How to use your Job & Customer Toolkit

Before you begin

This guide assumes you have never used a downloaded toolkit. The steps below are for a Windows computer. A browser is the program you use to view websites, such as Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge. The toolkit opens in a browser, even though it is a file on your own computer.

You do not need Microsoft Word, Excel or a toolkit account. After downloading, you can read and edit the kit without an internet connection. Sending an email or WhatsApp message and following website links still need the internet.

Click means press the left mouse button once. Double-click means press it twice quickly. Right-click means press the right mouse button once to show a menu. If these actions are difficult, ask someone to help with the initial setup.

A ZIP file is a package containing several files. Extract All takes those files out of the package into an ordinary folder. Use that ordinary folder to work on your jobs.

1. Save your download

1. Use the download supplied with your purchase. Your customer file is called Lucra-Job-and-Customer-Toolkit.zip.
2. If a Save As window appears, click Downloads on its left-hand side. Leave the filename ending .zip, then click Save.
3. If no Save As window appears, your browser may save it automatically. Check Downloads, or your browser’s downloads list, to find where it went.
4. Wait for the download to finish before opening it.

A Save As window chooses where to put a download. It is not the toolkit itself. Its file-type filter may hide files that are already in a folder; an empty-looking list in that window does not necessarily mean the folder is empty.

2. Take the files out of the ZIP

1. Open File Explorer, the yellow folder icon on your Windows taskbar. If you cannot see it, click Start and search for File Explorer.
2. Click Downloads on the left, or go to the folder where you saved the ZIP.
3. Find Lucra-Job-and-Customer-Toolkit.zip. Right-click it and choose Extract All. If needed, look under Show more options.
4. In the extraction window, you can keep the suggested destination. Click Extract.
5. Open the new ordinary folder. If a folder window opens automatically after extraction, you can use it.

Check before continuing: the folder path should not have .zip in it. If you still see the ZIP filename in the path or an Extract All button while browsing its contents, return to Downloads and extract it first.

3. Know which file does what

Keep the files together in the extracted folder. Windows may hide the endings shown below; the next section explains how to display them.

The ending .html means a page that opens in a browser. The ending .txt means a text file that you can open in Notepad. Changing a file’s ending does not convert it into a different kind of file.

4. Show the filename endings

Showing the endings makes it easier to rename and recognise your saved job files.

1. In File Explorer on Windows 11, click View, then Show, then select File name extensions.
2. On Windows 10, click the View tab and tick File name extensions.
3. You should now see endings such as .html, .txt and .zip.

Keep .html at the end of every saved job filename, in lowercase. Lowercase means small letters: .html, rather than .HTML. Include the dot before the h. For example: Garden-tidy-Smith.html.

5. Open the toolkit and enter your details

1. In the extracted folder, double-click Job-and-Customer-Toolkit.html.
2. It should open in your browser. If you see code or it opens in a text editor, close that view. Right-click the file, choose Open with, and select Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge if available.
3. Read the Start here section. Use the links below it to move to Job pricing or one of the templates.
4. To enter a figure or change words, click inside the relevant box and type. The large text boxes can be edited like a simple document.
5. Words in square brackets, such as [NAME] or [ADDRESS], are placeholders. Replace the whole placeholder, including its brackets, with the correct details.
6. Remove wording that does not apply. Check all names, dates, measurements, prices, inclusions and exclusions before using a completed document.

The ten templates cover: job enquiries, site visits, customer quotes, extra-work approval, job work sheets, materials and purchases, payment tracking, completion and handover, job profit review, and weekly follow-ups. You can use only the ones you need.

