Review Contracts In Person

THIS could be why clients are shopping you.

If you don’t review your contract with your client, you are missing out on an incredible opportunity. 

Reviewing this all-important document with your clients is one of the simplest ways to build authority, set boundaries, and create better working relationships.​

The Big Misstep: Emailing Your Contract

Too many designers are quietly emailing their contracts to clients and crossing their fingers that clients will read, understand, and respect them.

When you skip doing an in-person contract review, you miss a huge opportunity!

Explain your processes with ease and position yourself as a leader, so clients know they made the right decision in hiring you to manage their project. 

Walking through your agreements together shows clients that you have great confidence in the way you work, and you don’t shy away from conversations that others may perceive as uncomfortable.  

How To Review Your Contract

A contract review does not need to be stiff or scary. 

This should be a very natural conversation that reinforces your boundaries and the value you bring to a client throughout an interior design project.​

Read each section in plain language, then, as necessary, and organically, further explain the terms. 

What I like to do is tell a real-life story, or a client experience that highlights certain aspects of the contract terms to further get my point across, while showing my credibility on how we have handled similar situations in the past. 

I encourage you to ask, “Does that bring up any questions?” as you go, so clients feel invited to engage and see your confidence.  

Communicating Your Boundaries With Confidence

Specifically in the video, I show you how I use my interior design contract review to normalize our policies around communication, cancellations, and response times.​

I clarify that calls and emails are returned within a reasonable window (for example, within 24 business hours, during set weekday hours) so that clients understand we are not available at all hours and that we have policies in place around work hours. 

You’ve probably heard me say this many times before: Managing clients’ expectations is everything!

No-Texting Policy

Texting may feel casual to clients, but it can completely derail your systems and your sanity.​

We let clients know that we do not text to communicate design ideas, send quotes, etc. We prefer to keep communication and information organized in email or in meetings, where it can be properly tracked and neatly organized.

Texts can get buried between messages from my husband, kids, and friends, plus, the expectation with a text message is that you will reply quite quickly, and that is not realistic when you are in appointments or on site.  

By the way, if you’re nodding along to the no-texting policy and wondering how to handle it with your own clients, you’ll love this blog post with video where I explain exactly why texting is hurting your business (and what to do instead).​

The Unexpected Bonus: Connection & Respect

Reviewing your contract in person or on Zoom does more than protect you legally; it deepens trust.​

And trust, is everything. 

Oh, so is managing client’s expectations as I mentioned earlier. 

Well, to be clear, managing expectations helps you gain and maintain trust, so they go hand in hand 🙂

These in-person conversations provide the opportunity to ask questions, set the tone that you are confidently in control, and show clients that you have streamlined processes.

The best part is that all of this professionalism ultimately leads to working with clients who respect that you have boundaries and value your expertise. Clients like Lisa who wrote us this 5-star review.

You can see this client’s project here.

Interior Design Service Contract Templates

If you want help tightening up the actual language inside your various design service agreements, here’s a link to all my done-for-you contract templates.  

As a bonus, I’ve also included my Service Outlines with FAQ’s for each contract specific to the different interior design services. These are invaluable marketing assets that can be leveraged to convert more clients to larger interior design projects. 

• Not sure what terms to include in your interior design contracts? Read this post with video where I break down the key terms every interior design contract needs.​
• To feel more confident leading the very first meeting with a new client and set the tone for a great working relationship, don’t miss this post on five mistakes to avoid at the initial consultation.​