The Answer Is Not Always “Yes”
—
Corey J. Halstead,
Co-owner, HALSTEAD.
“No”
It’s a simple word, but one that many owners in the design/build world have trouble saying. Perhaps it’s because success in the beginning often comes by saying “yes” to all possible sales, and to any and every project that comes your way, in order to grow the business. Or maybe it’s because it goes against the grain to say that the customer is not always right. Whatever the core reason, saying “no” is often a challenge, even for industry veterans.
Yes, your customers’ opinions are valuable and their wishes needs are certainly important, but just because a customer wants or expects something, doesn’t mean that you have no choice but to deliver it. First of all, some customers are simply wrong. Plain wrong. Your business may be better without them. Second, saying “no” in business is not only acceptable, but it’s often the very action that propels a company to the next level.
I see the “yes” mentality steer companies wrong all the time, especially in young or less-established firms. The key here is balance because, of course, for premium service providers offering luxury products and services, concierge-level service is paramount. The customer is often spending a very large amount of money, and so they deserve—and expect—a great experience.
However, they also expect a professional.
Being a “yes man” does not garner respect, it doesn’t put your business on a pedestal, and it affects your ability to demand higher rates. The reason is simple. Whether it’s how you sell, what you build, or which customers you choose to engage, it is extremely difficult for a company to get anything done if the only response to requests and demands is “yes.” Doing that often sends a business in a million different directions when it only has the time, energy, and resources to go in one. The most successful design/build companies are not the ones that spout, “Yes, Ma’am, whatever you want, Ma’am.” They are the ones that own their expertise as knowledgeable professionals, carefully choosing the work they put the company’s name on.
There are, I understand, many emotional triggers behind our general reluctance to say “no.” For example, maybe you worry over the lost future opportunities or burned bridges that could result from saying “no” to a less-than-ideal project this time.What if you stop getting additional chances in the future? Or perhaps you’d just rather avoid conflict. But in order to say “yes” to what is truly important, you need to have a firm understanding of your priorities. Clearly defined short- and long-term objectives can help you frame these decisions. Will saying “yes” to this new project or request help you move towards these goals, or will it distract you from where you ultimately want you and your business to be?
Not every project or account is a good job. As every owner knows, it is very possible to lose money on a project if the number is too low, the client is too demanding, or if the resources needed to reach the final vision are too extreme. Walking away from a “nightmare client” is something that all young companies have to learn the hard way—but that so many still have not after years in business. It is important to listen to your gut and put your business on a pedestal so that you not only give yourself constant room for growth, but you also create space for your customers to respect your expertise. This will ultimately shape your company’s future.
The biggest advantage that one firm has over another is producing better work. If you give in to every customer request by saying, “You want me to surround yet another fire pit with a cold, concrete seat wall that no one in their right mind would want to sit on for more than one minute? Sure, no problem!” you are sabotaging both the customer by not telling them that no one will really enjoy sitting on a rock in a “luxury” outdoor space, and you are misrepresenting your business by building a project you don’t agree with. Last time I checked, we don’t sit on concrete in our living rooms. Even though customers might not see past the short term, change occurs because it is necessary and will prove justified in the long run. Your business cannot backpedal or stagnate and hope to prosper.
Now, I understand that sticking to your guns may not always be possible depending on the growth stage of your company. When you are just starting out, turning down work is simply not an option. At the same time, doing your best to educate the customer on why doing something the right way is always an option. Fighting for the most successful project is always the best option. If you do have to give in to an unfavorable customer request, go ahead and build it. Complete the project. Simply don’t include it in your business’s portfolio.
It seems to me, after over 25 years in the industry, that so many companies haven’t yet learned that less is more. Showing fewer photos of better work will always trump posting a plethora of photos displaying suboptimal builds. This is one of the values we practice at HALSTEAD. Within our niche specialty of the landscape and design/build industries is an even smaller niche specialty of consulting companies on how to reach the next level effectively and efficiently. For example, if a company has built a handful of large jobs but is stagnating, we seek to help that firm build more—or only—large jobs moving forward (if that is their goal, of course). This involves a lot of marketing work, but it also entails capturing the very best of that firm’s work through video and photo shoots. It involves showcasing that work front and center. That’s right, even for a small company, you do not need to showcase every project you’ve ever built. In fact, no matter what stage your company is at, less is still usually more.
This idea of owning—and carefully curating—your portfolio and your body of work is a powerful one. It is a reflection of your business’s legacy and values as a team of professionals in the industry. This means that you don’t have to let a customer, who thinks that they suddenly know how to design complicated living spaces, mess it up. By accepting and completing a project, you are putting your company’s stamp of approval on it for everyone to see. Therefore, curating an expert level of work throughout your portfolio is actually a major factor in what distinguishes an average or below-average company from the extraordinary. When you look at some of the highest-rated firms, their work speaks for itself.
When looking to make that jump to extraordinary, attracting the right clientele for your niche is crucial. Because while you do need to be willing and able to walk away if the client is not a fit, the much more effective strategy is to be able to avoid those situations altogether. Saying “no” in business should always be supplemented with an honest and fair explanation. That doesn’t mean writing novel-length emails to justify your stance, it doesn’t mean giving a speech every time you have to deny a suggestion or request, and it doesn’t mean burning customers at the first hint of trouble. It simply means being very clear in your process, your specialty, and your values from the forefront. And if the client abuses that stance later down the line, be willing to say, “No, that isn’t fair to our agreement” or “Yes, but there will be additional costs involved.”
When you make it a policy to say “yes” every time, you often open yourself up for punishment. The more some customers hear “yes,” the more they demand and take, and the more chaotic the owner’s life becomes. It will quickly become apparent to customers that they can take advantage of you, and who can blame them? Never saying “no” because of fear leads to devaluing yourself and your work. Check out more regarding the power of the Law of Attraction and how when you operate your business out of fear—fear of failing, fear of disappointing customers, fear of saying “no”—you create a culture of negativity. It is only by visualizing the outcome you want, the one that will make you proud, can you actualize that vision. Sometimes you have to say “no” to make your goals a reality.
This realization, in the end, made saying no in business a fairly simple activity for me. By not being a “yes man,” I was able to keep myself and my teams focused on the things that mattered most to HALSTEAD, and to the types of clients we wanted to partner with. The result was much stronger individual and team productivity and a better client roster of clients that LOVE us, not those that think we’re “okay” or “pretty good.”
Remember that saying “no” is not bad customer service. In fact, in the case of stern project advice aimed at helping the client avoid something they will regret later, I’d argue it can be good customer service. Good customer service is made from a rather simple recipe: great communication, compassion, willingness to problem solve, the ability to put a plan into action, and delivering the results/product. It is also important to note that as the head of your company, you are leading by example and teaching your team that it is okay to say “no” and that there is a proper way to do so. You will be able to scale your business to an elite level far more effectively when the entire team understands and is capable of practicing this simple word.
“No.”
