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The architectural profession is dominated by service-based businesses. The traditional way in which architects run their studios needs them to reinvent their services with each new customer. Specific requests and job briefs are mostly approached with a high degree of customization that is time-consuming and ineffective. Recently, a brand-new business model has entered the area of architecture, empowering companies to eventually become more competitive. The notion of productized services proved to be a first-class choice to the established business model, offering a more rapid turnover rate, more freedom for principals and employees and more room for scaling.
The idea behind productizing luxury residential services in not to make services more inflexible, yet to systematize them in a sense that benefits both clients and service providers by creating repeatable, standardized, and automated practices. This could significantly reduce hazards for clients and establish trust through consistent delivery of reliable services. By standardizing costs and billing processes, clients are more inclined to perceive architectural design services as value rather than price. The commonly intangible qualities of great design are made more transparent and quantifiable. Firms looking to offer productized services have distinct profiles. Some are just beginning, while others are existing businesses with a healthy client base. Productizing existing business models can be attained by adding merchandises to your offering that will complement existing services.
All of it begins with the customer/client experience and comments. Research what new worth a productized service would supply to your customers. Define which parts of your business are the easiest and significant to standardize. You can use different online tools to automate portions of your procedures, and a simple pricing system can go a long way in helping you get new customers. Complement this with a consistent look and feel that make particular service elements recognizable.
MIMA Lab introduced productizing really early on. Marta Brandão and Mário Sousa began their company from scratch, offering prefab housing notions with plan sets that may be purchased online. The constructions are delivered jointly with a folder of drawings which could be crucial for licensing procedures, in addition to fact sheets, and guarantees for fixed prices, elements and finishes, building, electrical installations, sewage and water installations, house permits, five-year warranties, and transport and assembly within Portugal.
They made a decision to develop a company around the notion of affordable, productized architectural designs. As they said in an interview for “Archipreneur,” software engineer Miguel Matos helped them to create a software that interprets all the design tips for the factory and simplifies the building process. The applications also allow clients to find their property on Google Earth and create an automatic 3D model of their future houses and its particular location on the website.
Finnish company Workspace, on the flip side, is a great example of how productizing could be improved by focusing on a special market. The company is a leading Nordic consulting and design agency specializing in workplace design and direction. Their approach focuses on creating integrative design that joins resource, space management and information communication technology to be able to appeal to businesses in demand for environmental options for brand new, emerging organizational structures and business models. They create designs that supports various scenarios of use.
In an interview for aec-business.com, Jyrki Yläoutinen, Executive Workplace Adviser at Workspace, said that a sizable section of their productizing strategy was to concentrate on finding companies and not individual customers. They were inspired by the gaming industry in which developers get user feedback very early and swift.
Their services include workplace management and consultation, support for change management and communication in workplace changes, interior design, and architectural design. With their services clients are saving up to 30% in property costs and productivity and rate is increased by 5-50%. The resulting business model led to customers fully comprehending what they get for their money and the company now requiring less time for sales and discussions.
Eric W. Reinholdt took a more gradual approach to productizing his company by introducing products that complimented his present services. He started his business, residential design studio 30X40 Design Workshop after gaining extensive experience working for other architects and seeing the consequences of the downturn first hand.
His business struggled until he introduced pre-constructed strategy sets that cut energy consumption. He created a fee structure for schematic and building packages. Reinholdt added this new product line to his recognized service-based model, adding customers that didn’t fit the recognized model as driving force for his passive income model. His site also enables visitors to get his powerful books on architecture and entrepreneurship.
To productizing architectural services, the key would be to replace the time- consuming version of charging by the hour with a more efficient model with set costs, much like all those of merchandises. Prospective customers are easier to target, and individuals that are hiring influence the job turnover rate so that it therefore increases and becomes more clear-cut. It's vital that you keep in mind that productizing services isn't a one-off enterprise as much as it’s a procedure developed by looking at what customers want.
Reference: Luxury home architect guide
For architecture-related companies, various challenges can present themselves, especially in the competitive world we live in today. To find that sweet spot between business and ingenuity, the following strategies are geared toward helping you reach your goal of overcoming these trials without falter.
1. Plan
As a luxury home architect, you’ll definitely want to spend an equal amount of time doing both designing and applying those designs to your builds. You already know the process inside and out- it’s time to design your business model and fully flesh out your marketing skills.
2. Have Clarity with Yourself
When it comes to making a business model, you need to be able to have a set goal for what exactly it is that you want to achieve. Long-term goals should have priority over your shorter, day-to-day goals.
3. Become Informed
Stay up-to-date with the latest tech and methods. Staying ahead of the competition is imperative if you want to not only stand out but be successful. Make it a point to embrace new software, pick up 3D modeling or printing, and always keep an eye out for news on technological advances. You’ll get more than a leg up on the competition.
4. Network Like a Pro
Much like any entrepreneur, it’s necessary to know how to openly communicate with others and create connections. Good networking will get you future allies and services to further propel you and your career forward. The first step to this is to know who your target is, then make an effort to go out and meet new people. Collaborating with those around you is the key to success and expanding your circle of influence in this industry. Get your name out there!
5. Revolutionize the Industry
Don’t be afraid to innovate. This is a great way to make your voice heard in such a competitive field. Diversifying the market will increase your value, which is definitely what you want, because it’s a direct correlation. People would be more than willing to pay much more for a service with a higher value.
6. Be Hungry for Knowledge
Stay open to new ideas, and always strive to learn something new. People always say it’s best to learn from mistakes, but there’s no rule that says they have to be your mistake. Do research, read books, watch documentaries, or talk to your friends and colleagues. Make it a point to listen to their stories. You’ll be surprised what you learn hearing from others’ experiences. This also helps for if you ever get stuck in a rough period, and you’ll create a much more positive atmosphere for you and your workspace. A more positive workspace results in better productivity.
7. Know What You Want- Confidence is Key
Have confidence in yourself! Knowing your own value is also very important in being a successful architect, since it’s essentially a one-man job. If you’re able to know your worth and price yourself high enough yet being able to price based on the quality of your service will want customers to return to you. This will be great for your career, since you’ll have a steadier flow of business and won’t have to worry about paying the bills.
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