What to Expect When Hiring a Landscape Designer
- Mary Kleva
- 3 days ago
- 6 min read
When you invest in the services of a landscape designer, it's important to know what to expect. Although every client is different, there are a number of steps that every successful project requires. Read on to learn about our collaborative approach to working with our clients and facilitating the landscape design process.
Initial Consultation Phone Call
The first step in hiring a landscape designer is to find the right fit for your project. The initial consultation phone call gives you an opportunity to learn more about the company's offerings and the designer's areas of specialization.
A phone consultation is also a chance to get to know the designer and get a window into their approach when working with clients. By sharing more about your project goals and budget, you can get clarity on whether a designer is the right fit for your needs.
Paid On-Site Consultation
Next, the designer will conduct a paid consultation at your project site. This visit is an opportunity to walk the property together, talk more about your goals and concerns, and hear from an expert about the potential challenges and opportunities your property may present. Seeing the property in person also helps the designer confirm whether your budget and priorities for the space are in alignment.
After the on-site consultation, the design firm will follow up with a report highlighting their findings and recommendations, including site condition details, inspiration photos, and an estimate for design services.
Sometimes, all you may need is an on-site consultation to give you some ideas and advice from a professional's point of view, rather than going through a full design process.
Our on-site consultations start at $200, but these fees can vary among different firms, depending on what is included.
Project Deposit and Service Agreement
Once you've decided that you're ready to get started with your design process, both parties will sign a service agreement. This document details the scope of services that the designer will provide and summarizes expectations for the client's involvement. You will also receive an invoice for your project's deposit or retainer fee.
Some projects are billed as a flat fee to cover the design plans, while others are billed hourly for a wider set of professional services. Depending on your project goals, the designer will suggest a fee schedule that is most suitable for your specific design and personal needs. If you have a preference for a particular fee arrangement, it's helpful to let your designer know up front.
New Client Questionnaire
New clients receive a questionnaire that covers a variety of topics. The questionnaire is meant to help you dig more deeply into your goals for your outdoor space by providing prompting questions, which you may or may not have previously considered.
A standard questionnaire also helps your designer understand your aesthetic preferences and lifestyle. This step ensures that the design is suited to your taste, feels functional in everyday life, and accommodates the needs of everyone in your household.
Design Concept Development
After gathering insights from the consultation stage and new client questionnaire, your designer will develop an initial design concept that reflects your goals, aesthetic preferences, and site conditions.
A design concept helps you start to envision the overall layout for plantings and hardscape surfaces. It also allows you to understand how notable features like fountains, specimen trees, or fire pits will be incorporated into the space.
Rather than choosing specific plants or minor details up front, the concept stage is more about capturing the overall "vibe" and flow of the space. It allows the designer to visualize their thoughts and help the client imagine what is possible. The design concept is also an opportunity for the client to react to various ideas, rather than have to brainstorm on their own.
The design concept deliverables typically include a hand-drawn layout of the project area featuring key plantings, hardscape, and features. Oftentimes, a design concept will also include 2D renderings or hand-drawn sketches, inspiration photos highlighting specific features, and suggestions for hardscape and material finishes.
Design Concept Review Session and Feedback Integration
Your designer will schedule time to review the design concept with you and gather your feedback, either in person or over a video chat. Getting this initial feedback is beneficial to both the client and designer, so that everyone agrees on the essential aspects of the design early in the process.
Based on the discussion, the designer will incorporate your thoughts and suggestions into the next phase of the design. As a follow-up to the conversation, the designer may also share additional images or material samples to confirm you are all in alignment on the direction of the project before moving into the next stage.
Final Design and Feedback
Your feedback from the concept stage will be incorporated into a refined, final design. A final design may be one document or several, depending on the complexity of the project. The final design deliverables may include a planting plan, hardscape plan, irrigation plan, and other programmatic designs for lighting, furniture, and more. It may also include schematic drawings for custom features like built-in seating, fire places, or fountains.
As with the design concept, you will review these documents either in person or over a video chat. Any final tweaks or refinements can be addressed during this session to ensure the design plan feels just right for your needs—before installation begins.
Contractor and Vendor Selection
Contractors and vendors are an important part of the process, as they help bring your new design to life. Depending on the complexity of your project, we will support you in identifying and coordinating with appropriate teams who can support your installation and materials selection process.
Installation and Project Management
Once your contractors and vendors are selected, your designer can help coordinate the installation process according to your project requirements and contractor availability. Designers and project managers can oversee all aspects of the project, and they collaborate closely with all contractors and vendors to ensure the design is executed according to plan, with the utmost care and attention to detail.
Designers are also beneficial collaborators in this stage, as they help you navigate critical and time-sensitive decisions that often arise during construction and installation. For instance, they will have the experience to guide the process along if materials are delayed, plant substitutions are necessary, or unexpected situations pop up during demolition and installation.
Finishing Touches
Between the final design phase and installation, your designer can also assist you in selecting furniture, accessories, lighting fixtures, and other elements that will help complete the space. The design and project management team can oversee all ordering, delivery, and assembly, as needed, to help streamline your experience.
Establishment and Maintenance
Toward the end of your project, quality designers will share a detailed care plan for your landscape. This plan offers guidance to help you get comfortable maintaining your new outdoor space and help your plants start establishing.
Your final plant list and details on your irrigation system are also beneficial for anyone working on the property in the future, such as our team of fine gardeners, who are available to assist you with periodic maintenance.
Most designers also provide a follow-up visit to help make sure your landscape is doing well after planting. At Besanti Natives, we conduct complementary follow-up visits approximately 90 days after your site has been planted.
During this site visit, we will check on the health of your new landscape, offer guidance on caring for individual plants, and answer any questions you may have. Once your project is complete, our team is also available to answer quick questions via email, or we can schedule another on-site consultation if you'd like more hands-on support.
More than anything, the landscape design process is an opportunity to collaborate with a professional who can help you learn more about your outdoor space and find new ways to connect to nature. By working with a landscape designer, you have an opportunity to reimagine the possibilities for your property and make thoughtful choices that help you feel confident in your investment.
If you're looking for a landscape designer in the Los Angeles area, schedule a free 15-minute consultation call with us today, and we'll help you start envisioning the potential of your outdoor space.
