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How to Impress Clients During a Video Call
Agree on an agenda, dress like you would for work, and be clear about the next steps, say design and renovation pros
Erin Carlyle
9 September 2020
Former Houzz Editorial Staff. Writing about the cost of renovation and what it takes to remodel. Former Forbes real estate reporter. Fascinated by cool homes, watching the bottom line.
Former Houzz Editorial Staff. Writing about the cost of renovation and what it takes... More
For many design professionals, meeting with clients remotely has become more common due to the pandemic. But some information can get lost without in-person contact, including, at times, a sense that you are a professional who has everything under control. We recently spoke with design and renovation pros for their tips on how to create a professional impression during video calls.
Work with the client to set a clear agenda
With so many people at home these days – including design professionals – facing potential interruptions and distractions, it can be easy for professionalism to slip in video calls. “It can get really casual really fast,” Danielle Perkins of Danielle Interior Design & Decor in San Diego, California, says.
To help keep a video call professional and to use the time well, Perkins likes to start off by asking the client about their goals for the call, often enquiring, “If you were to say this was a successful meeting, what points do you want to hit?” That way, she can determine which of the client’s concerns are most pressing and steer the time to tackle these matters in order of priority.
With so many people at home these days – including design professionals – facing potential interruptions and distractions, it can be easy for professionalism to slip in video calls. “It can get really casual really fast,” Danielle Perkins of Danielle Interior Design & Decor in San Diego, California, says.
To help keep a video call professional and to use the time well, Perkins likes to start off by asking the client about their goals for the call, often enquiring, “If you were to say this was a successful meeting, what points do you want to hit?” That way, she can determine which of the client’s concerns are most pressing and steer the time to tackle these matters in order of priority.
Have a good background
As a design professional, you no doubt have a lovely and thoughtfully put-together home. But you may also be dealing with the realities of pandemic life, where children and spouse are also home, clutter accumulates and dishes pile up next to the sink. That’s OK – the key is to not take your calls with this reality as your visual backdrop.
You might carve out a small corner of your home as an attractive background for your virtual client meetings, ideally in a room where you can close the door to keep out distractions. If that’s not realistic, you could instead use the free Houzz Pro video backdrops to elevate the visual background for your conference calls. And of course, as always, you’ll want to make sure your appearance, including clothing and hair, also conveys a professional image.
There are many videoconferencing programs available, and it’s a good idea to use one that your clients are comfortable with and don’t have to install any new software to use. With Houzz Pro, you can let clients or prospective clients schedule Video Meetings with you directly using your personal meeting link, no software installation is required. The link is fully integrated into Houzz Pro and your own calendar, so your schedule is always up-to-date.
You can also share your personal meeting link on social media or by email to let your network know how easy it is to start a project.
As a design professional, you no doubt have a lovely and thoughtfully put-together home. But you may also be dealing with the realities of pandemic life, where children and spouse are also home, clutter accumulates and dishes pile up next to the sink. That’s OK – the key is to not take your calls with this reality as your visual backdrop.
You might carve out a small corner of your home as an attractive background for your virtual client meetings, ideally in a room where you can close the door to keep out distractions. If that’s not realistic, you could instead use the free Houzz Pro video backdrops to elevate the visual background for your conference calls. And of course, as always, you’ll want to make sure your appearance, including clothing and hair, also conveys a professional image.
There are many videoconferencing programs available, and it’s a good idea to use one that your clients are comfortable with and don’t have to install any new software to use. With Houzz Pro, you can let clients or prospective clients schedule Video Meetings with you directly using your personal meeting link, no software installation is required. The link is fully integrated into Houzz Pro and your own calendar, so your schedule is always up-to-date.
You can also share your personal meeting link on social media or by email to let your network know how easy it is to start a project.
