Update an enquiry’s status after a real action or outcome, and keep the supporting conversation in your normal work record. A useful status tells you where to look next; it does not replace the details of a call, a proposal or an agreed job.
For a small service business, the value is being able to reopen the inbox and understand which requests still need attention. Agree what each label means before relying on totals or assuming a colleague has already dealt with an enquiry.
Give the labels a working meaning
Enquiry Fox shows New, Contacted, Booked, Completed and Lost as follow-up labels. Use them consistently, alongside the actual customer exchange. The available transition controls guide which update can be made from the current state.
- New: the request still needs your initial handling.
- Contacted: you have taken the contact action your business uses for this stage; keep an unanswered attempt distinct from a conversation in your work record.
- Booked: the customer and business have actually agreed the relevant arrangements.
- Completed: the agreed work has been completed, rather than merely discussed or scheduled.
- Lost: the business is no longer pursuing the enquiry; keep the known reason separately instead of guessing it from the label.
Work through three common cases
Fictional case one: you call about a cleaning request and nobody answers. Record the attempt and the next action in your usual work tool. If your team uses Contacted for attempts, make that convention explicit; it must not imply that the customer answered.
Fictional case two: you email a proposal for regular garden maintenance. The customer has not accepted it. Sending the proposal is progress, but it is not a reason to mark the work Booked.
Fictional case three: both sides confirm the visit and scope through your normal process. You can now record the booked outcome. The status reflects that agreement; changing it did not create the appointment.
Keep the next question visible somewhere useful
A label cannot explain every outstanding detail. Use a short manual note in your existing job or communication record: “E17: emailed scope question Tuesday; awaiting which rooms are included; review Friday.” Link it to the enquiry reference instead of duplicating the whole request.
At your regular inbox check, ask which next actions belong to your business and which await the customer. Two Contacted enquiries may need different treatment: one is awaiting a reply, while another needs the quotation you promised.
Correct mistakes without inventing outcomes
If you chose the wrong status, correct it using the available controls and keep the true history in your normal record. A customer returning later does not prove the original enquiry was mishandled, and a Lost count does not prove your pricing was wrong.
The same distinction matters when reviewing results: booked work, paid invoices and profit are different measures. Keep the status summary useful for follow-up without asking it to serve as your financial record.
Try the inbox before changing your process
Use the example inbox in the full demo to change a fictional request’s status, then decide how you would handle its next action. Enquiry Fox may fit an owner who wants requests and progress together; reminders, staff assignments and detailed job scheduling still need their own process.
Sources and further reading
Enquiry Fox helps service businesses collect enquiries. Assessment, quotations, service delivery and customer arrangements stay with the business.
Try the example customer formSee pricing and set up your enquiry page