Why do some architects charge for an initial site visit whilst others are happy to come and see me for free?

The reason some architectural practices make a nominal charge for initial site visits to new potential clients is simply one of proving intent. How many times have you booked a free ticket to a talk or lecture or even a performance and then haven’t turned up? It is not that you did not want to go, it’s just that there was no additional incentive to go, so if something else came along or you just felt tired on the day, it was easy to simply let it go. It’s like pay-as-you-go classes. If you have already paid in full at the beginning of the term, your efforts to attend will inevitably be doubled! And it’s the same with engaging an architect. When Lambert Bardsley Reeve come out to visit a new client it means that one of our fully qualified senior members of staff are out of the office and away from other fee-paying jobs for the time it takes to drive out to the new client and talk over their project. Whilst they are with the client our architects are taking in vital information from the site and from the client themselves on what the project entails and how we, as a practice, can best fulfil the project requirements. This saves valuable time (and money for the client) later should the client wish to proceed with us. The architect will also be giving his or her qualified and considered opinion on matters as they arise and we usually follow up the first meeting with a report on what was discussed on site so that the client has an aide-memoire for the launch of their own particular project. For us, knowing that the client has not only contributed to a short meeting and our travel costs but has also properly engaged with us because of their nominal financial input, demonstrates their serious intent for their project and our potential engagement as a professional practice. When you walk into a supermarket and see new products on the shelf you think you might like to try out, you have to buy them first. So why should it be any different when sampling the architects in your area, especially when they represent such good value for money?! We all like to think we have ‘got a good deal’, especially if things appear to be free. Architectural practices that are prepared to visit a potential new client for free may not be all they seem.