Another Pro Tip...

Never schedule yourself to work on Dec. 24th (or the day before Thanksgiving for that matter).  It's not that you will have the day off, instead it is a virtual guarantee that you will be making an emergency delivery or completing an emergency install.  Check my other blogs to see what I did today.

Commute...

Seven hours in the car today, 168 miles.  I think I need a vacation.  Tomorrow I have a 10:30 appointment (which means I need to leave by 8:30) and then a 5:00 appointment (which means I will be home likely at 9:00ish).  Good thing I haven't scheduled an appointment for Thanksgiving.

Can't decide which is better...

Referrals or return customers?  I have been very busy this year with both.  It is nice going back to see someone who is happy with your work, but there is something maybe even better about seeing someone whose friend was so happy with you that they passed your information along.  Either way I wil certainly be sending out a few thank you vouchers this week.

From my vacation...

I was reminded that sometimes the person who isn't replying to your questions either doesn't speak English, or is deaf.  If you get angry and raise your voice at a deaf patron how bad are you going to feel?

Dear coworkers...

If you offer a discount during non-sale times...I need to know.
If you gave someone incorrect information...I need to know.
If you have a client's address...I need to know.
If you give them a swatch...put a sticker on it.

If there is any information that you have that you would want to know if you had to drive out the the customer's house...I need to know.

Thank you.

What do you think...

I would like an opinion.  The below two pictures show an existing set of treatments and then the piece made in the same style for an adjacent room.

This is the living room.

This is the new treatment in the Dining Room.

 How well do you feel the workroom scaled and manufactured the piece to match.  And while we are at it what do you think about the piece?  Would you have preferred an arched shape, and would you have like the sheer (it is a sheer) to be unlined?

And guess who decorated her home...

Front page on today's Washington Post.  I finished up in her house a few months ago.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/dc-enclaves-reap-rewards-of-contracting-boom-as-federal-dollars-fuel-wealth/2011/06/27/gIQAWQC5HJ_story.html?hpid=z2

Back from vacation...

Why is it that I always seem to get sick on the last day of vacation?  It is almost as if the virus is challenging me to call in sick and make it seem like I just want more time off.  Good thing half of my work can be done over the phone where there is no risk of infecting the world.

On a personal note:

I would like to take a moment to wish Jennifer Brieske a fond farewell.  After 8 years with G Street Fabrics she is headed on to enjoy more time with her family.  Enjoy, your retirement is well deserved.

Thought of the day...

I just completed an order from a client who had me over twice 9 months ago.  Sometimes it takes a bit of time.  I was looking through my old records to see what I did with her stuff.  True to form I was certain she would eventually sign and didn't move it to the old stuff.  It was sitting in my bring with me every day stuff.  Now if only I hadn't spent an hour looking for it.  The moral of this story...it cost nothing extra to hold onto paperwork you've already done.

Google+

The longer I work in the industry to more people I meet and e-mail.  Wouldn't it be nice if you could keep in touch with all those people?  Luckily Gmail and Google+ seem to have taken care of that for me.  Ten minutes later and I have nearly 200 people who I have done business with or for all able to see the photos from my other two blogs.  If even one of them decides that they need my help for a single project then my time was more than justified.

Never bring only one option...

Even if you KNOW what they are going to pick, even if they told you to bring a specific fabric as it is chosen, always make sure to bring alternate option.

1.  The fabric may become discontinued, back ordered, or otherwise unavailable.

2.  It never hurts to have another piece that will show off how nice the one they selected is.

3.  What happens if they didn't realize how much that piece costs and it is more than they want to spend?

People want to feel as if they have selected the best choice.  Even if you leave the other options in your vehicle until such a time as they are needed a professional always has another option (or two).

Happy 4th...

I hope you don't have to work, but if you do take solace in the knowledge that most everyone who you deal with on the 4th will be very serious.  I don't enjoy working every holiday, but people are off and they are generally in a good mood.  Sometimes those two things are all that is required for a successful sale.

What's really important?

Another short one today (it's late and I've spent over 6 hours in the car today).  There is little to be gained by fighting over assignation of blame.  The important question to ask is not "who is at fault?" it is "How do we fix this?"  In a well managed organization who is to blame is a self-correcting issue, and the answer is rarely the person who is working towards the solution.

Don't lie.

Seriously, I shouldn't even have to type a post about this.  Lying is both wrong and counter productive.  Especially in an organization where you are not the only employee.  What are you going to do tell everyone that you lied to a client and that they need to make sure not to contradict you?