Share visual information like you would in person
One of the more challenging aspects of meeting with clients remotely is sharing the visual information they’ll need to make decisions about their project. Design is inherently a tactile business, and clients want to see and touch materials. This is harder to convey over video, so you’ll want to help by providing as much visual information as you can in the call.
Tiara Holloway of Vivacious Interior by Tiara in Richmond, Virginia, typically brings along fabric swatches and paint samples to initial in-person client meetings, so she does this for initial client video meetings, too. She also shares photos in these meetings, which helps her get a sense of a client’s tastes. She has even used the 3D tools within Houzz Pro to convey to clients how to lay out furniture when she isn’t able to oversee the installation.
Holloway offers this practical tip if you won’t be visiting a client’s home anytime soon: “You also want to have your tape measure to show them how to measure.”
One of the more challenging aspects of meeting with clients remotely is sharing the visual information they’ll need to make decisions about their project. Design is inherently a tactile business, and clients want to see and touch materials. This is harder to convey over video, so you’ll want to help by providing as much visual information as you can in the call.
Tiara Holloway of Vivacious Interior by Tiara in Richmond, Virginia, typically brings along fabric swatches and paint samples to initial in-person client meetings, so she does this for initial client video meetings, too. She also shares photos in these meetings, which helps her get a sense of a client’s tastes. She has even used the 3D tools within Houzz Pro to convey to clients how to lay out furniture when she isn’t able to oversee the installation.
Holloway offers this practical tip if you won’t be visiting a client’s home anytime soon: “You also want to have your tape measure to show them how to measure.”
End the call by recapping the next steps
Perkins, the San Diego designer, has been expanding her e-design offerings during the pandemic. She makes a practice of ending her client video calls by making sure the clients know what needs to happen next for the project to move forwards. “Usually I say, ‘Do you feel as if you have clear direction of what your next steps are?’” she says.
Because the calls can cover a variety of topics and potentially leave clients feeling overwhelmed, Perkins finds this to be key in helping them feel the project is under control. It also demonstrates that you know how to manage a project, which can increase client trust and potentially lead to more work.
Introducing Video Meetings With Houzz Pro.
Reserve in-person meetings for when it’s truly key
Machi Medrzycki, general contractor at MLM in New Orleans, prefers to have the first meeting with clients in person, on-site at the client’s property, so he can see what needs to be done. “The devil is in the detail and detail must be seen with the naked eye,” he says. Even with the pandemic, this is still possible in his area, as it is now for many construction professionals across the UK if the relevant safety precautions are observed.
But after that initial meeting, video meetings with the client and the other pros involved in a project seem to work fine. “Typically, these are done between client, architect and contractor after the initial site visit, so we have more details to discuss,” Medrzycki says.
Tell us…
What are your top tips for video meetings with clients? Share your ideas in the Comments.
Perkins, the San Diego designer, has been expanding her e-design offerings during the pandemic. She makes a practice of ending her client video calls by making sure the clients know what needs to happen next for the project to move forwards. “Usually I say, ‘Do you feel as if you have clear direction of what your next steps are?’” she says.
Because the calls can cover a variety of topics and potentially leave clients feeling overwhelmed, Perkins finds this to be key in helping them feel the project is under control. It also demonstrates that you know how to manage a project, which can increase client trust and potentially lead to more work.
Introducing Video Meetings With Houzz Pro.
Reserve in-person meetings for when it’s truly key
Machi Medrzycki, general contractor at MLM in New Orleans, prefers to have the first meeting with clients in person, on-site at the client’s property, so he can see what needs to be done. “The devil is in the detail and detail must be seen with the naked eye,” he says. Even with the pandemic, this is still possible in his area, as it is now for many construction professionals across the UK if the relevant safety precautions are observed.
But after that initial meeting, video meetings with the client and the other pros involved in a project seem to work fine. “Typically, these are done between client, architect and contractor after the initial site visit, so we have more details to discuss,” Medrzycki says.
Tell us…
What are your top tips for video meetings with clients? Share your ideas in the Comments.
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