Get Client Approvals Faster in Interior Design Projects
· 9 min read
To get client approvals faster in interior design, stop sending furniture to the client one item at a time in a chat. Send decisions in batches instead. Each batch has two or three options, a deadline tied to the supplier's order date, and one place where the client answers. Most delays do not come from clients who cannot decide. They come from unclear questions and missing information. The process below works on any project, whatever tools you use.
Find out where approvals actually stall
Before changing the process, check where it breaks. Messages that go unanswered are a symptom. The cause is usually in how the question was asked.
Common causes of slow approvals
- Too many options: five sofas are harder to choose from than two.
- Missing facts: the client cannot see the dimensions, the lead time or the total price, so they ask, and the thread grows.
- No visible deadline: the client does not know that a late answer moves the delivery date.
- Answers scattered across a messenger, email and phone calls, so nobody knows what is already approved.
- One open question blocks a whole message that contained twenty items.
A ten-minute audit of your last project
- Pick ten furniture items from your last project.
- For each one, write down the date you asked, the date you got a clear answer and the number of reminders.
- Mark the items that took longest. Look for what they share: price, long lead time, missing dimensions or several decision makers.
This usually shows one or two patterns that explain most of the delay. Fix those first.
Build a decision-ready approval package
A decision-ready package lets the client answer yes or no without asking you anything. If you still get questions, the package is missing something.
Steps
- Group by decision, not only by room. “Living room seating” is one decision, even if it includes a sofa, two armchairs and a pouf. The client should see how the parts work together.
- Limit the options. Show one recommended option and one alternative, for example a cheaper or faster one. Use three at most, and only when the choice is really open, such as fabric or finish.
- Write the recommendation in one sentence. State the reason in terms of the client's priorities: budget, delivery, maintenance or fit with the space.
- Complete every item card with the facts from the table below.
- State the deadline and what happens if it is missed. For example: “Decision needed by Friday to keep the delivery date.”
- Ask for an explicit answer per item: approve, reject or question. Avoid “let me know what you think.”
What each item card should contain
| Information | Why the client needs it | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Photo and context | Shows what it is and where it goes | Photo plus room name |
| Dimensions | Removes the most common question | Width, depth, height, seat height |
| Total price | Lets the client check it against the budget | Price per unit, quantity, line total |
| Lead time or availability | Explains why the deadline exists | “8 weeks, made to order” |
| Alternative | Gives a fallback if price or timing is a problem | Cheaper or in-stock option |
| Deadline | Turns a vague request into a task | “Answer by Friday” |
Example of a short recommendation
Example only: “Option A, EUR 3,100: fits the 2.4 m wall, 8 weeks delivery, fabric is easy to clean. Option B, EUR 2,400: 3 weeks delivery, a lighter and smaller seat. I recommend A. Please decide by Friday to keep the move-in date.”
The client gets two prices, two delivery times, a recommendation and a deadline in four short sentences. If your estimate is structured by item with photos, prices and dimensions, you can build such packages directly from it. See estimates and specifications for how that structure works.
Sequence approvals by order deadline
Clients answer faster when the deadline has a clear reason. The reason is the supplier's lead time. Work backwards from the date the item must be on site, and ask for the items with the longest lead time first.
The calculation
- Take the date the item must be on site.
- Subtract the supplier's lead time and a buffer for delays. This is the latest order date.
- Subtract the time the client needs to decide, for example one week. This is the date to send the package.
| Item (example) | Lead time | Buffer | Latest order, before needed on site | Send package, before needed on site |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Made-to-order sofa | 10 weeks | 2 weeks | 12 weeks | 13 weeks |
| Dining table | 6 weeks | 2 weeks | 8 weeks | 9 weeks |
| Floor lamps in stock | 1 week | 1 week | 2 weeks | 3 weeks |
The numbers above are an illustration. Use the real lead times from your suppliers.
Batch by deadline, not by room
Send one approval round per week, on the same weekday, containing only the items whose package date has come. The client learns the rhythm and stops receiving a constant stream of small requests. Items with short lead times can wait for a later round, and the long-lead items are never forgotten. To see order deadlines for the whole project in one place, use a procurement timeline rather than a separate spreadsheet.