Lying starts when you don't view the customer and yourself on the same team. the contentious nature of sales sometimes leads people into an us vs them mentality.  It is so much better to work with people towards a common and mutually satisfying goal than to fight with them to make and then keep a sale.

I am by no means one of these perky optimist types.  But I do think that there is a downward spiral associated with negative thoughts about clients.  When you dislike someone you justify giving them less and less acceptable treatment.  Soon enough it leads to the attitude that they are only one customer and there will be others if you don't treat this one in a way that retains them.

I cannot express how much better it is to work with clients who you like.  While it's not always possible, treat the ones you don't care for professionally.  Don't lie, don't cheat, don't steal.  And if you do, don't ask to work with me or my clients.

Wrinkles...

We all hate wrinkles, but they are an unavoidable part of working with and transporting most items.  Just remember to warn customers in advance about certain wrinkle related problems.

Linen:  Grass-like fibers form linen fabric.  When you break the "stalk" the wrinkle is permanent.  You can certainly iron linen to minimize wrinkles, but you will never get them out.

Silk: The natural sheen is actually best expressed when there is a wrinkle to refract light, but nobody seems to want them.  Silk should not be steamed as is tends to water spot.  no matter how good your steamer water droplets can and will form.  If you are forced to steam a silk item make sure the client accepts the risk.

Polyester: Sure it doesn't wrinkle, but that also means it won't hold a pleat very well.Sometimes wrinkles are important as an indicator of a fabric's "memory".

One last note:  Steam is very hot, just because the wrinkles aren't falling out does not mean that you should test the temperature of the steam with your arm.  I assure you if it is steam it is hot enough.  I only warn as I have seen someone do it (of course they burned themselves).

Tomorrow is the big day...

Tomorrow I will be purchasing my new vehicle.  I have certainly been reminded of sales techniques good and bad along the way, but the one that sticks out most in my mind is from yesterday.  One of the more aggressive sales people called me on the phone.  When I politely informed her that I had decided to go a different way she asked why and I explained.  Her response was to try to offer me an additional discount.  What's wrong with that approach?  The problem is that my objection was not one of price.  As a matter of fact they already had offered me the lowest price on the vehicle, lower by several hundred dollars than anyone else. When I explained why I was choosing to go with a different dealer and she offered to lower my price it clearly conveyed that she wasn't attentive to me needs.
So often the objections that we face are based on price (of perceived value to be more accurate), but not always.  Sometimes if you order vanilla and you get chocolate getting a dollar off is fine, more often than not you really want vanilla.  Think about how much money you could potentially lose for the company you work for or run if you throw money at problems when it is not needed.

A few tips from a pro...

I am currently in the market for a new vehicle, and the sales people that I am dealing with often leave me with blog fodder.  Today I was given incorrect information, made to leave my wife and toddler in the sun, out-right lied to, and so much more...but my best teachable moment was on a test drive yesterday.

I was driving on 66 in a very under-powered vehicle and trying to get into the exit lane.  I didn't see the vehicle in my blind spot and nearly drove them off the road.  I was COMPLETELY at fault, yet my sales person decided to try to blame the other driver.  Now I can understand not trying to make your customer feel bad, and not saying anything negative about them...but at the same time making racist statements about anyone is not a good tactic to try and close a sale.

Sales professionals, don't do the following: Swear, curse, use profane or vulgar language, symbols, gestures, pictures...need I go on?  Don't make racist, sexist, ageist, or other derogatory bigoted or inflammatory comments.  Don't complain about or badmouth your boss, coworker, competitor, relative, or pretty much anyone.  I am far from the perky optimist that you always meet working at a certain famous chicken place (the one that it always closed on Sunday), but you are rarely going to impress a customer and win the sale by doing any of the above.

If you can't be pleasant at least be professional.  I know that he might not be the most exciting of sales-people, but imagine Bruce Wayne's butler Alfred.  Be him.

Procedures to charge someone...

There is a fair amount of trust in the Decorator/Client relationship.   For most people you are advising the based on your professional expertise.  They want you to keep them from making mistakes and guide them through options where they might not even know what questions to ask.  And while I certainly have clients who tell me to order things where I don't have a shred of proof I suggest you think carefully about what might happen if you order something without the proper documentation.  At the minimum you might have to return something and make an apology.  At worst you could have to defend what is being labelled a fraudulent charge.

With that in mind for those occasions when you  can't write a formal contract I suggest you do the following;  Try to secure a written order with the date, total, the credit card number and expiration date, as well as the customer's name.  If you can a formal statement included that the undersigned authorizes you to charge their card in the listed amount is even better.  Since that isn't always an option the next best thing is to tell them that you will e-mail them the information and that all they need to do is send it back with an acknowledgement that you are authorized to charge them.  Short of that they can leave you a voice mail with the permission to charge them.

