Acting with Confidence Will Help You Close More Design Clients

By Gail Doby, ASID
CVO & Co-Founder, Gail Doby Coaching & Consulting & Design Success University

Do find yourself asking: “Why did the other interior designer got the job?”

It can be hard to understand why the other designer got the job and you didn’t.

Even when you know you are the best designer for them.

Just what did that other designer do or say that you didn’t?

When a prospective client comes to you to work closely helping them to redesign a space, it’s most  often where they spend a majority of their free time.  The decision to work with a designer often comes down to a very personal and emotional choice.

It can be hard to hand over the reins to someone else, especially someone they don’t know.

What clients need and want from you as a designer is complete confidence that you are the best/only choice and are entirely capable to turn their vision into a reality.

How do you accomplish this? It’s in a way you just might not have considered…

Many times when you speak with your prospective clients,  you want to be flexible so they know you’re easy to work with. Unfortunately this may have you come across as sounding wishy-washy and the client interprets this as you sounding insecure.

Which of course, is the exact opposite of what you want to portray.

What your prospective client wants more than anything is to feel that you:

• Get’ them
• Understand exactly what they want;
• Ultimately have the experience and expertise to turn their vision into a reality.

In other words, if they say they want X and you know that won’t work, you need to tell them upfront…

Be sure tell them exactly why it won’t work.

This shows the prospective client you’re the expert. If the client says they’re not sure whether they want X or Y, you need to explain to them why X would work better.

The more you take control of the design process, you’ll end up looking like an expert and your clients will come to trust you.

Think back to the the times that you’ve asked someone whether they recommend X or Y and they’ve said that “either will work”.  You are then left with no more information than you started out with and more still wondering about which you should choose.  Wouldn’t you rather have someone tell you confidently  “Definitely Y will work best because…”?

Both their confidence and clear reasoning  will convince you that selecting Y is the best choice for you..

The bottom line is that your clients end up feeling more secure when you feel and act  with confidence.

When prospective client make the decision to work with you, remember they’re entrusting their home and/or personal space(s) to you.  The sure way to have a client to select you is when you’ve helped  them feel as confident and secure in making the choice.  When it almost becomes a “no-brainer” because you stand out as the clear choice.

Take Away: Remember, your prospective clients confidence in you is directly proportionate to the confidence you have in yourself.

Ready For A Mentor, Advisor And Co-CEO Who Is Passionate About Design, Experienced In Business, And On A Mission To Help You Experience A Quantum Leap?

Through our annual Interior Design Fee & Salary Survey, we identified 7 common problems most designers experience.  Based on these common problems, Gail created a Business Assessment that will give you immediate personalized answers that you can use today. Take Your Personalized Business Assessment Now >>> http://dsu-id.us/GD-BA