satisfaction

2020/4.2, April 22 — Using Sightlines, Ponds for Swimming, Backyard Dynamics and more
THE ESSENTIAL E-NEWSLETTER FOR WATERSHAPE DESIGNERS, ENGINEERS AND BUILDERS April 22, 2020 www.watershapes.com FEATURE ARTICLE…
Pushing Limits
  When it happens this way, it's truly special. The clients had seen my work and had been so impressed that they said they didn't want to "sway" me in one direction or another by offering their own design ideas and suggestions. Almost as important, they had the wherewithal to set me loose in pursuit of what I thought should be done throughout the entire space - everything from the watershapes and the outdoor kitchen to the plants and furnishings and small decorative details. As I discovered and they already
Hearing Voices
'In all of the discussions in print and in seminar rooms about advancing the watershaping trades,' declared Brian Van Bower in opening his Aqua Culture column in WaterShapes' July 2006 issue, 'it seems to me there's been a missing voice - that of the client.   'We spend lots of time dissecting, praising, disputing, criticizing and encouraging one another, but somehow we seem to have bypassed the thought that
Giving to Receive
The notion that we should do all we can to exceed client expectations is one we hear trumpeted in almost every inspirational business seminar and in nearly every keynote speech during trade shows.    There are very good reasons for this:  After all, when you perform beyond your clients’ expectations, they’re far more likely to be pleased with the process, more reasonable in their requests and, ultimately, readier sources of the referrals that will keep your business hopping.  Not only that, but there’s also something wonderful in making people happy – if for no other reason than in doing so, we tend to make ourselves happy as well. In the watershaping world, conjuring those good vibrations is right up there for me alongside
Core Value
To my way of thinking, even a so-called average swimming pool is a wonderful thing. It's a product we place in a backyard for the long haul, a product that provides an ongoing recreational experience, operates reliably, enhances lifestyles and adds to property values while offering quality family benefits.  With that in mind, I firmly believe that we as an industry must collectively make the decision that there's no place for second-rate construction. "Bargain construction" doesn't work in our industry simply because of the