I’m going to tell you the biggest mistake I have made in this process. I’m not proud of it, but I’m hoping we can all learn from my mistakes and become better together. I have referred to this step as “Listen and Assessment” not “Assessment and Listen” for a very specific reason. When you make an assessment before listening, there are 3 different ways from Sunday that you can trip over your own feet.
You Overwhelm
If you’re too eager to show off how much you know and immediately jump in to explaining how you’re going to solve their problem, there’s a high likelihood you’re going to give too much information and overwhelm the customer. There is always more to fixing a hole in the wall than simply cutting and placing a patch to fit. Your great intentions of educating the customer will not be received as such. All you will do is create an environment of fear and potentially despair.
You Assess the Wrong Problem
It’s easy to get excited when someone has asked for your help, but if you come in and completely look over the issue they believe needs to be addressed, all you’re doing is wasting both of your time and frustrating the customer. What you’re assessing may actually be a problem they are aware of, but it’s not the one they are interested in fixing at the moment. If you want a shot at addressing that issue, you need to do a good job on the one they actually want fixed.
You Embarrass
This one is closely related to the previous two outcomes but is far more detrimental to your ability to serve them. What happens here is you start pointing out all the issues that need to be fixed. When this happens, the only outcome possibilities are shame, guilt, and a spirit of hopelessness. They already know about the issues – they don’t need someone coming into their personal space and making them feel even more inadequate.
You have to listen, first. Having all the answers is not a requirement to serving someone well. Knowing the proper questions to ask is far more valuable to both your success and theirs. They have to be the first ones to talk in order for you to begin asking the questions that reveal which hole in the wall to address and what they hope to see once the job is completed.
Asking directed questions helps in setting reasonable expectations. I cannot overstate this point; setting proper expectations is the most important part of creating an environment for success or failure. All they know is what you tell them and if you give bad information, you set the stage for a less than satisfactory end result. Bad information is given when you don’t fully understand what they want or how you plan to apply your solution. If you’ve been in your profession for a while, you should already be comfortable in how to get the job done well. What you don’t know, without listening, is what their expectations are – what they truly want – how they currently define success.
By allowing them to speak first, you will begin to understand what their expectations are coming into the process. Another thing I’ve learned is applying my version of a “quality job” to every job is not always the best way to serve someone. If all they want is for me to put a quick patch on the wall and touch up the patched areas, they aren’t going to respond positively when I make the executive decision to go ahead and paint the entire wall in order to eliminate the “halo” that forms when you try to touch-up an “eg-shel” finish. That may be the ideal solution, but it’s not the “best” one. The best solution is discovered after listening carefully to the customer and then assessing how to tailor your skills and abilities to serve that specific need.
Do not get this process backwards. It is critical to listen first and assess after. Once this step is completed, you’re ready to deliver your estimate and ask for the business.