6. Work out a job price

1. Click Job pricing. Enter a job reference or short description so you can identify the job.
2. Enter your estimated working hours and the hourly cost of your own time. Include relevant preparation and clearing-up time. Keep the time and travel allowances consistent so you do not count the same cost twice.
3. Enter the applicable costs for other workers, materials, travel and parking, equipment hire, waste disposal and other direct expenses.
4. Read the materials checklist. Check small supplies, delivery charges, pack sizes, expected waste and reusable leftovers. Use your actual supplier prices.
5. Enter a reasonable share of business running costs for this job, plus any allowance for uncertain costs. Do not add a cost again if it is already included elsewhere.
6. Enter the profit you want to add in pounds. Paying for your own working time and adding profit are separate parts of this estimate.
7. Leave VAT at zero unless you are entitled and required to charge it. If applicable, enter the correct VAT amount manually. The calculator does not choose the VAT treatment for you.
8. Read the totals and check your entries. Use your own figures when preparing the customer quote.

Practice example: the included garden-tidy example has £160 estimated cost and £40 added profit, giving a £200 price before any applicable VAT. Click Load worked example only when you are ready to replace the current calculator entries. Your templates stay unchanged.

The calculator does not automatically put its answer into the quote template. Enter the checked customer price in the quote yourself. The costing sheet and profit review are internal working records; use the Customer quote template for customer-facing wording. An estimate cannot guarantee the profit you eventually make.

7. Save a permanent job file — the download method

This method requests a new downloadable copy of the whole main toolkit. It contains the calculator figures and all ten job templates as they are at that moment.

1. Return to Start here and click Save a copy of all my entries.
2. If your browser asks where to save it, choose the extracted toolkit folder. If it downloads automatically, find it in Downloads or your browser’s downloads list.
3. The suggested filename is Lucra-Toolkit-Saved.html. If you have used the button before, the browser may add a number to distinguish another copy.
4. Find the downloaded file in File Explorer. Right-click it and choose Rename; on some Windows menus, Rename is an icon or is under Show more options.
5. Use a name you recognise, such as Garden-tidy-Smith-2026-10-02.html. Keep .html at the end, in lowercase. If the ending is already displayed, keep it once. Do not add a second .html.
6. If Windows warns that you are changing the file type, choose No and check that the original .html ending is still present.
7. If the copy is in Downloads, move it into the extracted toolkit folder: right-click the file and choose Cut, open the toolkit folder, then right-click an empty space and choose Paste.
8. Open this downloaded job file and check that your figures and words are there before relying on it. Keep it beside Customer-Reply-Kit.html so its reply-page link can work.

After more changes, save again. This button creates another copy; it does not automatically update the file you originally opened. Open the most recent saved copy next time. Give each copy a recognisable date or version if needed, and check the contents before removing any older copies.

Your browser’s normal Save page option is not a substitute for the toolkit’s save button: it may not capture the entries you have typed.

8. Optional auto-save to a chosen job file

Use this only if your browser offers the feature. Supported desktop browsers may let the toolkit write directly to a file you choose. If the button is unavailable or no file chooser opens, use the download method above.

1. Resolve any offered recovery draft first by choosing Restore my draft or Keep current entries.
2. Click Turn on auto-save near the top of the toolkit.
3. In the file chooser, select the extracted toolkit folder. Enter a new job filename ending in lowercase .html, such as Garden-tidy-Smith.html.
4. Click Save and allow file access if your browser asks. Choosing an existing file can replace its contents. For a new job, use a new name so you keep the original toolkit blank.
5. Wait for the toolkit’s status to say the job file has been saved. Once enabled, edits are written after about two seconds of paused typing.
6. Check that it says Saved to your chosen filename before closing. If an error appears, keep the page open and use Save a copy of all my entries to request a permanent backup.
7. When reopening a job later, turn on auto-save again and choose that same job file to continue updating it. Auto-save does not remain enabled automatically between sessions.

Pause auto-save stops automatic writes. Changes made while paused need another downloaded copy or auto-save turned on again.

9. Continue an existing job or start a new one

1. Open File Explorer and go to the folder containing your job files.
2. For an existing job, double-click that job’s saved .html file. If you made several downloaded copies, open the latest one and check the details.
3. Continue editing. Use the download method again, or enable auto-save to the same job file.
4. For a different job, open the original Job-and-Customer-Toolkit.html and use a different job reference and saved filename.

