AI prompts for stonemasons

Act as an experienced stonemason writing a customer quote.
Turn my dictated take-off into a clear, professional, itemised quote in plain English.
Customer: [customer name]. Job address: [job address].
What I measured, in my words: [dictate the job, e.g. kitchen in 20mm engineered, 4.2 lineal on the run plus a 2.4 by 1 island, mitred edge to 40 both, undermount sink cut-out, one waterfall end, plus 6 square of split-face cladding to the range wall].
Name the stone and the finish on every line. List the work as clear line items, add a short friendly intro and a "what's included / not included" section (say whether the template visit and the first seal are in).
Keep the pricing blank for me to fill in. Australian spelling.

Dictate it at the slab rack while it’s fresh — not at 9:30pm when you’ll forget the second slab.

Write a short paragraph I can put in every quote explaining natural stone variation to a customer who has never bought stone before.
Stone: [stone name and finish]. Job: [e.g. kitchen benchtops and a splashback].
Cover, in plain language and in my voice: that stone is a natural material and varies batch to batch, that the slab will not match the showroom sample or the picture they saved, that this is the point and not a fault, and that a joint has to land somewhere on a run this size.
Warm and confident, not a disclaimer. 4-6 sentences. Australian tone.

This paragraph is what stops the argument at install — and it’s why they trust you over the cheaper bloke.

Write a short, polite message to [customer name] explaining a variation to their job at [job address].
Original scope: [original scope, e.g. supply and fix 20mm benchtops off one slab]. Change now needed: [what changed and why, e.g. the layout needs a second slab so the veining runs through the island and the run, or the slab that landed has a flaw through the middle and I've had to reserve another].
Explain in plain terms why it's needed, that it adds [extra cost/time], and ask them to approve before I order or cut.
Friendly but clear. No jargon.

I'm quoting a [job type, e.g. a full apartment block of benchtops / a split-face cladding run to a two-storey facade] for [customer name] at [job address].
Scope: [scope]. Break this into logical stages a customer can understand (e.g. template, slab reservation and ordering, fabrication, install and fit-off, seal), and suggest a fair payment schedule for each.
Important: the deposit has to cover the material and must land before the stone is ordered — word that as simply how I work, not a favour I'm asking. For the commercial job, structure it as progress claims per stage instead.
Explain what happens at each stage in one line. Leave dollar amounts blank for me.

Act as a senior stonemason reviewing my take-off before I quote it.
Job: [job type, e.g. kitchen benchtops with a waterfall end] at [job address]. My current take-off: [paste your scope / line items].
List anything commonly forgotten on this type of job (the template visit, wastage allowance, a second slab purely so the veining runs through, edge profile and mitres, cut-outs, access and the island lift, crane or hoist hire, travel, the tip run for the offcuts, the first seal, disposal of the old tops).
Just a checklist of "did you allow for..." questions. Don't invent prices, and don't make the stone or fixing calls for me.

Great for catching the stuff that eats your margin later — the travel and the second slab are the classics.

Write a friendly, professional reply to a new job enquiry.
Customer wrote: "[paste their message, e.g. we're redoing our kitchen and want a price on stone tops and a splashback]".
I'm a stonemason in [area]. Thank them, confirm I can help, ask the 3-4 things I need to price or triage it ([e.g. the address, what they're after — benchtops, cladding, paving, a restoration, a memorial — rough sizes or a plan, whether they've picked a stone yet, and their rough timing]), and say I'll get back to them.
Keep it short and easy to read on a phone.

Explain [technical thing, e.g. why the veining in their slab won't match the showroom sample / why the layout needs two slabs for the vein to run through the island and the run / why a joint has to land somewhere on a 4.2 metre run] to a customer who isn't a mason.
Use a simple everyday comparison, keep it to a short paragraph, and end with what it means for them (cost/time/look) without scaring them or making it sound like a fault. Plain, friendly Australian English.

The mason who explains this well has already won the job.

