Читать книгу Professional Practice for Interior Designers - Christine M. Piotrowski - Страница 61

Here are some important cautions related to marketing and working on the global arena. These are just a few of the key issues that need to be taken into consideration:

 Travel. Travel expenses must be absorbed when marketing to foreign clients. Travel time—a major component of global design—cannot be charged at the same rate as design time.

 Staff. When U.S. staff work on an international project, staff must be taught protocol, language, and etiquette. Staffing an office in another country also adds financial costs and risks for a firm.

 Fees. Fees might not be as generous as they first seem when all the expenses of working on an overseas project are totaled up.

 Collaboration on site. Collaboration with a local foreign design firm—though it offers many advantages—is another project expense that can lower the profitability of doing an international project.

 Regulations differences. Codes and regulations can be different from U.S. codes. Projects must be designed in accordance with those international codes, whether national or local or both. Each country will have different regulations that have an impact on many aspects of an interiors project.

 Make sure all details of the scope of services and all responsibilities are clearly spelled out in the design contract.

 The agreement should clarify whose monetary system will be used for payments and how payments will be made. Also which language will be used in the contract.

 Methodology of work may be quite different in a foreign country. Be sure you understand such things as hours of work, time off, and construction standards to name a few so you engage international workers with your eyes open to the differences.

 As best as you can, evaluate the political situation as to stability in terms of general political climate, economy, and monetary stability.