The short answer: collect a refundable $100-$300 color-lock deposit at the customer portal via Stripe. The "lock the color" framing makes the deposit feel like a commitment to the design, not a generic contractor deposit. Pre-deposit cold leads show up 30-40% of the time; color-lock-paid leads show up 85-95%.
Why the color-lock framing matters
Paint Launch's customer portal includes a full color picker tied to Sherwin-Williams, Benjamin Moore, PPG, and Behr libraries. Most paint deposits happen after 3-5 color swaps on the portal — homeowners explore combinations until they find one they love, then "lock" it with a small deposit. The deposit feels like commitment to the design, not commitment to the painter.
This framing converts dramatically better than a generic "schedule your estimate" deposit because the homeowner is already emotionally invested in the specific body + trim combo they spent 20 minutes exploring.
Standard deposit amounts
- $100-$300 refundable color-lock deposit — typical for residential exterior repaints.
- Refundable trigger: homeowner changes mind within 14-30 days, color combo is HOA-rejected, or scheduling can't be accommodated.
- Refund timing: within 7 business days via Stripe refund.
Material deposits at contract signing
Standard practice for the larger second deposit:
- 30-50% at contract signing — funds material order. Premium-tier products (Sherwin-Williams Emerald, Benjamin Moore Aura, Behr Marquee) have 1-2 week lead times in many markets, so the deposit covers the order.
- Balance at install completion — released after walkthrough.
How Paint Launch automates the deposit workflow
- Homeowner scans postcard QR. Lands on customer portal with rendered repaint in default colors.
- Homeowner explores colors via the integrated Sherwin-Williams / Benjamin Moore / PPG / Behr picker.
- Stripe checkout integrated. Homeowner taps "Pay $X to lock in this color and schedule your estimate."
- Color-lock confirmed. Automated email + SMS with the locked color codes for material order.
- HOA approval letter auto-generates if the home is in a known HOA.
- Material-deposit Stripe link generated at contract signing for the larger second deposit.
Common deposit mistakes
- Deposit too small ($25-$50). Doesn't filter — homeowners pay without committing.
- Generic 'deposit' framing instead of 'color-lock'. The color-lock anchor converts meaningfully better.
- Non-refundable framing pre-contract. Most homeowners won't pay non-refundable deposits to a painter they haven't met.
- Forgetting HOA approval before color-lock. A locked color that the HOA rejects leads to refunds + cancellations. Paint Launch flags HOA-managed homes and queues approval letter automatically.
Color-locked paint leads. Automated.
Free account, free rendering, $1 per mailed paint quote. Stripe color-lock deposit on every customer portal.
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