It is always better to have faith that people will live up to their promises and do their jobs well, especially when you trust them to come into your home and help with interior design projects. However, some people will abuse this trust and do shoddy jobs, costing you both time and money, while still leaving you with the challenge of finding someone else to complete your project. Fortunately, there are some identifying hints you can use to identify crooked Kansas City interior designers. Actions that should raise red flags and trigger your managerial alarm include:
1. Unrealistic Timelines
An interior designer who says they can get a job done quickly and efficiently is often an attractive selling point. Not having much experience in the field, people with home remodeling projects often believe these claims, as they do not have any basis for comparison. Some designers may be sincere, but those who aren’t using this as a lure to get more customers. It is always better to consult with any connections (friends, family) on projects that they -or people they know- did that are similar to yours. Background checks as well go very far in informing you of the kind of interior designer you are dealing with.
2. You Only See Them on Site
Any serious interior designer, even those just starting out, have an office of some kind; a place to store their work materials and manage their business from. Interior design is a very hands-on industry, so even web-based companies will have work premises. It should then raise flags if your interior designer only meets you at the location of your project. They may come up with excuses that their focus is on service delivery, but you shouldn’t take their word for it and insist on frequent and impromptu visits to their business locations.
3. Site Visits are Rare
The opposite of only seeing the interior designer on-site, not seeing them on site at all, should also raise red flags. It already hints at neglect for your project. Even if they are managing the project remotely, they should show some initiative of actually showing up and reviewing or monitoring the work being done. If there is always a reason they give, watch out, they might just be swindling you.
4. They are Frequently Unreachable
This is an outright sign that something is off. Having agreed to take on your project, you should expect a degree of constant communication with them. Without communication, especially in the case where your interior design project isn’t in your current residence, it becomes very hard to get progress updates. If any supplies are needed or if something goes wrong, there will be no way to know. Lack of communication can potentially halt your entire project, costing you both time and money.
5. Did not Sign-Off On
Transforming the spaces in your home is a way for you to bring a dream into reality. Your dream, not someone else’s. Coming to the site and finding work done that goes against your plan is a sure way to tell something is off. Even worse, is if the designer claims that they made the change to ‘make it better, ‘avoid interfering with weight distribution’ or any technical reason outside your field of expertise. Fraudulent interior designers use these excuses to take shortcuts or improve their margin on materials you gave them the budget on.
6. Inattentive to Detail
Artists tend to be very meticulous, trying to achieve a degree of perfection in their work. Interior design is essentially an art, and the best among them attempt to do their best work on every project undertaken. A callous approach to their work should tell you that your interior designer will give you a result that will be below par on the quality.
Do not allow compromises and excuses when it comes to running your interior design projects in Kansas. We are a team of competent, attentive, and considerate professionals who cater to your interests and needs. If you want some of the best interior designers in Kansas City, reach out to us and have your design dreams come true.
