When you’re working with a new client, putting your best foot forward is critical from the very first interaction. As an interior designer, your brief process plays a vital role. You need to nail it.
Why is the brief so important?
Your brief isn’t simply an information gathering process. It’s also a sales tool. How you approach it shows clients what you’re about, and how committed you are to their project. It’s either a deal maker, or a deal breaker.
In this blog, I share some key steps that will make your client brief work harder for you.
It’s a good idea to ask clients to fill in and send you the brief before your first meeting. After all, if you’re willing to invest time in an initial consultation, then you should expect some effort from them too.
Why? It’s important to know that they’re serious about working with you, and not just looking for the lowest price, or free advice. By asking clients to share their needs in detail, they’re putting some skin in the game.
If they are truly serious, then they’ll be happy to spend time on your brief. If they don’t, then they’re either not ready or they’re still shopping around.
We’ve all experienced this before. Having the conversation with a client mid-way through a project about additional work and charges isn’t easy or comfortable. When your client’s expectations are different to yours, it often comes down to missed or poor communication. While it’s easy to blame the client, minimising the dreaded creep is within our control.
One way to avoid it is to make your brief watertight. If it’s designed it in a way that makes it easy for clients to communicate their wants and needs from the simplest to the most complex, you’re on the right track.
It’s then up to you to communicate those needs back to them in your proposal, showing that you understand precisely what they mean. By submitting an accurate scope, quote and project timeline, your client will have the right expectations and clear boundaries right from the start.
Not only will you avoid scope creep, but your client will feel relieved that they’ve found an interior designer who ‘gets’ them, so they’re more likely to trust you throughout the whole process.
If scope creep is common for you, work out the areas where it most commonly occurs, and then look at your brief. Can you improve it to minimise creep?
Think about how clients experience your brief. Will they enjoy completing it, or find it a complicated and boring chore? If you make it enjoyable and thought provoking, you’re saying “This is what it’s like to work with me”.
Make sure your brief uses words that clients understand. Remember, they’re not interior designers. If you use industry jargon and complicated words, not only will clients not understand you, but they’ll feel intimidated and won’t trust you. Keeping it easy to understand doesn’t mean avoiding detail. Just make it simple to read and you’ll be off to a good start.
While words are important, your brief is also a visual reference. Think of how you can get a deeper understanding of their aesthetic preferences. One person’s idea of ‘boho style’ can be very different to another’s. So give them an opportunity to include links, images and examples that inspire them.
Start the way you intend to continue. For interior designers, this hits the nail on the head.
The way you present your brief tells clients a lot about you. How you come across has a huge impact on client conversion, and the overall success of the project. Clients want to see that you’re trustworthy, empathetic, and consistent. And above all, that you know what you’re doing.
Remember that you’re in the design business, so your brief should reflect that. A visually appealing and easy-to-follow brief is a must for every interior designer. It can be the difference between winning or losing a job.
You’re busy enough already, so there’s no need to reinvent the wheel every time you take on a new client. By following a few key steps, you’ll turn your brief into a well-oiled machine, and save a lot of time and effort. In a nutshell, when you have a comprehensive and well-planned interior design brief, the process is easier not only for you, but also for your clients.
Ps. Here’s a handy checklist to get you started! >>