If they are unwilling or unable to provide any of the above mentioned items I suggest you tell that that you will need them to mail you a check before you can order.  I might also suggest that you wait for the check to clear, just in case.  Your mileage may vary.

It costs nothing extra...

It costs nothing extra to be polite.  I spoke with a series of 4 new potential clients yesterday.  The last one was looking for a slipcover for a recliner.  I explained the difference between fitted and loose slipcovers and said that we only make fitted slipcovers and that unfortunately we can't make one for a recliner.  At that she decided that her piece was not a recliner and asked me to confirm that if I drove to see her that there would be no charge.  At this point I will let you know that she lives 60 miles from me.  I've been at this spot once of twice before, so I asked her a bit more about the project and learned that they have never had custom work done, their existing piece is in poor condition, and they don't know what they want, but they do know that it is not a solid fabric.

From here I started probing her about what her budget was.  While they didn't have a firm budget their range would put them well below the cost of any slipcover unless we used remnants.  This is not to say that our slipcovers are expensive, as a matter of fact with our current sale and coupons we could have done the job for about $300-$400 (provided it wasn't actually a recliner).  With remnants the job could be as low as about $250 give or take.

The customer informed me that this was simply beyond their budget and...this is when the client asks me when I will be out.  I cannot drive 120 miles and take a day from another client on the off chance that a piece is not a recliner and that I have preselected the correct remnant.  So back to the main point...what should you say?

I politely informed her that is sounded like we weren't going to be able to meet her needs.  If she wanted to go to one of our stores and look at our remnants we easily had pieces that would be sufficiently large for the project, but that was the only way I could think of that we would be close to the price she would like.  At that point she let me know that she would talk it over with her husband and get back to me.  I wouldn't be surprised if I get a call back and she says that they have spoken and would really like me to come out.

If that ever happens to you I strongly suggest you consider going.  She has already been informed of the price and if she calls back that shows a great desire to have the work done.  She wold not be the first person to revise their budget.  But that door only remains open if you are polite, even when someone is likely not going to be a customer.

Guest Bedrooms...

While Guest Bedrooms are a great place to sneak a style that maybe one of the descision makers would rather not see on a day to day basis there are a few considerations that those of us who end up being guests would like you to remember.

First, we may likely be on a different time and blackout lining on your curtains would will help us sleep.  Treatments should be placed far enough outside the frame and with large enough overlaps to stop light leaks.  4 inches should be used as a good start.

Second, many decorative fabrics (especially with metallic or less expensive polyester) tend to be rough and scratchy.  The reverse of the Duvet cover should not be done in it.  You can save money too by using a nice sateen lining.  Even if you expect the guest to sleep under the sheets the Duvet may still rub against chins.

Third, decorative pillows (especially multiple layers of them) need to have a place that they can be removed to.  I would suggest a chest at the foot of the bed.  This will also allow additional bedding to be stored in it in case the guest requires it.

Have another tip?  Leave a comment or send me an e-mail.

The proper tools...

Make sure that before you go out you have what you need.  This doesn't mean just pens and forms (which would be really embarrassing to show up without), but also information.  If you don't know before going out to see someone what they are likely to select then you need to do more homework.  Even if you work on an initial consultation model where nobody expects to make decisions on the first visit wouldn't having beautiful fabrics in the style that they like be handy to make a solid impression and guarantee your continued relationship?

Very frequently I will be told that the flooring is going to be changed, the paint is going to be redone, the furniture is not there or will be replaced.  Also it is usually accompanied by the suggestion that I come out and design everything without any input.  In the event you are in the same situation I suggest that at a minimum you get them to e-mail you pictures of the existing areas and find out what they had that they will be replacing.  Either you will learn what they like (as most people tend the replace with a similar style/color) or at least you will learn what they didn't like about what they had.

Remember: Eliminating a bad choice can be just as good as finding a good one.

Think about what you need to know and have before you set out.  My list is something like this:

Tape-measure
Pens
Forms
Phone/GPS/Camera/Calculator (with pictures of prior work)
Pricing information
Fabric Samples in the correct color/style/price range
Alternate Samples in the most popular style/color/price range
Basic hardware book

AND

Knowledge of necessary completion date
Understanding of scope of the work
History of customer's prior work and experiences
Customer's confirmed address and alternate contact information

There will always be other options, different fabric, more trim, etc.  But if you have all of the above everything else can be worked around.