If the original file offers an earlier recovery draft and you want a fresh job, choosing Keep current entries keeps the entries already displayed rather than restoring the earlier draft. Check the screen before typing. Do not use a previous customer’s completed file as a new job without removing all of that customer’s details.

10. Understand drafts and the five-minute reminder

A recovery draft is an extra copy of your entries kept by the same browser where it supports storage. It is different from a permanent job file.

1. If a recovery notice appears, read its date and time.
2. Choose Restore my draft to bring back those earlier entries, or Keep current entries to keep what is already displayed. Restoring can replace entries on the screen, so check before choosing.
3. After restoring, check the job details and save a permanent copy using one of the methods above.

Recovery can be lost when a file moves or is renamed, browser data is cleared, private browsing is used, or another browser or device is used. It does not replace your named job file or backup.

If you have changed entries without a permanent saved copy, a reminder appears after five minutes. Choose Save a copy of all my entries to save, or Remind me in 5 minutes to postpone the reminder. Postponing does not save the file. The reminder does not keep the computer awake.

11. Copy, download or print one completed template

1. Go to the template you completed, such as Customer quote.
2. Read it carefully. Replace any remaining placeholders and check all amounts and promises.
3. Click Copy text, then click inside your email, document or message and choose Paste. If a clipboard notice says the text was selected instead, right-click the selected words and choose Copy, or use Ctrl+C; then paste it into your destination.
4. Alternatively, click Download text to request a .txt file containing that one template’s current wording. This is separate from saving the full editable toolkit.
5. To print, click Print this tool. Your browser opens its print window. Choose the printer, preview the pages and click Print. If the browser offers Save as PDF, you can choose it to create a PDF file instead.

Check the pasted text or PDF before sending it. Copying, downloading and printing do not send anything to a customer automatically. Keep your full saved job toolkit as your working record; send only the intended customer document or message.

12. Use the sixty customer reply messages

1. In the extracted folder, open Customer-Reply-Kit.html in your browser. You can also use the reply-page link from a toolkit job file kept in that same folder.
2. Find a reply that matches the situation. Click inside its text box to edit it.
3. Replace placeholders such as [NAME], [DATE] and [AMOUNT]. Remove irrelevant wording and check that any promise matches what your business can actually do.
4. Click Copy message and paste it into your email or messaging app. If copying is blocked, follow the selection notice and copy the selected words yourself.
5. Review the message in the destination before sending it.

Edits on the reply page are temporary. Saving the main toolkit does not preserve them. Copy any wording you want to keep before closing or refreshing that page.

For permanent changes to your usual replies, right-click Messages.txt, choose Open with and select Notepad or another text editor. Edit the wording and use File → Save. Keep the .txt ending. Editing Messages.txt does not automatically change the replies displayed in Customer-Reply-Kit.html; the saved text file is your separate editable copy.

You can similarly use Practical-Templates.txt for plain-text copies of the job templates. Keep a separate text copy for each job if using that method.

13. If something looks different or does not work

14. Keep records and backups

Keep the original blank toolkit, the reply page and your named job files in an organised folder. Back up important files to a trusted location so a lost computer or accidentally deleted folder does not lose your only copy. Keep files containing customer details private.

The toolkit keeps entered information locally; it does not automatically upload it to Lucra. A backup service or cloud folder you choose may store a separate copy according to that service’s settings.

Your purchasing business and its staff may use and adapt the kit. You may send completed customer-facing documents and messages to your own customers. The licence does not allow reselling, giving away or publishing the toolkit collection.

15. Ask for help

Email info@lucra.uk. Tell us which file you opened, whether you are on a computer or phone, which browser you used, what you clicked and the exact wording of any error. Do not include private customer details, passwords or payment information.

These tools help you plan and write. They are not complete legal contracts, accounting software or a decision about your tax treatment. Check the figures, wording and terms for your actual business before quoting or sending a message.

Before closing a job

• The job reference and customer details are correct.
• All figures and remaining placeholders have been checked.
• A permanent job file has been saved and checked.
• Its filename ends with lowercase .html, once.
• You know the folder and filename to open next time.
• Any reply-message edits you need have been copied or saved separately.