Have you used The Expert? Any tips for efficiently using time?

[Anonymous]

I’m looking for tips and tricks if you’ve used this service - how you communicated your design needs (floor plan, ppt, inspiration photos, specific design questions by room). Did you get a lot out of it? Thanks!

Ps, I already have a designer picked out on the service. I’m just envisioning a ton of prep to consolidate the info for maximum usage of time and want to hear what others did.

[Anonymous]

I have done it twice. Both times were valuable. I created a slide deck each time with photos from multiple angles of the room and a list of questions to answer. I often had some ideas of solutions in mind for each answer (like- “I like this fixture and this fixture; which would you choose and why, or is there something else I should look for?). I think by having a few options of solutions chosen, it offered a sense of my style/what I was going for. Always ask for the “why” — that will give you the insights you need even if you make changes as you implement (eg, “put the couch here” is somewhat useful; more helpful is understanding why the couch placement creates certain line of sight or creates a walkway for people or whatever. That way if you end up deciding to put the couch somewhere else, you understand the constraints and intent of what the designer was reacting to)

I also always ask as a final question for anything that they would recommend that I didn’t ask — in case I was overlooking something

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have done it twice. Both times were valuable. I created a slide deck each time with photos from multiple angles of the room and a list of questions to answer. I often had some ideas of solutions in mind for each answer (like- “I like this fixture and this fixture; which would you choose and why, or is there something else I should look for?). I think by having a few options of solutions chosen, it offered a sense of my style/what I was going for. Always ask for the “why” — that will give you the insights you need even if you make changes as you implement (eg, “put the couch here” is somewhat useful; more helpful is understanding why the couch placement creates certain line of sight or creates a walkway for people or whatever. That way if you end up deciding to put the couch somewhere else, you understand the constraints and intent of what the designer was reacting to)

I also always ask as a final question for anything that they would recommend that I didn’t ask — in case I was overlooking something

Very helpful info, thank you!