Let's talk about the Elephant in the room.  The blog links closely to the Value of Building Relationships earlier so check that out (link at the end). So this elephant, the phone calls from people who ring around shopping around for the best price of the right set of time frames.

Now I understand why people do this because they often want to hear that their project can be completed in the timeframe they have in their head or they are just shopping on price and wanting their expectations to match the figure they have in their head.

No designer can accurately price your project in a phone conversation. And many designers are not going to invest hours of investigating your brief, site and planning requirements to give you a committed and accurate fee when they suspect you are talking to other designers and they are not getting paid for it. It’s a guaranteed waste of their time. 

I have lost many leads because I have been honest about not providing costs and timeframes over the phone. And I don’t regret it, because I would far rather I told the truth straight up than promise something that cannot be delivered and will almost certainly cause conflict later on down the track.  No one wins in that situation. 

This is not a commodity item, this is not something that you walk into a store, purchase and then get handed the keys, this is your project, this is your process and this affects you the most.

Lastly what I am going to say on this subject, is that if you want someone to have an invested interest in your project, then you must invest in their process. Simply looking for the person who gives you the answer you want to hear over the person that tells you how it is or asks for a small commitment so that they can accurately answer your questions, sets up your project to be disappointing and hard work, and I don’t really want that for you.

To close, don’t shop around, rather put that energy into doing your homework into who is the right fit for your project. Focus on choosing the right person to work with, you are building your project team, the team that is going to help you take you from dreaming from your home to being in your dream home. It will pay off as the project progresses. Remember a great team creates great results. And a winning team does their homework. And invest in getting the right answers in a Design Advice Consultation at the beginning. 

Don’t miss out on the opportunity to have a value added project because you set your budget or time expectations without the right information and advise. 

To read my press blog on the value of Building Relationships click HERE

To learn more about more about my Design Advice Consultation click HERE