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I think the list of questions is good, but as others have said, this appears to be more of a check list of questions to ask when on site in front of the customer when determining the scope of the job. How would the customer know if they need a retaining wall unless they understand grading issues? Ultimately, when the customer and you determine the scope of the project with their likes/dislikes factored in and their budget, you'll come up with the solutions for their problems/needs.
Use the check list to make sure you don't forget to ask about something or check it out yourself when on site, but make the contact as personal as possible by having a conversation and discovering on your own.
Roger Cook wrote a recent article in a PRO magazine about 'upselling' and he mentions to his customers that he's going to throw out a lot of ideas and questions and is looking for feedback to gage interest from the customer. He says rarely does the customer say no to an idea because he's only throwing out ideas that he knows are more appropriate for the customer.
You will communicate on a subliminal level your ability to know and understand the customer (which is what they're evaluating when you meet) when you can ask good probing, open ended questions that get quality answers from the client. The client may know what they want, but they may not be able to organize it into a power point presentation for you. It's up to you to find out the answers, and the customer will know this at the very least in their gut if you've asked the right questions because they will feel as if they've told you everything they could about what they wanted, particularly when you're able to probe beyond what they had originally thought about or envisioned. It's your job to take the blinders off and open up a new realm of possibilities for them. You'll have this kind of interaction when you talk candidly and openly with them, not from a script or memorized list of questions. They have their place in the process, but more behind the scenes.
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