:
What it looks like today (real screenshot from Scoro)
Every single quote says "Jacobs quote". To find out which one was the main job and which was the FRP supports add-on, you have to click into each one. Seven clicks just to remember what they were for.
What it would look like with the convention
Now anyone can scan the list and immediately see: this was a main antenna frame job, plus six follow-on add-ons. No clicking. The labels are pulled straight from the line items on Michael's actual quotes — these are his own words.
What it looks like today
What it would look like
What the projects are named today
What they'd be named
The one thing to remember
When you make a quote, replace what Scoro fills in with a short label that says what's different about this quote.
If you're not sure which label to use, Initial, Rev 2, and Add: [what] cover almost every case.
| Today | After |
|---|---|
| Need to ask Michael which quote is the handrail one, or which 1NH6392B is the current job. | Anyone can answer that just by looking at the Scoro list. Michael's memory isn't the bottleneck. |
| 5 quotes on the same project, all named the same. Have to open each one to figure out which is which. | Each quote name says what it's for: Initial, Add: handrail, etc. You read the list, you know. |
| Same site has 3 projects from different years, all named identically. Can't tell which is the current one. | Each project name has the year, so the current one is obvious to anyone. |
| Three duplicate same-day quotes that should have been one. Easy to miss the duplication. | Forces you to pick Rev 2 / Rev 3 — and at that point you'd notice and probably consolidate. |
| If a new person joins the team, they have to learn Michael's mental model before they can be useful. | The system itself tells them what every quote and project is for. They're useful on day one. |
| When Michael's out, Scoro becomes harder to use for everyone else. | Scoro stays usable. Knowledge is in the system, not in any one person. |