Frequently Asked Questions about the Shake + Stir Experiment

These are questions that we’ve received from architects who wanted to find out more about our ground-breaking Shake + Stir Experiment.

If you’re keen to join the next cohort, you can apply for the next round here.

1. I’m running a sole practitioner / small / medium / large practice - will this Experiment work for me?

The Shake + Stir Experiment is for any and all architects who want to win more (or better quality) clients and projects, over the next month or so.

If you’re actively involved in generating new work, business development, marketing your practice, winning new clients, and promoting your projects, you’ll benefit from enrolling in this experience.

2. We work across different sectors and typologies - including single res, multi-res, public, commercial, health, education - etc. Will the Experiment suit our practice?

Image: Framesforyourheart via Unsplash

The Experiment works for different sectors and typologies, and is particularly well suited to practices that win most of their new clients and projects via Fee Proposals.

So if you currently win most of your new projects via design competitions, or Tenders and RFIs (Requests for Information), the Experiment won’t be as applicable.

Unless you are looking to diversify away from an over-reliance on design competitions and Tenders, and you want to win more of your future projects via Fee Proposals going forwards.

3. My practice is new / emerging / established - will the Experiment apply to my particular circumstances?

If your practice is new, and you don’t yet have lead generation systems and processes in place, the Experiment will help you to get started with solid foundations and habits you can build on as your practice grows.

If your practice is emerging, and you’re not yet attracting the right kinds of clients and projects, or you’re not winning enough of the projects you pitch for, the Experiment will help you to tweak your current methods and approaches to ensure they are sufficiently client-centric.

And if your practice is established, and you think you have adequate systems and processes in place, but you’d like to improve your new project conversion rate, or reinvigorate stalled clients and projects, or share responsibility for lead generation with more team members, or automate and systematise your lead generation system so you can put it on autopilot and free up bandwidth and creativity for other more enjoyable tasks, the Experiment will help you to achieve those goals.

4. I don’t offer traditional architecture services - I work in strategic advice / consulting to private clients / consulting to government, etc - will the Experiment work for me?

If you work with clients - and you have to prepare messaging and materials to give them confidence to engage you and commission your services - then the Experiment will benefit your business.

It sets out a framework for compiling, nurturing and converting leads; creating content that speaks to the wants and desires of your ideal clients; and pitching your services to align with your future clients purchasing preferences and levels of knowledge about your area of expertise.

If you’ve struggled to attract or win enough of the right types of clients, or to “persuade” or “convince” future clients of the value of your services, this Experimental approach may be just what you need to turn things around.

5. At the moment, our founder / director / principal takes care of winning new work and they are pretty good at it. Should someone else in our practice do the Experiment?

Many architecture practices rely on the extensive networks, contacts, relationships of their founders, directors and principals, as well as referrals from past clients and key collaborators.

This means that the people who carry the burden of bringing in new clients and projects often find this relentless challenge draining or exhausting, especially now that it’s getting harder to win new work in an increasingly complex operating environment.

Also, because many architecture practices don’t yet have reliable systems in place to generate new leads - and then nurture and convert those leads into projects and clients - they have very little predictability about what the next project will be, and when it will arrive.

And that can contribute to underlying anxiety within practices, which has the potential to undermine team morale and erode practice culture.

By contrast, having the ability to generate new clients and projects without having to rely on the direct input of one or more key people - and having the ability to turn on or off the tap of new work, as required - frees up founders, directors and principals to make important contributions in other ways, such as:

• in the critical project initiation and strategic planning stages of projects;

• in mentoring and supporting younger employess; and

• in creating replicable systems and processes that ensure consistency and quality across projects, to name a few.

So the Shake + Stir experiment can help founders and directors to divest themselves of being solely responsible for winning new work, by upskilling team members so they can delegate those tasks to others. It can also help to diversity the channels for new projects to emerge from, so that you don’t have all your new project eggs in one basket.

6. I don’t have a lot of time to devote to winning new clients and projects at the moment - how much time will I need to participate in the Experiment?

Image: Kenny Eliason via Unsplash

This is a “how long is a piece of string?” question, in a way, because every practice is different in terms of what they systems and processes they already have in place, and the level of knowledge and expertise that key people have around lead generation and nurturing.

I’ve provided a rough estimate of 3-4 hours per week, over the 4 weeks of the Experiment, but some people might complete the tasks in less time, and some people will choose to spend longer on the tasks.

The tasks are presented as a menu and you can choose which ones you prioritise. You’ll get access to shortcuts, templates, resources and guidelines to ensure that you don’t allow perfectionism and/or imposter syndrome to derail your progress.

It’s less important to get everything exactly right than it is to complete the key tasks that are most relevant for your circumstances, to see what results they generate, so you can work out what to do next, and keep taking inspired action towards your goals

7. Why does the Experiment take 30 days?

The Experiment has been set up as an artificially compressed “hot-house” that provides you with all of the guidance and resources you need to drum up a new client and project in one month.

If you need to generate new work - fast! - this is an ideal way to throw your energies into this task, and to give yourself the best possible chance of hitting your target.

Think of it as a sprint, not a marathon; or a hare racing towards the finish line, not a tortoise.