Oops...

There once was a client who required that every item have some special touch.  Each special touch had to have an extra detail.  Each detail had to have a unique twist.  Price was no object.  To those of you who are new to the field those last four words might sound miraculous.  To those of us who have been around they are dreaded. I will go into the unique challenges presented by clients with a near unlimited budget on a different day, remind me if I forget.

So, this individual wanted special tie-backs.  None on the market were exactly right, he handed me a drawing, and from there I said we would create them.  This led me in turn to a glass blower.  I have not yet received permission from him to tell the world of his skill, but if you need a glass blower I know the guy.  That being said we embarked on a months long quest to design the perfect 22K gold inlaid black glass finials.  Sample after sample, design after design, modification after modification, and finally we had it.  Six panels, each with two double tassels.  We would need 24.  I don't know if you have ever worked with glass before, but it is actually quite a bit tougher than you would expect.  He struck one on a table to show me.  Even still we decided that we would make a couple extra...

Good thing too, here is what remained after the install was completed:

Moral:  You might think about saving a few bucks by not getting that extra ring, yard of fabric, or hand blown glass finial, but at the end of the day what will the final cost be?

This morning's reminder...

Not everyone you will help will be able to afford all the work they would like to have done.  When faced with a legitimately interested client up against a hard budget how do you proceed?

I was helping a very nice repeat customer this morning.  We had done a pair of drapes and a matching Roman Shade in her kitchen, and she wanted four chair pads and four place mats in the same fabric for the kitchen as well as four pillows for the adjoining living room.  Her budget was quite modest and despite doing my best to find ways to reduce the price I just wasn't going to be able to find a way to lower it enough.  At that point we decided that purchasing the fabric alone and securing the final pieces in the same dye-lot was the way to go forward.  This way when she is able she can have portions done piecemeal and not worry about the fabric being unavailable.

So often we focus on the big picture that it is easy to forget that not all rooms need to be done in one fell swoop.  With a little bit of creativity or flexibility at the end of the day you still will have a happy client who will likely do work with you again in the future.

Some other thoughts on how to reduce the cost typical items:

Decrease fullness.
Eliminate trim or banding.
Reuse existing inserts.
Substitute double welting for French nail head trim.
Slipcover as opposed to reupholster
Contrast line where an expensive self lining is called for

Have a good tip to add?  Comment or e-mail.

It's not my fault...

There will be many times when there are issues beyond your control.  Fabrics are back-ordered even when you reserved them, the back order is pushed back, the back order is pushed back again, the fabric arrives damaged, the wrong fabric is sent, you are short shipped, the fabric is discontinued...and once even I have had a fabric lost at sea.  There is a school of thought that if you can speed production and the client takes delivery at the same time there is no need to alert them and risk the order.  I would advise against this.  What happens when the fabric is pushed back again or discontinued entirely?  What makes customers most upset is the feeling that they were left in the dark.

I suggest always calling the customer as soon as you know.  Only wait for confirmation or a concrete answer from another company that they have the same goods and can ship (or something like that).  Once you know you should call, remind the customer that you are just as upset as they are, and work together to decide what to do.  If you have done things properly then you should have already talked about an alternative in their house when placing the order.  Let them decide between waiting (assuming a back order) or switching to the alternate you had pre-selected.  Empower them don't simply inform them.  You will find that an informed customer is much more likely to use you for future projects, even in the event that this one falls through.

Pro-Tip...

When a customer tells you they have the fabric already selected and asks you to bring the book don't assume that they know the price.  I will be very surprised if the client I see tomorrow knows that the sheer they have "selected" is over $100/yd.

If you know what the intended fabric is always look up the price in advance; and if you don't already KNOW that the client is comfortable with the price pull an alternative.  Even if they decide to spend the money they will appreciate you doing the homework, and if they don't want to...you already have an alternative for them to consider on the spot.

If you want to know how it turns out tomorrow shoot me an e-mail or leave a comment.

The most basic of advice...

They say you only have once chance to make a first impression.  That is true, but I find that in this business I there are at least three first impressions.  At some point a potential client is going to have to learn of you.  This could be through a referral, your web site, advertisement, etc.  I don't expect anyone to call for an appointment if the work you have done for their friend is poor, if your website is unnavigable, or the phone number is incorrectly listed in your ad.

