How To Convince The Client That Your Design Is Perfect (pt. 2)
Remind Them Why They Hired You
Confidence leads to the next tactic for making design reviews go your way. You need to remind the client why they hired you. By that, I don’t mean to suggest you carry around your credentials and testimonials, ready to pull them out when your expertise is questioned. Rather, this has to do with constantly projecting the image of a passionate professional who is undivided in their focus on the client’s project… even if that is not a perfectly realistic assessment of your situation.
Subtly remind them that you are the expert. Your skills and ability are what made this project come to life. Never give the client a reason to doubt that. Don’t let them get the sense that you are distracted from the end game. When they ask you to make a questionable alteration, your know-how and experience should trump their wishful thinking. And it falls to you to remind them why they should listen. It is about establishing trust and making them defer to your judgment. Your skills and abilities will make this process go smoothly.
Here are a few things to say to remind the client why they should listen to you:
“I see what you’re saying. However, given all of the time I have spent in the field and knowing what I do about it, I must say, personally, that I would let the design stand.”
“I only want what’s best for your project. And from all of the satisfied clients I have worked with in the past, I have a very good feel for the market. So trust me when I say that this is your best way forward.”
“Given my extensive background, I firmly believe that this design perfectly satisfies all of your needs.”
“In my professional assessment, which is in part why you hired me, any further alterations would be detrimental to the effectiveness of the design.”
Keep your skills and experience at the forefront of their mind.
Show them your single-minded passion for the project.
Foster in the client a trust in your abilities, so that they become comfortable deferring to you.
If your gentle reminders about your qualifications are not inducing the client to defer to your judgment, then you could always compare the design — or at least the elements that are up for debate — to work of yours that has succeeded in the market. While not always the best approach, most business professionals are receptive to it. Given that their decision to hire you was likely based on your past work, such comparisons might be effective in convincing them to let the design be.
This is not always the best strategy because it can come off as a bit defensive to some clients. If they say that the design needs something more, and you respond by recalling a similar project you had worked on that was a clear success, then they might assume this has become a matter of ego for you. Still, if you can tactfully steer the client to the right decision by describing a similar model that they can relate to and that effectively employed the same techniques and approaches, you might be on to something. Offer a comparison that will reassure them, because uncertainty is usually the cause of their resistance.
Here are a few things you can say that will help with the comparison model:
“That is a good suggestion, but if we look at _____, we can see that going in this direction could be counterproductive to your goals.”
“While _____ met with moderate success by following that direction, I believe your project will be better served by sticking with the design as is.”
“If we look to _____ as an example, you can see how well this approach has worked for them. And I have no doubt you will experience the same success in your own market.”
Compare the design to a previous project of yours that has measurable success and that the client can relate to.
Be tactful, so that you come off less like you’re trying to flex your muscle and more like you’re trying to address their concerns.
*Original post by Robert Bowen