FAQs
- What should the customer know about your pricing (e.g., discounts, fees)?
I use pricing strategies that optimally match employee skillsets and hourly rates to the skills actually needed on the job. This means using lower-priced employees for lower-skilled tasks, no designers digging ditches, etc. I also create win-wins by employing skilled but underemployed disadvantaged workers from my church. I never mark up materials like some contractors...and pass on my discounts to my customers if possible. I'm also glad to give neighbor or needs-based discounts.
- What is your typical process for working with a new customer?
We usual connect to discuss the job, then I stop by the customer's home to see the job, share some ideas, etc. Once I understand what the customer is looking for, I generate some ideas using AI and my own imagination to give the customer a few ideas that help us refine the project parameters and costs.
- What education and/or training do you have that relates to your work?
I've worked in interior remodeling and exterior landscaping in Chicago, IL, Charlottesville, VA and the DMV area for over 20 years! In Chicago, I took design and color classes at Columbia College; in Charlottesville, I refined my faux finishes and trompe l’oeil techniques for designers in Richmond; in the DMV, I've become expert in complete room and basement remodeling and transformative landscaping, like berms and swales, raingardens, pergolas; and is using AI to give customers some same-day ideas for their projects!