Location, Location
For most companies, that all-important first discussion takes place in the prospect’s home. Some jump-start it by inviting prospects to the office. Anderson-Moore Builders, of Winston-Salem, N.C., began doing that last April. Prospects meet staff, look at photos, and talk with co-owners Eric Anderson and Tracy Moore. The aim, Anderson says, is to have them come away with the sense of a solid company that has prize-winning projects in its portfolio.
But for most owners who sell, the first meeting occurs in the home, and skill in discovering the home’s problems and the results that homeowners would like to see trumps all else. “My goal in that first meeting is to identify their pain,” says Gary Rochman, owner of Rochman Design-Build, in Ann Arbor, Mich. “What is it they don’t like about their home? You want to get to that, and then start problem-solving with them.”
Say you locate the pain. What can you provide that others can’t? For instance, they might not have an architect or know where to find one, in which case your ability to design, or suggest a designer, enhances your stature. “Sometimes they don’t think that far ahead,” Wentworth says. “If they need a kitchen designer or an interior designer, we do it all.”
They may need the project completed in a limited time. Rusk Renovations, for instance, specializes in completing its co-op apartment remodels in an average of four months — well before $1,000-a-day co-op board penalties kick in. The clients may not even be there when the project is under way, as was the case with a custom home undertaken by Cobb Hill Construction, in Concord, N.H. In that instance, the ability to provide timely electronic updates — room by room, via Web site or e-mail — helped secure the job.
Money Matters
You’ll also have to know, by the end of that first meeting, what the prospect expects to pay. That will be the most difficult piece of information to come by, but without it you won’t be able to tell if the project is feasible. “Money is No. 1, even with high end,” says Cobb Hill Construction president Tom Avallone.
It’s also a subject requiring finesse. “The first thing you don’t do is ask them how much they want to spend,” Clark says. What he brings to that first meeting is 8-by-10 before-and-after photos and, as he walks prospects through kitchens, baths, additions, and renovations, he gives a price range for each.
If there’s a discrepancy between what the homeÂowners want and what they feel they should spend, be frank and respectful. “If people are unrealistic in their needs and expectations, I’m going to tell that to them as quickly as I can in as nice a way as possible,” Avallone says. If you do that honestly, politely, and professionally, you’ll have a quick resolution and be able to move to the next step.”
Step By Step
For many remodelers, the next step comes at the conclusion of that first meeting, when they ask prospects to commit to paying for design. Sylvestre names a ballpark price and charges $500 for preliminary designs. If prospects give the go-ahead, Clark returns for a second meeting with an Initial Concept Agreement that includes design concepts, scope of work, and an estimate. But nothing happens unless clients agree to work with you, which is why that first meeting is key.
“To get to that Fine Design Agreement — your first benchmark — there needs to be a huge amount of trust,” Rochman says. And each meeting, and phase, usually involves increased buy-in, as well as additional selling. “There’s always the thought that maybe there’s someone out there who can do it cheaper,” Clark says. “But more than 80% of the time we get that Initial Concept approved, and the person goes all the way with it.”
Jim Cory is the editor of Replacement Contractor , a sister publication of Upscale Remodeling .
