How To Work With An Interior Designer
How To Work With An Interior Designer
Oftentimes when starting to look for the right interior designer for our project, we are unsure of how to work with them and what even our roles are. Its important to not overlook the fact that there is a right way and a wrong way to work with your interior designer. Below are some suggestions when thinking about how you want to work on your project with your designer, and how your designer can best work with you.
Communication Matters
When considering your designer, communication is key because that person is going to be spending a lot of time with you, learning all about you, your family, and your lifestyle. When deciding who is going to be decorating and designing your home, considering how you want your designer to communicate with you is the first step to a great client-designer relationship. Do you prefer texting over email? Or do you do better on the phone and or in person? Sometimes knowing how you want to be communicated with, makes all the difference in the client-designer relationship. Some clients have more time on their hands and prefer to be directly involved in every step. Other times, clients are too busy with work and family life, and they really need someone to grab the reins and lead the charge with their project, all the while keeping them in the loop with every step. Knowing how you want to work with your designer will set your project up for ultimate success.
Client Onboarding
When you first hire your interior designer, there will be an onboarding process. Many people are unsure of what that looks like or even what it is. But by definition, an on-boarding process allows your designer to get your project set up within his/her design firm. It may include filling out paperwork, getting you set up in their systems, providing a “What To Expect” and Welcome” Packet, and providing you with a point-person or lead designer. It’s important that you the client understand who this person is, and what role they play in your project. Since there are many different-sized interior design firms out there, you may be communicating directly with the Principal/Owner or with a Senior Designer if it is a larger-scale design firm.
Effective Project Communication
When you communicate to your design team, it’s important that you answer any and all questions that may come up. Providing contact information, and how and when you can be reached helps keep the lines of communication open. Since you’ll be speaking pretty much daily with your design team and your point of contact, especially in the beginning, you’ll want to make sure all contact info is current and up to date. For the client, you’ll want to check in regularly and make sure that if you have questions about something or if you don’t understand something, you say so right away. Not communicating with your designer, especially when it comes to selections, and items that we need to be signed off on can delay or even hinder the progress of your project. So make sure that when you are communicating with your designer, you do so promptly.
4. Bill Pay
Your designer most likely has a system in place for all invoices, proposals, and retainers and even has a fee schedule for you that you agreed to in your design contract. It’s very important that all bills, payments, product proposals, and retainers are paid and current. Your designer has an entire office and staff, vendors, contractors, trades-people to also pay and manage, and any late or unpaid bills could essentially delay or cease your design services altogether. So it’s very important that all bills are paid in a timely manner. This also helps to stay on the good side of your designer.
5. Design Process
It’s important for each client to understand the design process that your designer follows. He or she should follow a logical and systematic way of running the project and the design firm which should be discussed either before during or right after the Onboarding Process. Waiting too long to discuss any potential questions or issues that may arise, could essentially delay or hinder the progress of your project. And we know that you wouldn’t want that to happen.
6. Friends and Family
Because many projects have a long life cycle, the amount of relationship building and communicating during the course of the progress oftentimes creates the best client-designer relationship. It’s very common that our own clients oftentimes become some of our closest friends, as a lot of time is spent making personal decisions, learning about each other, our families, coworkers, friends, etc. Designers and Clients usually end up becoming great friends and confidants and even like family members since so much time is spent together on the project. Don’t be afraid of some of these amazing and surprising outcomes to develop during the course of your design project. All is normal and very rewarding for both the designer and the client.
Overall, working together is one of the most rewarding aspects of the client-designer relationship and is oftentimes one of the best parts of your interior design project. So to reiterate some of the above suggestions for a great working relationship with your designer, 1. determine what ways you prefer communicating with your designer. 2. Don’t overlook the onboarding process as it is a vital component of any successful project. 3. Answering phone calls and emails is essential to the success of your project and will ensure your project runs smoothly and effectively. 4. Paying bills on time helps to stay in the good graces of your designer and his/her design team. 5. Following your designer’s process for the project helps to make a smooth project continue running smoothly and without any delays or hiccups. 6. You may end up making a new friend in your designer. With all the relationship building and communicating that goes on during the course of your design project, your designer may become an important part of your day-to-day life, creating a new, rewarding, and lasting friendship for many years to come.
XOXO,
Gina