Owning the Initial Client Consultation Ep 1

Damn Good Interior Designer

Welcome to the inaugural episode of the Damn Good Designer, where Cheryl and Liz of In Detail Interiors will share invaluable insights on building your successful design business with no topic off the table. Today they focus on a successful initial consultation. It might surprise you what Cheryl refuses to do or discuss when meeting the client for the first time. So, "Get ready to challenge the ordinary and embrace the extraordinary!” Stay tuned to the end to hear this episode's Damn Good Truth!

IN THIS EPISODE:

• [00:23] Cheryl welcomes listeners to the inaugural episode of their podcast. How does our initial consultation work
• [02:03] A description of the discovery call and what gets Liz excited about a new lead
• [06:07] What is said to a new client about what the firm does not do
• [11:00] Cheryl loves to do initial consultations with no prep and strives to find out the client's real needs
• [14:40] Questions we ask, how we listen to the client and whether the client is aware of what the market in their neighborhood warrants
• [21:13] Cheryl discusses what other designers do and critical questions most clients don’t consider
• [27:16] How to wrap up the visit with the client regarding details and budget
• [30:30] Cheryl’s damn good truth for this episode

KEY TAKEAWAYS:

• Cheryl’s goals in her first consultation are to make the client feel comfortable and excited about the project and to infuse “expert in the room” confidence
• Key element to all initial consultations is the success of the discovery call
• Why this is one of Cheryl’s favorite aspects of a new project and making it yours too
• How repetition is key to making sure there is no mistake with the client’s understanding of the consultation process and how we work

Sponsored By : The Design Paradigm

Disruptive Reinvention. Are you ready?

https://www.theinteriordesignparadigm.com

RESOURCE LINKS:

Damn Good Designer - Website

The Design Paradigm - Website

Join the conversation on our Facebook Group : Small Business Think Big

ABOUT THE HOSTS:

Cheryl Kees Clendenon

2021 KBB Person of the Year

2022 Design Studio winner Dallas Arts Awards

2021 Changemaker Design Hounds

200 or so years ago, a child came roaring into the world feet first, ready to show up and argue a cause. Just because. Her mother still maintains the story is- she was screaming-“Why?”- from the minute she landed the wrong side up and slapped the doctor for disturbing her afternoon nap.

To this day, she does not give “it” a rest except when she is sleeping, which is where you will find her only between 2 a.m. and 7:30 a.m. A belligerent non-smoker (in case you were wondering) and a frequent challenger of anything that resembles “normal” or desired by the masses, Cheryl is a natural-born contrarian who talks faster than 2x speed on a podcast.

She gravitates towards wanting to help clients and designers who are the square pegs in a world of round holes; she loses earrings impossibly frequently, falls off of platform shoes and is unapologetically saucy. Relaxing is not in the skill set. Life begins and ends with family.

Her sacred words are Why, Percipient, Whizbang and Profit. But please do not say the words Package, Blocks, Red Flag, Overwhelm or Picked. Hives break out, and it gets ugly.

Liz Lapan

VP of Everything, Interior Designer, Work Wife, Team Cook, Unicorns

People ask, when did you KNOW you had found your ideal work wife- Cheryl will reply,” When she drew me 8 different cacti on her 3rd day because I said -find me a damn cactus.”

The woman who has never been through an airport without being extended an invitation to stop and play show and tell with the contents of her backpack can single-handedly plow snow with a rake and rescue her boss in a snowstorm in Arizona.–Yes, I said Arizona–after sleeping all night in a tuna can of a rental car.

They don’t make ’em like this anymore, folks. (By the way, she is completely tethered up with air tags, so do not even think about it.) The dedication is real, and she extends this to her clients in too many ways to mention.

Her sacred words are: “Are you kidding me, Cheryl?”, “Mamma Mia” and “I can’t believe it’s Friday.”

An accomplished designer in her own right with an amazing sense of color and pattern, Liz can wear the designer hat in the morning and the project manager hat at noon and return to the office as the ultimate manager of all things. Clients love her, Subs respect her, and the team adores the woman who gets “it” done-whatever “it” may be.