Design by Schelfe and Associates | Rendering by Gibson Design Management

Last fall we had the fortunate opportunity to work with Schelfe and Associates, an interior design firm from Raleigh, NC, on a project located 90 minutes outside of Hong Kong, China. The project consisted of converting an existing villa into a high-end boutique hotel, that, when built, will have 6 guest rooms, an owner’s suite, a cinema room, a game room, a karaoke room, a golf simulator room, multiple lounge areas, and more.

Gibson Design Management created four renderings for Schelfe and Associates to present to their clients, helping to better their understanding of the design concept through the renderings and an interpreter. Tim Schelfe, principal at Schelfe and Associates, took our renderings, a plethora of fabric samples and tear sheets, and more for the presentation to his new Chinese client. Upon return, Tim said that the renderings were a hit—they greatly helped bridge the language barrier between his team and the client. The client even said, “I want more pictures!”

Design by Schelfe and Associates | Rendering by Gibson Design Management

Tim wrote the following testimonial about the process:

“Gibson Design Management was instrumental in allowing our firm to organize the creative vision of the project without getting bogged down on preparing our own interior renderings or color boards. With the renderings provided by Gibson I was able to present my client a very clear and precise vision of the finished interior. Our client was ecstatic with our presentation and signed off on our design as presented.”

Design by Schelfe and Associates | Rendering by Gibson Design Management

What happens when you and your client both speak the same language? Should you still use renderings? There are countless times when a client will express his or her wishes using incorrect terms such as “I like modern” when what they actually like is “transitional.” Utilizing renderings can help combat these misunderstandings and ensure that you and your client are on the same page before the room is installed. Furthermore, the level of trust that is instilled once a client sees the renderings is immense—instead of just listening to your description, they can actually see what you mean.

A picture, or in this case a rendering, is worth a thousand words.

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For those of you who think that you just need to have a Facebook page, tweet, and do some blogging, think again.  You actually need to use them as tools to get results.  Ramon DeLeon, owner of 7 Domino’s Pizzas, is the king of monitoring what people are saying about his brand.  He doesn’t just listen though, he answers and he makes things right if they’re not already, often in very memorable ways.

Domino’s Pizza catering SMC Chicago event from Andres J. DeLeon on Vimeo.

Read more about how exactly DeLeon is using social media and the amazing results he’s getting from this post on SocialMediaExaminer.com.

Way to go Ramon.  We salute you.

Recently our design firm ordered a few light fixtures for a project from Unilight out of Montreal, Canada.  The project was under renovation so the fixtures needed to arrive before the contractor left to avoid extra charges.  Two bathroom sconces shipped, one lacked a back plate.

After contacting Unilight to get a back plate shipped, it took them ONE WEEK to ship us a plate that probably cost 50 cents.  The reason?  Our contact said that they had to meet about why a piece was not shipped (to figure out what went wrong in THEIR process) and she had to get a replacement plate approved.  From a business perspective, this does not fly.

In your business, you should empower your people to make something right for your clients.  What this requires from you is

1.  Trust in your team’s decision-making,

2.  The ability to not get mad if your people do something that you would not have done,

3.  Becoming comfortable enough to let your people solve a problem from start to finish without necessarily involving you.

In order to empower people to make things right, you have to trust their good judgment.  By punishing people for

making a decision, you are sending mixed messages.  If you feel more comfortable, set a limit of $100 or $200 cost before they have to check in with you or the team about the decision.  If it’s going to make a happier client to overnight the pillows that are already late so they will be there in time for a party, and it will cost you an extra $50, your team should feel like they can fulfill that without asking.  Furthermore, if you can get your team to a place where they do this without the client asking, you are exceeding expectations (but that’s for another post).

The last thing a client wants when she calls with a grievance that can be easily and quickly solved (such as a back plate shipped) is to hear that it will have to go before committee to make a decision.

Once the error on your part is made, and your client is made happy, then it is time to study your process and fix what went wrong.  That should never be your client’s problem or concern, and should never be a reason for delay on fixing her problem.

This is the BARE MINIMUM that your company should be doing.  We’ll talk more later about how further empowering your team can bring the WOW factor…think Zappos WOW.

I love showrooms! Everything about them appeals to me, from the beautifully lit and displayed product, to the wings of fabrics waiting to be discovered, it all presents infinite possibilities available to designers.

Holly Hunt - New York

The perfectly sharpened pencils nestled in bins with memo sample request pads handily located next to them, the colorful and imaginative shopping bags full of gorgeous fabrics and funky trims, yours for the taking.

Fadini Borghi Fabrics & Trimmings

Graciously offered space to spread out and work, with water, coffee and snacks readily available. A sales associate ready to offer assistance; pricing and tear sheets swiftly and efficiently proffered.

But showrooms are more than that, they are a designer’s life blood, and designers are theirs’.  A perfect example of a symbiotic relationship.  Showrooms and their well-trained staff should be considered allies, a first line of defense. They are problem solvers, who will go to bat for a customer to help in getting to the bottom of a freight issue, or working with a vendor to push a lead time, or getting a difficult question or problem resolved.

The showrooms I have been fortunate to work both for and with have been much more than the selling, they have been about the relationship and the connection.

Gibson Design Management recently launched a Review Center.  This is a place for the design industry to review showrooms on the customer service that it receives.  We hope for it to be a place for showrooms that are providing great service to be lauded, and for those who are not serving the industry well, to improve from.  The way for this review center to be successful is for you to be candid about your experiences and to share those experiences.  We would love to have you contribute to our review center, and spread the word to your industry partners.

Currently, you can review showrooms in the Denver Design District and the Washington DC Design Center.  Please add your stars and reviews.  Posts can be anonymous if you do not feel comfortable adding your name, and of course, your email address will be kept strictly confidential.

