How To Avoid Being Taken Advantage Of On Free Consultations

Writen by Judy May

1. Limit the consultation to 30 minutes!

Remember: your time is valuable. Thirty minutes is plenty of time for the prospective client to get to know you, like you, be impressed by you, etc. and sufficient time for you to get a good feel for whether you would like to work with the prospective client. Make sure the prospective client understands that the consultation will last 30 minutes and, to the extent additional time is requested, your "regular rate" will apply.

2. Ask the prospective client to do some preliminary work prior to the consultation.

Although you're "giving away" 30 minutes of your time, the prospective client needs to understand your time IS valuable. One way to get this across is by asking the prospective client to do some work. This may be cutting our pictures of rooms she/he likes from home & garden magazines (explain that this will help you understand her/his style, color preferences, etc.). Or you may choose to prepare a brief Questionnaire, asking the prospective client to tell you more about the project she/he has in mind, her/his "design dilemma", her/his style preferences, color preferences, etc., whether she/he has worked with a professional [designer, decorator, redesigner, etc.] before and whether she is considering hiring a professional for the project. If the prospective client balks at your requested "work", impress upon her/him that the "work" will ultimately benefit her/him, given the limited timeframe available and your desire to make the meeting as productive as possible.

3. When you arrive, be sure to thank the prospective client for her/his time and remind

her/him that the consultation will last 30 minutes.

4. Then, ask the prospective client this question: "What is one thing you hoped to walk away with from our meeting? (Try your best to accommodate this…without, of course, giving away your services entirely)

5. Then, begin the consultation, asking the prospective client lots of questions about the project or dilemma, etc. During the consultation, be sure to do 2 things:

First, demonstrate your expertise, without giving away your services. (For example, if she/he says: "I just don't know how to arrange the furniture," you can say something like: "When designers design a room, we think about creating conversation areas. Here, the furniture is pushed back against the walls which can take away from a warm conversational atmosphere.")

Second, remind the prospective client of the "costs" in NOT working with a professional. (For example, you could ask the prospective client if she/he ever bought a sofa, chair, etc. and, when it was delivered, only then realized it was the wrong size, color or just "wasn't right". Tell her/him that those kinds of costly mistakes can be avoided by working with a professional.)

6. At the end of the 30 minutes, state something like: "I'm afraid our time is up!"

7. THEN, ask them this question: "Before we conclude, I would like to ask you: 'do you feel you've received value from our meeting?'" (Hopefully, they will say "YES!!")

8. THEN, depending upon whether you want to work with the prospective client, say one of the following:

"I would enjoy being involved with this project. Are you interested in hiring a [designer, decorator, redesigner, etc.] to assist you?" Then, BE QUIET! Let the "uncomfortable silence" exist……let the prospective client be the next person to talk. Give her/him time to consider what she/he wants to do. Then, deal with any objections or concerns raised by her/him.

"I've enjoyed our time together and your project sounds very interesting; unfortunately, at this time, our schedule is booked through [August or whatever the case may be]."

Judy May is the President of Show House Marketing, a business development and marketing firm catering exclusively to design industry professionals. She can be reached at 610.324.5240 or judy@ShowHouseMarketing.com. For FREE Resources, including the Weekly $uccess Secrets Newsletter and the New! 14-day Jump Start your Design Business E-Course, visit them online at: http://www.ShowHouseMarketing.com. Ms. May is also the founder of the DesignPreneur FORUM, an inspiring and informative community where design professionals learn how to become super-successful DesignPreneurs. 3 Membership Levels available to fit every budget. To learn more, visit them online at http://www.DesignPreneurFORUM.com.