Help me write a calm, honest message to [customer name] about a problem on their job at [job address].
The issue: [what went wrong / what I found, e.g. the slab landed with a flaw through the middle and I'm not putting it in their kitchen, or the batch that's come in reads much darker than the sample they signed off].
What I recommend: [your fix / next step, e.g. I've photographed it against the job, the supplier's been chased, and I've put a hold on another slab from the same batch — it moves install by about a week].
Acknowledge it, don't over-apologise, explain the options clearly, and reassure them I'll sort it. Keep it steady and professional.

A customer says my quote for [job, e.g. the kitchen tops] is more than they expected. Help me write a polite, confident reply.
My quote covers: [key inclusions and quality points, e.g. the template visit, the second slab so the veining runs through, mitred edges, the undermount cut-out, the island lift with two blokes, the first seal, and cleaning up after ourselves].
Don't be defensive or drop the price. Reinforce the value — they're buying certainty on something permanent as much as they're buying stone. Offer to walk them through the quote, and leave the door open. Short and respectful.

Write a short, warm email to send [customer name] about a month after their [job, e.g. kitchen benchtops in honed marble] at [job address] was finished.
Cover: how to clean it day to day and what NOT to use on it, what to watch for with [stone type, e.g. etching and staining on marble], and roughly when it'll want re-sealing.
Keep it practical and generous, not a warranty notice — this is the email they remember for years. End by saying to ring me if anything ever looks off.

Costs nothing, gets remembered for years — and it’s where the next job and the referral come from.

Write a friendly follow-up message to [customer name] about the quote I sent for [job, e.g. the kitchen tops] at [job address] on [date].
Check if they got it, offer to walk them through why I've allowed [the thing worth explaining, e.g. a second slab so the veining runs through], offer to answer any questions, and keep it low-pressure.
2-3 sentences, sounds like a real person, not a chase-up bot.

Send it on day four, and again about three weeks later — on stone they’re still deciding, not gone.

Write a short confirmation text for [customer name] for the template visit at [job address] tomorrow.
Include: arrival window [time], roughly how long I'll be there, what has to be done before I can template ([e.g. cabinets in, fixed and levelled, sink and tap on site, appliances on site, old tops out and benches clear]), that I can't template around anything that isn't finished, and my number to call if anything changes.
Clear and friendly.

Worth also asking the cabinetmaker to confirm the bases are in and level — a wasted template trip is a wasted day.

Write a message to [customer name] to book the install of their job at [job address].
Last stage done: [what's completed, e.g. templated and the slab's landed and been cut]. Next: [what's next, e.g. install and fit-off] which takes about [duration].
Tell them what I need on the day ([e.g. clear access from the truck to the kitchen, a park out front, pets inside, and someone home]), mention the island top is a two-man lift, and offer [2-3 date options].
Friendly and easy to reply to.

Help me reschedule [customer name]'s job at [job address] from [original date] because [honest reason, e.g. their slab hasn't landed from the yard yet].
Apologise briefly, explain plainly that I'd rather move it than cut into a slab that isn't right or isn't here, offer [2 alternative dates], and reassure them their job is still a priority. Keep it warm and short.

Here are the jobs I've got on this week: [list jobs with rough location and duration, e.g. Mon - Nguyen kitchen template (2hr, Newtown); Tue - Wilson tops cutting in the shop (full day); Wed - Wilson install, island lift needs two (full day, Marrickville); Thu - architect's cladding job, site measure (half day, Ashfield)...].
Sort out what's templating, what's cutting in the shop and what's installing, suggest a sensible order to cut down driving between suburbs, and flag anything that looks too tight — especially anything I've booked to install before the slab has landed. Keep it as a simple day-by-day list.

Write a short, warm message asking [customer name] for a Google review now their job at [job address] is finished.
Thank them, say it genuinely helps a small local stonemasonry business, and make it easy: mention I'll send the review link.
Keep it humble and no-pressure. 2-3 sentences.

Send it right after the splashback goes on and the kitchen’s finally finished — that’s the moment they’re happiest.

