What I've Learned Selling High-End Projects

Over the last few years, our family-run installation business has refocused a significant part of the company towards attracting very high-end projects, specifically in the aluminium and timber-alternative spaces.

We have always been a high-end type of company, especially when compared to our local competitors. But we foresaw the inflation spike in 2022, and we knew that the market was about to shift. The middle-income demographic was going to be squeezed, with all reasonable spending power going to be limited to the top 20% of earners.

That meant fully committing to the aluminium and ultra-high-end markets, and attracting high-net-worth individuals. The work we put in, such as transforming our showrooms, adapting our marketing and product portfolios, etc., is working. But the learning curve has been steep. These are just some of the things I have learned over the last few years.

High expectations

If you are trying to transition your business to attract higher-value contracts, then you must also prepare yourself for much higher client expectations. If you are going to be quoting clients £50,000/£75,000 or even £100k+ contracts, then you need to match service levels and quality to those high values. And rightly so.

At those sorts of monetary levels, you will likely be dealing with either large renovation projects or self-build homes. And when people are spending the amounts of money that they are on those types of projects, then customers are understandably going to expect very high levels of quality in both products and customer service.

That means keeping regular lines of communication open. Even if there is nothing really to say. Regular contact keeps clients calm, composed, and reassured that you have your hand on the tiller at all times. The better the communication, the more reassured the client is going to be that they chose the right company for their project.

It is also important that you keep a very close eye on smaller details and quality control. As installers, your suppliers should have their own stringent QC measures. But products then have to be transported from the manufacturer to either your workplace or to site. It is important that there is another level of quality control done on delivery, and to ensure all items are delivered. Missing or damaged items can cause delays, and if you’re working on a large project where timings are vital, you need as few holdups as possible.

Becoming a project manager

If you’re in sales and you are lucky to land one of these prestigious projects, that is fantastic. But you must also be prepared to become more than just a salesperson.

For your client, you are now their touch point, the one person that they will go to to ask questions, query things, ask for updates, or lodge complaints to. Yes, most installers will have a Surveyor, whose responsibility it is to take the final manufacturing sizes. But all the legwork has been done by the salesperson, who is the most familiar with the client.

Somewhat on the job, I have learned to become a project manager. The large projects require you to be in touch with builders, site managers, and other trades, as well as the client. You end up getting involved in scheduling, installation methods, product technicalities, and other areas of the business that are usually reserved for other members of staff. Yes, it’s more work; however, you begin to gain extensive knowledge of how large sites work and how other trades liaise and coordinate with others. In all honesty, it is very useful, and I would urge salespeople to embrace this part of the work, even if it does seem a bit daunting at first.

Evolving contracts

Typically, in sales, you would sign up a customer for a door and some windows, hand the contract over to the office to then be processed and passed on to the Surveyor to take final manufacturing sizes. Generally, then it is off your desk, and you’re on to the next one.

That is not the case with high-value contracts. There tend to be a lot more moving parts to contracts of larger sizes. Sometimes a customer will commit to using your company, even pay you a deposit, before the finer details are even decided. Simply because they are not far enough along in their overall project to be dedicating time to it. They simply wanted to know what the general numbers were going to be, decide if they were happy with it, and then decide on things like handles, glass types, etc., later down the line.

It means that even once you sign your client up, the contract is not going to be the final iteration. It is going to be a document that is edited, changed, and updated, and by the end of the project, it may well look completely different from the first version you signed them up with. Yes, that means more work. But if you’re aiming to earn the big bucks, then that is the work that is going to be required of you.

Changing minds

One other thing I have learned is that clients with money and large budgets change their minds a lot. Because they can. I have seen clients partway through builds decide to tear down walls, change room layouts, even remove fully venetian plastered walls, just to change a small detail. Because they can.

If you manage to get your business to attract these types of clients, you get a glimpse into a different world. And it is a different world. Money means different things when you work on large projects. Yes, budgets still matter, but if a client has a change of heart on something, even if it is going to cost them thousands of pounds more and delayed work schedules, they will do it anyway.

It means you have to be prepared to be flexible. Expect to be delayed. Expect emails late at night asking to change the colour of the window frames or handles on their doors. Expect things to be added at the last minute and be asked if it can still be done within the same time schedules.

The payoff

I don’t mean money. Yes, you will earn more doing these types of contracts, and that is, of course, fantastic. But the other payoff is seeing these huge projects come to life and then reach completion.

Winning these contracts means working on some absolutely stunning homes, whether it is a new build or a renovation. They are truly exciting to be a part of. There is more pressure on you to get things right, but that is to be expected when the client is spending what they are spending. But getting to go out on site as the project evolves is genuinely exciting, and getting to see your hard work and effort physically in a completed building is very satisfying indeed.

There are many more points I could add to this, and I may do a follow-up post next week to explore them. But if you are an installation business looking to elevate your company and work on higher-value projects, I would say that it is definitely worth aiming for if you are prepared to put in the work and dedication that is required of it. The end results are very much worth it.