The second "first" impression is going to be your initial phone conversation.  I cannot stress how important it is to call quickly and to during a reasonable time.  I suggest you call every client within 24 hours of getting their information.  Call no earlier than 10:00am, and call no later than 7:00 (even that may be stretching it).  Don't call on Sunday or on major holidays, and if you get an answering machine LEAVE A MESSAGE.  Document the date and time of your calls.  If you leave a message and don't hear back call again in a day or two.  Sometimes people lose your number or can't understand the recording.  If you don't hear back from the second call wait a week (they could be on vacation).  If after three messages they don't call you back then don't keep calling.  If they are interested they will get back to you.  I have had people cal back 6 months or a year later stating that now they are ready to begin.

The third "first" impression is when you arrive in person.  Nothing tells a customer that you don't value and respect their time like showing up late (except maybe not returning phone calls).  While some parts of the country believe that 5 minutes early is 10 minutes late others expect you to arrive exactly on time and not surprise them before they are ready.  In general the earlier the appointment the less acceptable it is to show up early.  That being said leave your home or office early.  Arrive early.  You can always wait around the block, but if traffic is bad (as it always is in the DC metro area) that time might be needed.

So, in review.  Call in a timely fashion, leave messages, arrive on time.  If you also return calls in the same manner you will have a big lead on your competition, far too few people do the above.

If I forget remind me some time, I think a discussion of artistic vs. professional appearance is another good topic.

Overcoming objections...

I went to our Centreville, VA location today and was explaining to the staff how I do my job, when one of them asked me a question.  She said "Do customers ever call afterwards and ask to cancel?  For example do they say 'My husband thinks it costs too much.'"  I replied "Of course they do."  You can't deal with thousands of people and write hundreds of contracts without have a few people call and ask about cancelling.   That could have been the end of the question, but what kind of a post would this be then?

I told her it is the same as in the stores, but the more important question is "Why are they attempting to cancel?"  When working from an overcoming objection based model of sales one needs to be careful not to paint a customer into the corner.  With a bit of practice it becomes very easy to overcome every objection that a customer throws your way.  If you do this then invariably when you are not there to counter they will try to cancel.  If you work for the sort of company that will force someone to accept something that you bullied them into, maybe you should consider working for another company...if you work for the kind of company that will let someone out of a contract because they are unhappy what was the point in boxing them into it in the first place?

Getting past that, the real issue is to determine what the issue is and address it.  Some companies will throw money at any problem (example, it's too long...how about we give you $250 back and you keep it) I suggest a more discriminating approach.  In the above example the customer asserts that her husband thought it was too expensive.  If you've really done things right then the husband should have been at the house when you did the whole thing, but we'll assume he wasn't.  If you have painted her into a corner and she is falling back on her husband as a way to get out then nothing you say is going to result in a happy conclusion for all parties.  If her husband really does think it costs too much then you can work one of several ways.

The first thing to do is ask what price range he/they wanted to be in.  If we are going to assume you didn't get the husband there to meet you then we might as well assume you didn't determine their budget either.  Good thing this example is about you and not me.  If the amount is a smallish difference it may be possible to simply apply a discount to save the sale.  If the amount is a larger figure they may be a way to modify the existing selection to decrease the cost (less fullness, less expensive lining, removing trim or other surcharge laden items), if the amount is LARGE then either selecting an alternate treatment/fabric may be in order, eliminating entire pieces, or sometimes...just sometimes you can sell the customer the fabric only, and they can do the labor themselves (or pay you to do it at a later date).

More than once I've had a customer who demands (I'll use their words) an "obscene discount".  The only way to handle it is to decrease the fullness to the minimum and use the least expensive option for each of the items discussed.  Since these requests always come from only my absolutely wealthiest clients I also show them what they had initially selected side by side.  Either way they would like the order I am happy to do it.  Naturally what they really want is the expensive one with proper fullness at the lower cost, but given the two options, they nearly always chose the more expensive one.  NOTE:  Don't ever do that to a client who can't afford the expensive option.  You will guarantee that you make no sale and that they feel bad.

So, in review:  If someone tries to cancel determine why.  Address the objection with an appropriate response.  And finally go help the next person.

Reminder...

When working with a commercial or industrial client you might want to think really hard about the potential consequences of ignoring fire codes.  Sure your client might not care, but what about your conscience?

Team building...

There is a story about a famous baseball player who always refused to work with the rookies.  Any tip, any trick or technique that he could have taught them he viewed as a threat to his position.  At the end of the season how do you think his team fared compared to what they could have done?  Nobody can know what will happen, but I like to make sure that my team has the strongest and best possible members, not just those that I am better than.

This blog is no different.  There is no Decorator draft.  We are not competing for the title, flag or any other analogy you wish to use.  I intend on giving the best advice I can to those who are or would be my colleagues.  I hope that you will all do the same.