When is comes to purchase order management, one of the key components for success lies in the hands of the receiving warehouse.  If you are embarking on a new design project in an unfamiliar area here are some things to look for and consider when choosing a receiver.

1.)    What kind of inventory system do they utilize?  Does the warehouse have the technology to use photographs in their receiving reports?  Do they an accurate record of quantities of items from each vendor?

2.)    What are the hours of operation?   When you’re contacting the company do you speak with a live person or a switchboard?  Good communication with representatives within the warehouse is key.  Avoid warehouses with limited customer services hours.

3.)    Are they flexible and can they schedule last minute deliveries?  I recently encountered a situation where an office desk and credenza were delivered early to a hotel and needed immediate installation.  I was in a pinch, so I immediately called the warehouse we are using for the project to see if they could send an installer the next day.  Although it was last minute they were able to find someone that was available.  This was a win-win situation for both the client and for me.  Make certain you understand the warehouse’s delivery policy before you schedule an installation.

Talk to showrooms and designers in the area and feel out your options.  Build a personable relationship with your warehouse customer service team early on in the project.  They are there to help you run your project seamlessly.

Last Friday night I received multiple calls on my cell phone from a local number that I did not recognize.  I was out to dinner for a friend’s birthday so I decided not to answer.  However, after the 4th call (at 8:30 pm), I decided that I should answer in case of emergency.

It was a robot recording from the dermatologist’s office calling to confirm my appointment for the following Tuesday.

While we love systems and technologies as much as (or probably more than) the next guy, this was over the top.  Once my blood pressure lowered, I thought, “What should be our litmus test on whether or not to implement a system or technology?”

Before implementing a new system or technology ask, “Will this system compromise the warm and fuzzy feeling that our clients or our employees feel about our company?”  If the answer is “Yes”, don’t do it, despite the efficiencies gained.

Needless to say, I did not feel warm and fuzzy about my dermatologist.  In fact, I felt like I would probably be put on a conveyor belt and inspected and stamped by #43 (while still paying the full service price).

Yesterday, Scotts Miracle-Gro Company announced that it would close all Smith & Hawken stores (read more here).  The fortunate legacy that will live on are the business teachings of Paul Hawken, one of the Smith & Hawken founders.  I read his book, Growing a Business, last year; its relevance and applicability to today’s business world is astounding, despite its publication date of 1987.  Principles have not changed.

Here are some lessons from Hawken’s Growing a Business:

- “Begin at the beginning.” Drill down to what  your company does.  Think ahead but don’t skip ahead.  Lay the foundation, don’t try to put on the roof before the walls go up.  (Sorry for the excessive construction analogies).

- “A problem is an opportunity in drag.” We will always have problems in our businesses.  If we stop having problems, our businesses are no longer learning and are no longer progressing.  When a problem arises, through creativity and innovation, we are able to solve and then build even better companies.

- “We want to do business with companies that back their products and take care of the needs of their customers.” Do right by your clients and they will reward you with coming back and telling their friends.  This is simple.  Why don’t more companies do it then?

- “Don’t live up to a criterion, set it.” If you are the second, the third, or the fortieth business in your industry to do what you do, are you always chasing the competition?  If so, you will always be behind.  Forge your own way.

- “Laughter and good humor are the canaries in the mine of commerce.” If you are not having fun every day in your business, close now.  If you don’t let your customers or clients have fun with you too, they will find someone else to have fun with (and spend money with).

- “There’s no way to instill a positive customer service ethic before you embody a positive employee ethic.” Treat your people like you want them to treat your clients.

All simple right?  Let’s get to it then.

We recently had a less than ideal experience with the length of time it took to ship 3 dressers from San Francisco for one of our design firms in Manhattan.  Sadly, our industry is full of these less than ideal experiences; nothing surprises me now.  I am often surprised when I receive normal customer service–I am exceedingly surprised when I receive something out of the ordinary.

Kudos to Jiun Ho for their proactivity in customer service.  I did not expect anything like this but was so pleasantly surprised that I felt compelled to blog.  Below is the letter that I received.  The letter was accompanied by a beautiful box of Mini Mosaics chocolates.

Needless to say, an “I’m Sorry” note and a box of chocolates go a long way with this girl.

We can all learn a thing or two from the Zappos model.  They are one of the most talked about companies today because they do things right.  What do I mean by right?  I mean that they take care of their customers and they take care of their employees.  As a result, people talk about them…lots of people.  Just a couple of examples:

- A woman called Zappos because her mother died and had a few unopened Zappos shoes boxes.  The daughter called Zappos and they immediately said that they would be happy to take the shoes back and would arrange for the pick up.  At this point, we are all thinking that this is standard, good customer service.  However, a week later the daughter received a bouquet of flowers with a note that read “We’re so sorry for your loss – the Zappos team”.  The daughter turned out to be an influential blogger and this story was widely circulated (as I’m circulating it here).

Lesson:  Let your employees go above and beyond to do what is right.  Don’t just provide client service, provide exceptional client service and people will talk about it.

- Zappos now pays its employees $2500 to quit.  If, after an extensive training program, anyone feels that they cannot provide the level of service expected, they are offered $2500 in addition to the time worked to quit.  The company used to pay $250, then $1000, and now $2500.  I would surmise that Zappos easily makes back this money several times over by not only having employees that really want to be there but by also showing their customers that they have policies that put the customers first.

Lesson: Follow the word of mouth marketing mantra: Make your company remarkable and people were remark on it.  Stories like these make people even more likely to become clients because they like what you stand for.

Read more about Zappos in a recent AdWeek interview with Zappos CEO, Tony Hsieh.