The third 'just checking in' this week
A couple are extending their house. It is the biggest thing they have ever spent money on. Their planning application has been in for five weeks. From their side, nothing seems to be happening, so they email: 'Just checking in, any news?' The project architect replies, explaining again that the council is consulting and that the target date is in three weeks. The next week, another email. Then a call to the director.
Across a practice with a dozen domestic projects, those emails and calls add up. They are reasonable questions, but answering them one by one is a steady drain, and the answers are usually the same.
Why clients feel in the dark
Architecture projects have long phases where the client cannot see progress: design development in the office, planning determination at the council, tendering, the gap before a contractor starts. The practice knows what is happening, but that knowledge is in project records, emails and people's heads. The client only knows what they were last told.
- Clients do not know what stage the project is at.
- Quiet periods, such as planning, feel like nothing is happening.
- Clients forget what they have been asked to do.
- Updates depend on the architect remembering to send one.
- The same explanation is given many times.
What the chasing costs
Project architect time on emails and calls. Clients who are anxious and start to lose trust, even when everything is on track. And the risk that the one thing the practice is actually waiting for from the client, such as a decision or a signed form, gets lost among the reassurances.
A project page for each client
- Each client gets a secure page for their project, branded as your practice.
- The page shows a simple timeline of the stages agreed in their appointment, and which stage the project is at.
- A 'what is happening now' section explains the current phase in plain words, from templates the practice writes once for each stage, such as what happens during planning determination.
- Items the practice is waiting on from the client, such as a decision, a signed form or a payment, are listed clearly, with reminders.
- Items the practice is waiting on from others, such as the council, a consultant or the contractor, are shown with expected dates where known, from the planning tracker or project records.
- When something changes, such as a stage completed, a planning decision or a document ready to review, the client receives a short automatic email pointing to the page.
- The project architect can add a personal note at any time.
What the client sees
| Section | Example content | Updated by |
|---|---|---|
| Current stage | Planning application under consideration | Project records |
| What is happening | Council consulting neighbours and consultees | Stage template |
| Waiting on you | Choose between two roof options | Architect |
| Waiting on others | Council target date | Planning tracker |
| Latest note | Highways comment received, we are responding | Architect |
Fewer 'any news?' emails, better conversations
Clients can look for themselves whenever they feel anxious, and they understand why quiet periods are quiet. The things the practice needs from them are visible and reminded. The project architect writes a personal note when there is real news, rather than repeating the same explanation. And clients feel looked after, which matters when they come to recommend you.
Does this sound like your inbox?
- Clients regularly email to ask for updates.
- You explain the planning process more than once per project.
- Clients have forgotten decisions they were asked to make.
- Updates depend on someone remembering to send them.