Build a service package builder: clients pick add-ons, you confirm the quote
Photographers, cleaners, web designers and event suppliers often sell the same thing: a base service plus optional extras. A service package builder lets the client assemble that themselves, watch the total change, and send you the result. Anticode can build one as an app whose selection reaches you as an enquiry, so you still check it and confirm the price before anyone pays.
Packages first, extras second
Builders that open on a long list of options overwhelm people. A structure that works for most service businesses is a choice of two or three base packages, then add-ons grouped by what they're for, then a summary. Take a wedding photographer:
| Step | Choices | How it's priced |
|---|---|---|
| Coverage | Ceremony only, half day, full day | Fixed price per package |
| Second photographer | Yes or no | Flat add-on, full day only |
| Engagement shoot | Yes or no | Flat add-on |
| Album | None, 20 pages, 40 pages | Priced per size |
| Travel | Distance from base in miles | Free up to a radius, then per mile |
Notice the rule in the second row. Every builder has a few of these: add-ons that only make sense with certain packages, extras that are included in the top tier, quantities with a minimum. Write them down before you describe the tool, because they decide what the client can and can't select.
Pricing decisions to settle
- Exact or "from" prices. If travel, venue access or job size can change the cost, label the total "Estimated" and say what could move it.
- Included versus extra. Show included items as ticked and greyed in higher packages, so clients see the value of upgrading rather than paying twice.
- Bundles. If three add-ons together cost less, the builder should apply the bundle price automatically and say so.
- Tax. State whether prices include VAT or sales tax, once and clearly.
- A minimum. If jobs below a certain size aren't worth taking, say so on the summary instead of letting a client send a request you'll decline.
From selection to confirmed quote
The builder's last step is a short form: the client's name and email (both required), a phone number, the date or deadline, and a notes field. When they send it, Anticode's form pipeline delivers it to you by email and in the dashboard, with their chosen package, add-ons and the estimated total included in the message. Free sites have a monthly allowance of visible submissions; beyond it, the rest are held until you upgrade (see pricing).
Each request can also go straight to the tools you use through form connectors: a Slack or Telegram alert so you reply quickly, a row in Google Sheets or Airtable, a card in Notion, or a contact in HubSpot. Each submission is sent once, so keep an eye on the dashboard if a connector's credentials change.
You then reply with a confirmed quote and, when they agree, a payment link from the provider you already use. The builder never takes money itself.
Describing it
Give the packages, prices, rules and wording: "A service package builder for my garden maintenance business. Three base visits: Tidy, Seasonal, Full. Add-ons: hedge trimming priced by metre, lawn feed, green waste removal, gutter clear. Gutter clear is included in Full. Show a running total labelled 'Estimate, confirmed after a visit'. Finish with name, email, phone, postcode and preferred month, and send it to me."
Anticode writes the builder as one app. Test the arithmetic against a few real past jobs, try every rule (pick an add-on, then switch to a package that includes it), and send yourself a test request to see exactly how it arrives.
What it doesn't do
- No payment or deposit. The sandbox has no payments inside apps. Send a payment link once you've confirmed the price.
- No live availability. It can't check your diary. Ask for a preferred date and confirm it yourself, or use the booking calendar for fixed slots.
- No saved client accounts. A client can't log in to see past quotes. If you add "save my selection", it lives only in their own browser.
- Prices are in the app. Changing a price is a change request, then a check and a publish.
For an instant figure from a few questions rather than a package, see the quote calculator app. For physical made-to-order products, the product configurator is closer.
Questions people ask
Can the total include a formula, such as price per square metre?
Yes. Give the formula and the minimum, and test it with real job sizes before you publish.
Does the client get a copy of their selection?
Ask for a summary screen they can print or screenshot. The confirmed quote is the email you send them.
What fields does the enquiry need?
A name and an email are required for it to reach you. Phone, dates and notes are optional extras added to the message.