Set simple rules for follow-up and records
Even a good package needs a process around it. The aim is that everyone knows where the answer goes and what happens when there is no answer.
Checklist before you send a batch
- Every item has a photo, dimensions, total price and lead time.
- Each decision has a recommended option and no more than three options in total.
- The deadline is written next to the batch, with the reason (order date).
- The client has one place to answer, and you have said so.
- Internal data such as purchase price and margin is not visible to the client.
- One person on your side is responsible for follow-up.
- Anything approved by phone or in a meeting is confirmed in writing the same day.
Follow-up cadence
- Day 0: send the batch with the deadline.
- Day 2: send a short reminder that names the single item still open, not the whole list.
- Day 4: call or hold a ten-minute meeting and go through the open items together.
- Deadline day: tell the client what happens next, for example that the item moves to the next production slot and the delivery date shifts by the stated number of weeks.
Handle rejections and questions
A rejection is useful information. Ask for the reason: price, look, size or delivery time. Then offer the matching alternative: a cheaper, faster or differently sized product. Keep questions attached to the item they refer to, so that a question about one chair does not stop the approval of the rest.
How to do it in ArchiBoard
The client portal gives the client a link, with no registration, where they see the estimate with photos and deadlines and can approve or reject items. Here is the setup. More detail is in the Projects chapter of the help center.
- Add the items to the estimate. New proposals stay in the status “Requires approval”. For each main item, open “Item details” → “Add analog” and choose “Add by URL”, “Choose from wishlist” or “Select from catalog” to add the alternative.
- Open the project and go to “Client portal” → “Link access” tab and create a link. Choose the permission “View + approve / reject”. You can set an expiry date, and you can revoke the link later.
- In the block “What the client sees in the item card”, tick what the client needs for a decision: “Photo and gallery”, “Price”, “SKU and dimensions” and “Question button”. Set the dates to “Actual only”, “Actual + planned” or “Hide”. Supplier invoices, supplier payment and date changes are hidden by default.
- To change what the client sees for one item, open it in the preview and use the block “Visibility of this item” at the bottom of the card. “As in project” restores the project settings.
- Open the “Client preview” tab and check the portal as the client will see it. Hidden data is not sent to the client's browser at all.
- Send the link with your batch message and deadline. When the client asks a question in an item card, it reaches the responsible person as a task.
- To track your own follow-up, select the items with checkboxes → “Create task” → the template “Approve item”. Set the deadline by date or in working days.
- To get an email or Telegram message when something changes, for example when the client rejects an item, go to Profile settings → “Personal” → “Notifications”.
To see which purchases are urgent, open “Timeline” → “Upcoming purchases”. It lists items by order deadline, which gives you the dates for the table above.
FAQ
How many options should I show the client for each item?
Show one recommended option and one alternative. Use three only when the choice is truly open, such as upholstery or finish. More options slow decisions and raise doubt about the ones already chosen. If the client asks for more, treat it as feedback about the brief and clarify what is missing.
How long should I give a client to decide?
Base it on the supplier's order deadline, not on a fixed number of days. Many designers allow about a week for a normal batch and less for items with a short lead time. Always explain the reason for the date, so the deadline does not look arbitrary.
What if the client approves in a call and later changes their mind?
Confirm every verbal decision in writing the same day, in the same place where you record all approvals. A short summary is enough: item, option, price and date. If the item has not been ordered yet, a change is simple. If it has been ordered, the summary shows the client what the change costs.
Should clients see prices and supplier details in the approval?
Show prices, because a client cannot approve without them. Supplier names, links, purchase prices and margin are optional. Decide per project what the client needs to see and keep internal figures out of client documents. Always check the client's view before you send the link.
Can clients approve items without creating an account?
Yes, if you use a link-based view. The fewer steps the client has to take, the faster they answer. Set the link to allow only viewing or both viewing and approving, add an expiry date if the project requires it, and revoke the link when the approval phase is over.