If you are a fairly new architect in your hometown and several other large architecture businesses are competing against you to acquire contracts with commercial property owners who wish to have new buildings constructed, demonstrate your professionalism and attention to detail by following the suggestions below. If your prospective clients are pleased with the effort you have made, they may decide to hire you to design their buildings.

Cost Comparison Of Materials And Examples Of Finished Designs

Prepare a list of materials that are commonly used to construct commercial buildings and include the average cost of each one and make copies of the list. Prepare a synopsis of various materials and the benefits and drawbacks of each material.

When a commercial property owner initially meets with you to discuss the design of the building that they desire, go over the details that you have collected and give them a copy of the information. Show the property owner some pictures of buildings that you have designed in the past and give the owner a rough estimate of how much each project cost to further educate the potential customer. 

Scale Models

Purchase scale models of standard building styles and display them in your office. Models that are made with wood, stone, glass, or other common building materials will provide a realistic view of finished buildings and may help property owners decide upon a style or building materials that will be used to construct their businesses.

If the models have outdoor features added, including artificial trees, grass, ponds, or plants, a property owner may be able to envision how their new business will look if they decide to have the same items added to their property. 

Plans Mailed In Custom Color Tubes

After you acquire a new client and they have gone over building construction details with you, design the building desired and use a custom color tube to secure a copy of the design proposal. Enclose a return label inside of the tube so that the recipient can make changes to the plans and mail them back to you when they have finished.

Custom color tubes, such as from Chicago Mailing Tube Co., will notify a new client of the arrival of their plans and will prevent documents from getting lost or damaged while they are in transit. Colored tubes are large enough to hold several papers and each shipping tube can be used multiple times to mail items.