Choosing Wisely: Expert Tips for Helping Clients Manage Selections

Custom home builders, architects, and designers sometimes compare the process of helping clients navigate product selections to that of serving as a couples’ counselor.

They’re only half joking.

Even with large budgets, trade-offs are inevitable: one partner wants to stay on budget while the other prioritizes the perfect look. That same person, however, may happily accept a comparable product to finish on schedule and avoid delays.

Knowing how to guide clients through these decisions can affect both project margins and client satisfaction.

Your clients come armed with ideas from social media and design shows, but they need professional guidance on what will endure in style and function, and for how individual choices work together across the entire house.

Mary-Margaret Glass, interior designer for JacksonBuilt Custom Homes—a family-owned builder in the Charleston, S.C., area—says that client involvement varies dramatically: some clients prefer her to make all selections and just approve final decisions, while others want to review multiple options for every detail, from the white subway tile backsplash to the bathroom mirrors. 

Company owner and president Richard Jackson understands that every client needs a different level of guidance. He believes working together as a collaborative team offers the best support.

After a quarter century in the profession, his recommendation to other custom home builders is clear: bring in an architect and interior designer from the beginning and make selections with the clients as early as possible.

Glass explains how this early collaboration makes product and material decisions go more smoothly and contributes to a cohesive vision the owners will love now, and in five or 20 years.

“Architects think about spaces and how people move through them,” she says. “I can envision how the countertops and fixtures work within those spaces, and the builder thinks about how those decisions affect the plumbing or window locations—together these different perspectives make a great home.” 

One key strategy involves asking clients to make selections in the same order the house will get built. This keeps construction moving seamlessly and helps clients see how each choice affects the next.

Glass puts together a digital storyboard for the entire house and goes through it with clients, room by room. She calls it their “dating phase,” because she finds out what they like or not but it doesn’t commit them to any big decisions. For example, she might learn they have an aversion to seeing an exposed bulb and knows not to show them light fixtures with that feature going forward. 

Clients keep the digital storyboards to use as a reference for their actual product selections. To keep clients on track with their decisions, the firm gives them deadlines and resources through job scheduling software.

Jackson says this usually motivates them to check everything off their to-do lists as quickly as possible. Many clients live out of town, so having the software also provides their choices and approvals in writing.

“We always start with the exterior finishes and move in step with the construction process,” Jackson says. “Inside, cabinets come first because they set the tone for everything else—appliances, tile, lighting. Hardwood flooring color is one of the final decisions, chosen after the boards are installed, so clients can see stain samples in different lighting throughout the day.” 

No matter how organized the selection process is, some clients still change their minds and are comfortable paying for it. “We’ve had clients spend thousands on change orders simply because that’s how they approach decision-making,” Jackson says. “At the end of the day, if it matters to them, it’s their home and their investment.”

Jackson won’t compromise on quality, however, particularly when it comes to exterior materials suited for the coastal environment. Including standard features like hurricane-rated windows and composite or Ipe decking saves the firm money in the long run and protects clients with durable, low-maintenance homes that stand up to high winds and salty sea air.

Kim Power, studio director and partner at Dick Clark + Associates, an architecture and interior design studio in Austin, Texas, emphasizes the importance of thorough upfront planning.

"Taking extra time during the design phase to think ahead is so important," she says. "Everyone's goal is to get to construction as soon as possible but taking more time to really plan is key for avoiding delays and staying on budget. Building a custom home is an incredible investment of financial resources and time, so clients want to make sure it's right."

Power works with Clara Paterson, another partner, on strategies for helping clients make choices to best fit their lifestyle, portray their personalities, and blend with the building site. Power and Paterson develop a design vision using a layered approach to materials, fixtures, and fittings.

This means starting with exterior palettes and “background” finishes like flooring, then selecting feature products like the kitchen island countertop or a fireplace surround. 

This approach also allows the architects to draw out the process, which prevents clients from feeling overwhelmed by so many choices. They're careful not to extend it too long, though, given constantly changing prices and supply chain uncertainties.