Write a genuine, friendly reply to this 5-star review for my stonemasonry business: "[paste review]".
Thank them by name if given, mention something specific from their job (e.g. the vein running through the island, or the sandstone facade we cleaned up), and keep it warm and human. Don't sound copy-pasted.

Help me reply to a negative review for my stonemasonry business. The review says: "[paste review]".
My side / what actually happened: [your notes, e.g. the variation between the slab and the showroom sample was explained in writing in the quote and on the phone].
Write a calm, professional public reply: acknowledge their experience, don't get defensive or argue details publicly, and invite them to contact me directly to sort it. Short and level-headed.

Write a short message I can send to [architect / builder / cabinetmaker / kitchen company] I've done good work for, asking them to keep me in mind for stone on their next project.
We worked together on: [job, e.g. the cladding to the Ashfield facade / the tops for the Newtown kitchens].
Lead with what makes me easy to work with (turn up when I say, explain the stone to the client properly, quote fast and itemised), not with a discount. Friendly, not pushy, sounds like a mason who does good work.

In stone the referrals worth the most aren’t homeowners — they’re the architect, the builder and the cabinetmaker.

Write a polite but firm email to [supplier / yard name] chasing an order.
Order: [what you ordered, e.g. two slabs of [stone name], [finish], batch reserved against the Nguyen kitchen] placed on [date], order ref [number].
It was due [date] and I've got an install booked that depends on it, with a customer who's already paid a deposit. Ask for a firm delivery date and to be called if there's a delay. Professional and to the point.

Write a short email to [supplier name] requesting price and availability for a job:
[paste your list, e.g. 2 slabs of [stone name] in [thickness and finish] from the same batch, split-face cladding to [X] square, colour-matched adhesive and sealer].
Ask them to confirm the slabs are from one batch and to send photos of the actual slabs before I commit, plus trade pricing, lead time, and whether they can deliver to [job address / suburb]. Keep it brief and businesslike.

Ask for photos of the actual slabs, not the website shot — the wrong batch is four figures you can’t return.

I'll list what I spent on a job and I want a tidy cost summary.
Job: [job / customer]. Costs: [list each item and amount, e.g. two slabs $2,400, colour-matched adhesive and sealer $180, blades and consumables $90, crane hire for the facade panels $450, tip run for the offcuts $70, second man for the island lift half day $220].
Group them (stone / materials and consumables / labour / hire / disposal), total each group and the whole job, and format it so I can drop it straight into my records.

Don’t paste anything you wouldn’t want stored — keep customer bank details and the like out of it.

Draft a starting-point Safe Work Method Statement for [task, e.g. wet cutting and edge polishing engineered stone in the shop / lifting and installing an island top through a doorway / fixing split-face cladding from a scissor lift].
List the main hazards, the controls I should have in place, and PPE required, as a simple checklist. Include silica dust and the water feed, manual handling and the two-man lift, and working at height where relevant.
Note that I need to review it against my actual shop and site conditions and local regulations before using it. Don't treat it as final or compliant on its own — how my shop controls dust, and how the work gets fixed, stays my call and my responsibility.

Always have a qualified person check safety documents against current regs and the actual site. Your dust-control and health-monitoring records are yours to keep — the AI just stops them going missing.

Write a short, friendly email to send with an invoice to [customer name] for their completed job at [job address].
Thank them, note the invoice is attached, state the balance [$amount] with the deposit already deducted, the due date [date], and how they can pay [payment methods].
Mention the care and sealing instructions are attached too. Warm and professional. Australian tone.

Send it from the driveway, not "tonight" — every day you wait is a day added to when you get paid.

Write a polite reminder to [customer name] about an overdue invoice for their job at [job address].
Invoice [number], amount [$amount], was due [date].
Assume it's an honest oversight, keep it friendly, restate how to pay, and ask them to let me know if there's any issue. Firm but respectful.

Have a version for day 3, day 7 and day 14 — most people pay on the first nudge and you stay the good guy.