# Design-Build Fit Screening Playbook

This playbook helps custom builders, kitchen-and-bath remodelers, and premium design-build firms screen for fit before estimator time gets burned on the wrong projects.

## Fit Signals That Matter First

- Budget range relative to the firm’s normal project floor
- Property or lot readiness
- Project type and scope clarity
- Start window and decision urgency
- Whether the buyer wants a design relationship or a quick commodity quote

## First-Touch Screening Framework

1. Confirm the project type in plain language.
2. Ask where the buyer is in readiness: just exploring, budgeting, has plans, owns lot, or ready to begin.
3. Establish the rough budget range without apologizing for the question.
4. Clarify whether the next step is a site visit, design consult, discovery call, or no-fit redirect.

## Budget-Ladder Language

- `Below floor`: Thank the lead, clarify why the firm is not the right fit, and redirect fast.
- `Near floor`: Hold the conversation only if timing and scope are strong.
- `Strong fit`: Offer a clear next step within 24 hours.
- `High-complexity fit`: Move toward a discovery or design-retainer conversation instead of an open-ended estimate.

## Lot and Readiness Gate

- Do they own the lot?
- If not, do they have a property under contract?
- Are plans already in motion?
- Are permitting, HOA, or design constraints already known?

If the answer to all of these is vague, the system should not treat the inquiry like an active build.

## Dreamer vs Buyer Decision Tree

- `Dreamer`: inspiration-heavy, vague timing, no lot, no budget discipline
- `Emerging buyer`: some budget awareness, timeline forming, partial readiness
- `Active buyer`: lot or property confirmed, budget range stated, next-step intent visible

The goal is not to reject ambition. The goal is to protect estimator and principal time until the buyer is real.

## Next-Step Standards

- Strong fit gets a consult path immediately.
- Mid-fit gets a preparation path: send requirements, scope checklist, portfolio proof.
- Weak fit gets a clean redirect, not a long nurture thread that clogs the pipeline.

## Premium Positioning Cues

- Explain process, not just price.
- Publish project-fit language so the right buyer self-identifies faster.
- Use authority proof: portfolio outcomes, planning discipline, change-order clarity, and communication standards.

## Failure Modes

- Treating every inquiry like a quote request
- Letting the owner act as the routing layer
- Allowing lot-readiness questions to wait until the site visit
- Speaking too vaguely about budget because the team is afraid to create friction

## Weekly Review

Review these metrics every week:

- percent of inquiries that reached a true next step
- percent filtered out early as low fit
- average time from first inquiry to consult booking
- number of site visits that should never have been booked

## Operating Note

An AI Business Operating System is valuable here because the problem is not only answering the phone. The real win is a front door that protects premium-fit projects, premium positioning, and premium sales time.