Visualizing Choices

“We know enough about which selections need to be made early,” Paterson says, “and we also work closely with builders to avoid surprises. We don’t want to leave ourselves in a situation where something clients really want pushes them over budget after everything else is already selected.”

Many of the firm’s clients enjoy high-end budgets, but that also means they need significant support on picking products for just the right look and function. The firm uses 3D renderings to show how most selections work together, but they also generate large scale mockups on site.

Power and Paterson recently collaborated with the builder on one project to create a 10-foot x 3-foot wall from a patchwork of local limestone varieties. The client had them swap out sections of stone until settling on their preferred combination. 

“We take great care to consider how their choice looks nestled among trees or with full sun exposure,” Power says. “We also show them renderings of views from interior spaces and how best to frame them—black window frames disappear when looking at trees, but crisp white blends with interiors.” 

Even with these strategies to get client decisions on time and within budget, there are always changes. When they happen, the team explains to the client what it would take to make their request a reality. If a client asks for a tile that’s backordered or a wall-mounted toilet after the foundation is poured with plumbing runs set, they’ll explain the costs and delays to get the exact item and, if possible, offer alternatives.

“We help clients prioritize their decisions,” Paterson says. “If there’s a special marble they really want in the bar, maybe we use it as an accent on just the backsplash. Or suggest they pick a one-of-a-kind light fixture for just the dining room or foyer, but not both.” 

“It’s important to have as many decisions done as possible before there’s a shovel in the ground,” says Jay Endelman, owner of Guild Craft, Inc., a small design-build firm based in Chevy Chase, Maryland. “I give clients options, and we make decisions for everything from siding to lighting fixtures to countertop materials to hardware, so everything is on hand when my subs are ready for them.”

After nearly four decades of designing and building single-family homes for mostly entry level buyers, Endelman has developed a solid system to guide client selections while minimizing change orders.

He starts by asking clients how they make decisions: are both clients equally involved, and how decisive are they? Ideally one person takes the lead. From there, he uses photos of past projects to discover their tastes and determines how much he needs to limit options. The process ends with a comprehensive list of all the selections clients must make, along with an overall palette of their preferred colors and materials. 

“I typically give them four options for each product,” Endelman says, “along with links to manufacturers I trust for quality, aesthetics, and supply availability.”

Endelman admits there are opposing forces at play when he limits options. While it simplifies the process, it can work against a builder's instinct to differentiate by creating distinctive homes. For example, if he tries to highlight his knowledge and skill by showing clients flashy options, they might get inspired to find even flashier products that cost the builder time to research, along with the risk of using an unknown manufacturer.

The internet makes it even trickier to rein in a client. While it might take a client only a minute to send him a photo of a Scandinavian soapstone fireplace surround, but it can take hours to research and craft a professional response without shutting them down. 

“I had to learn how to educate clients early in the process to save time and money for us both,” Endelman says. “Depending on the client, sometimes I can just be straightforward and let them know how much going outside the suggested palette will set us back.”

While most product selections are budget-driven, Endelman constantly looks for ways to create impact without cost creep, such as stacking tiers of crown molding or recessing stock cabinets into a wall to get a wow effect. Even after 40 years, the builder says those two techniques still give clients unique details they rave about. 

One area where he encourages clients to spend a little more is on non-toxic materials and finishes, such as no-VOC paints and stains or NAF/NAUF cabinets. Endelman believes these products are healthier for homeowners and often perform better over time.

Endelman’s trickiest client relationship involved designing and building his own house—when his wife was pregnant with twins. “She had limited mobility and didn’t have any strong ideas but didn’t trust me to make the decisions," he says. "I’d bump up against my own indecision, though, and need her to chime in, especially in areas like countertops and bathroom tile where there are endless options.” 

Looking back, Endelman says building his own home reminded him just how overwhelming the process can be for clients. It reinforced the philosophy that drives his business today: the more clarity and decisions established up front, the smoother and more rewarding the project will be for everyone involved.