First impressions are huge!  Nothing is more important than the first 5 to 10 minutes of an initial meeting with a potential customer; putting a homeowner at ease, finding a way to connect, and listening very carefully to what is said…and what is not.  These are the keys to a successful presentation and the development of a long term, genuine, level of trust.

 

34 years, and thousands of homeowner contacts, have given me the skills to listen and communicate very well.  I’m confident in my ability to put people at ease and gain their trust, and I believe my experience also gains their respect.

 

Documentation at this stage of the process is focused on the accumulation of information and getting a signed agreement for services.

 

Success at this stage depends on the following:

-          Understanding and distinguishing between the desires and the needs of the homeowner.

-          Agreement, with the homeowner, on the priorities for the project.

-          Determining the ‘comfort zone’ and openly discussing budget implications.

-          Obtaining complete and accurate measurements, notes and photos of the existing project area, including an inventory of mechanical, and other key conditions.

 

Establish expectations early on regarding the design process.  Always invite, and be open to, questions about what’s going to happen next.

 

Over the years, almost every problem or issue that I’ve had that has arisen with a homeowner could have been prevented by dealing with expectations.  I’ve learned to stay ahead of that curve, and have the happy clients to prove it.

 

This is also the time to establish a written record of ongoing communications between the homeowner and designer, via the Design Memorandum, and initiate a running record of project progress with the Project Status Report.

 

    

Once the design has been refined to a point where the scope of work is well defined, it’s time to schedule a jobsite walkthrough for subcontractors and suppliers.  Fixtures and finishes may not yet be selected, but that should not prevent this next important stage from proceeding.

 

Establishing a Vendor List (using the contractor’s preferred subs and suppliers) provides the information needed to send out the Jobsite Walk-through Invitation, and a foundation for tracking the returning quotes.

 

The Project Specifications Template is the core document used to produce RFP’s, as well as provide the backbone for estimating and contract documentation.

 

Managing this phase of the process is critical to fully understanding the total scope of work and getting accurate quotes on a timely basis.  I can provide the oversight and expertise needed to make this a successful stage on any project.

 

Accurate and realistic estimating has always been a challenging and arduous task.  This is where the time spent making the RFP process successful and thorough really pays off.  Most of the information in the estimate can be pulled directly from subcontractor and supplier quotes, going a long way towards predictable costs.

 

As rapidly as products and prices change, I’ve relied more and more on the people that are closest to these changes to provide reliable pricing.  It’s just too difficult, and risky, to try an stay locked on these moving targets.  Let the specialists do that for you!

 

The Estimate Take-off Template is organized by CSI divisions and has been developed to specifically apply to residential remodeling.  Over a thousand cost items insure that all elements of the work are included in the final estimate of costs.

 

The beauty of this system is the integration of specifications, estimating and, proposal and contract documentation.  Because everything’s spreadsheet based, it’s easy to import vital data into your job costing and accounting applications.

 

This is THE MOST CHALLENGING AND STRESSFUL STAGE of the design process for many homeowners.  The sheer number of decisions that are required of them is, at times, both overwhelming and scary.

 

An interior designer can be very helpful, but the homeowner’s budget may not have room for that luxury.  There’s another way to guide and assist your customer through the product selection jungle.

 

For the customer that doesn’t know where to begin with selections, I try to find one thing they feel strongly about, and build from there.  Maybe it’s a tile or granite sample; perhaps a furniture piece, a light fixture, or even a faucet.  Something will lay the ground work to make the next selection just a little easier.

 

A comprehensive Fixtures and Finishes Checklist is a great tool for organizing and prioritizing product selection decisions.  Assembling a Selection Binder for the homeowner, at this stage, gives them a resource for managing their selections and a long term record of product information.

 

For many of my past customers, the Selection Binder was their most used tool during the entire project; a place to keep product brochures, pages torn out of magazines, other project documents, and even meeting notes and punch lists.

 

All the work that has come before now needs to be assembled in one, cohesive package; complete, detailed and clearly comprehensible. 

 

…which will be a snap, if I’ve already done everything else to this point!

 

Ideally, as a contractor, you want no detail unaddressed or left to the imagination.  Specifications are spelled out precisely, fixture and finish selections are complete (those that are not, have a clearly defined allowance), and project terms, general conditions and other contract attachments are clear and easy to understand.

 

Your standard contract language can easily be integrated into my Contract Specifications template.

 

Included in the Contract Package stage is a P.O. Summary, which can be imported, or entered directly, into your job costing system; and a Project Confirmation Notice which can be mailed, or e-mailed, to all the chosen subs and suppliers, giving them advance notice of the anticipated project start.

 

Your new remodeling project is almost ready to build.  Working drawings, project specifications and product selections are complete…or very nearly complete.

 

Your production team is excited about the new project and ready to get to work, but before that can happen, your Production or Project Manager needs to have an opportunity to review all the project documents.

 

Even the best detailed drawings and most clearly spelled out specifications can leave some things to the imagination, and there is no better person to help production understand those details and answer questions, than the designer.

 

I can provide consultation on an as-needed basis at any point in the production process, but it is my goal to answer all the questions before work is started by providing a bullet proof Production Handoff Package.

 

If needed, I can also assist with project scheduling, set up in MS Project.