An ineffective sales and design process can leave what should have been a great installation lacking, writes Ron Callis, Jr.

When I started Firefly Design Group, I made a rooky mistake – I provided design services including proposal and project engineering documentation to my integrator clients at no charge, pending they convert their potential client into a signed contract.

What was the mistake, you might ask? Well, I forgot to insist that the electronic systems contractor (ESC) take necessary steps to properly qualify the client. Without a well-defined scope and a well-defined project budget, we might as well have been throwing darts at a dartboard, blindfolded.

This mistake cost my design firm many thousands of dollars, and it could still be costing your firm the same.

This brings us to today, where I advise and teach ESCs worldwide on the importance and absolute necessity to handle the sales phase of a project in two stages:
• Stage 1 – Discovery; and,
• Stage 2 – Design.

In this article, let’s talk about the ‘discovery’ process.

The first meeting with a potential client is your chance to introduce your firm to them. In this meeting, it is important to:
• Tell them about your company and your unique value proposition;
• Tell them about your service offering, by discipline;
• Tell them about your process; and,
• Show them samples of past projects both in pictures and in project documentation.

Once your client understands that your firm is thoroughly qualified to handle the job, your goal is to then learn, in detail, their immediate project goals and their past experiences with technology in the home.

At this point, you should have a pen and notebook ready, writing in detail the main points of the discussion. This dialogue should be interactive and a constant two-way flow of information. The client should be getting excited as they tell you what they want to do, and you should be getting excited as you explain to them what is possible.

The client now needs a point of reference on an installed cost, so they can realistically decide what they want to do, balancing hopes and dreams with reality.

I have seen this done a number of ways, but the easiest is to simply have at your fingertips a good, better and best version of various systems broken up by subsystem. In doing this, you will be able to show the client three (or more) retrofit lighting control systems that control a specific number of loads with a specific number of keypads.

The point of this is not to tell the client that ‘Package 2’ is exactly what they need, rather you are helping them understand that 20 lighting loads with 10 keypads, professionally installed and programmed will cost $14,000. The client will now understand approximately what their cost will be, relative to the sample system you provided.

After going through this process, the client should be given a report at the completion of your first or second meeting. This report will translate what you have learned about their project goals into a formal scope definition. In the construction world they call this the Program Development Report, not to be confused with software programming.

This is where scope is defined and an estimated construction cost is provided. We like to call this the discovery report, or estimate. In addition, you will present the associated cost with moving forward into the design phase, or ‘Stage 2’ of the sales process. If your client is serious and values your time, they will gladly pay you to now design their system in detail. You will now have the luxury of spending more quality time with good customers, rather than wasting time with tyre-kickers that do not plan to buy and would simply be using you to gain information or price shop you.

How many ESC firms – your competitors – take the time to learn about the client’s goals and dreams, before simply giving them a proposal? By presenting this process up front, and walking your client down this path, you set the stage for a more profitable and efficient business and highly satisfied customers that will refer their friends your way.