Architect's Essentials to starting a Design Firm Flashcards
Three major categories of design firm technologies:
- Strong-idea firms
- Strong-service firms
- Strong-delivery firms
This firm is organized to deliver singular expertise or innovation on unique projects.
Strong-idea firm
This firm is organized to deliver experience and reliability, especially on complex assignments.
Strong-service firm
This firm is organized to provide highly efficient service on similar or more routine assignments.
Strong-delivery firm
This type of professional, who see their calling as a way of life, typically have as their major goal the opportunity to serve others and produce examples of their discipline. Bottom line is qualitative.
Practice-centered professional
This type of professional, who practice their calling as a means if livelihood, more likely have as their personal objective a quantitative bottom line that is more focused on the tangible rewards of their efforts.
Business-centered professionals
Model Types: first half
- Major client as “booster rocket”
- House for mother
- Academic incubator
- Better mousetrap
- Supersalesperson
Model Types: second half
- Sponsor
- Golden handshake
- Spin-off
- Rebuild of an existing firm (the phoenix)
- Starting small in a good market
Explain Major client as “booster rocket”
start up firm supported by a single client willing to gamble on a young firm
Explain House for mother
project for a family member or project completed using family money
Explain Academic incubator
design firm principals who have relied on their teaching positions to lay foundations of their practice
Explain Better mousetrap
unmet needs and set out to fill it
Explain Supersalesperson
exceptional sales skills and client relationships
Explain Sponsor
has other established professionals act as their booster rockets.
lent their names and skills to young firms
Explain Golden handshake
former employer provides the new firm’s initial work
Explain Spin-off
firms that break away from established ones where the new-firm members have built their reputations, skills, and potential client base
Explain Rebuild of an existing firm (the phoenix)
takeover. new young leadership takes over a declining or moribund existing organization and revives and reshapes into a new one
Explain Starting small in a good market
doing small projects and building on that base
Elements of a Business Development Program (first half)
- Markets
- Capability
- Message
- Process and Methods
- Marketing Organization
Elements of a Business Development Program (second half)
- Image
- Public Relation
- Marketing Plan
- Marketing
- Sales
Where you will seek work - client base that needs what you have to offer
Markets
What you offer to the marketplace - the firm’s qualifications to serve a market.
Capability
What you tell prospective clients - your “distinctive competence” or “distinguishing benefit”
Message
How you will pursue the work
Process and methods
Roles and budget
Marketing organization
How you are perceived in the marketplace
Image
Information that describes and enhances your image
Public relations and promotion
Documents targets, desired and projected yields, responsibilities and costs.
Marketing Plan
Process of seeking prospective clients
Marketing
Efforts focused on specific prospective clients
Sales