But if you don’t need more new clients and projects at the moment - and you’d rather work on lead generation in a more consistent and steady way - the Experiment might not suit you right now.

8. What if I want to take longer to complete the suggested tasks?

For the purposes of reporting on your cohort’s results, we’ll ask you to complete the post-completion questionnaire at the end of your 5th week. That will enable us to review the efficacy of the Experiment, and to make fine-tuning adjustments to subsequent rounds based on actual data.

You are welcome to continue to implement what you’ve learned - and to keep working on lead generation tasks - after the 30 days have concluded.

Actually, the Experiment is designed to help you establish new habits that will enhance your lead generation and business development activities going forward, so it’s great if you want to keep going once the Experiment timeframe has ended.

9. Is this Experiment only for architecture practices based in Australia?

Image: William Navarro via Unsplash

The Experiment was developed for Australian architecture practices but the underlying framework, resources and templates are applicable in other global markets where architects seek clients via Fee Proposals.

Architects in Australia can earn 1.5 Formal CPD points but the program has not been accredited for Compulsory Professional Development or Continuing Education purposes in other countries.

However, the lessons it contains - and the knowledge and insights that you’ll acquire about your own lead generation habits and performance - will make the enrolment price worthwhile, whether you earn CPD/CE points or not.

These are skills that you can apply again and again, refining and improving your results each time you iterate.

And if you win just one new project by following the method outlined in this Experiment, your investment will have more than paid for itself.

10. How is the Experiment structured? What are the key topics?

The Shake + Stir Experiment is delivered over 4 modules, which are delivered via email on Monday mornings. The entire experience is hosted on an online learning management system, and modules contain pre-recorded videos, workbooks and other templates and resources.

There are 4 key topics including:

• Module 1: Where are we starting from?

• Module 2: Building a bridge for your future clients

• Module 3: Celebrate and anchor in your wins, and

• Module 4: Results, debrief and next steps.

Modules 1 and 2 are the most intensive and task-heavy, so that you establish your foundations and start sending pitch emails half-way through your Experiment, with the goal of drumming up a new client and project by the end of the 30 days.

Modules 3 and 4 are less labour intensive, so that you can catch up with any outstanding tasks and tackle any optional extra tasks you have time for.

There is a post-completion questionnaire that we’d like you to complete by the Friday of the fifth week, so we can tally and aggregate the results of your cohort.

11. How can I ask questions about the Modules and content as I’m working through the Experiment?

The Learning Management System has quiz questions and comments fields in each Lesson, so you can provide feedback about the content and ask questions about how the suggested tasks apply to your own practice.

Rachael will also host two Zoom Q&A sessions for each cohort. These are usually held in Weeks 2 and 4 during Australian business hours - so that you can seek feedback on your messaging, collateral, content development, and overall strategy.

These Zoom Q&A sessions will be recorded and uploaded to the online hub for people to watch at a time that suits them if they can’t attend live.

12. We don’t want to simplify our discussions around architecture just to win new clients. Will we have to do that, in this Experiment?

Speaking at MPavilion, Laura Harding said: “Never simplify the discussion, just the language” and that’s an approach we thoroughly support.

Architecture is complex, there are many moving and sometimes competing issues that shape your design responses, and it’s hard to distil all of those elements from a three-year project into a 30-second sound bite.

But the digital landscape has reduced your future clients’ attention spans, making it more important than ever for architects to provide information that is appropriately pitched to your audience’s knowledge base.

The Experiment outlines how to enhance rapport and connection with your future clients, so they’ll have the confidence they need to engage your services.

13. We are happy with the number, quality and profitability of our current projects. Should we do the Experiment?

Image: Pedro Miranda via Unsplash

If you’re already attracting plenty of the right kinds of clients and projects - the ones you love working on, that challenge and excite you, and that are profitable and underpin your sustainable practice - then you probably don't need help with your lead generation habits.

But if you would like to run a practice where you can decline clients and projects that aren’t aligned with your values and zone of genius - or that aren’t profitable and sustainable - The Shake + Stir Experiment will help you to lay the right foundations to become more discerning over time.

And once you have the skills and knowledge to drum up the right new clients and projects - on demand and on-repeat - you can start to think about other initiatives and resources that will enable you to create ideal practice and have the sort of impact you aspired to achieve, when you decided to become an architect.

14. What results have Experimenters achieved in previous cohorts?

The results of the beta cohort proved that this Experiment works. More than 50% of the active and engaged Experimenters drummed up a new client and project in the 30 day timeframe. In fact, 25% of the active and engaged Experimenters drummed up 2 new clients and projects each in 30 days.

Having said that, every practice is different, and every architect is different, and there are no guarantees or representations about possible results.

The key thing is to go into this experience with a curious and open-minded attitude, so that you can test and iterate new ideas and ways of approaching lead generation - even when you find the suggested tasks a little unnerving, or they take you outside your comfort-zone - so that you can achieve different and more positive results than you usually do.

Inside the Experiment, there are plenty of resources from neuroscience, psychology and behavioural economics, and you can reach out to Rachael for support and guidance over the 30-day experience if you need additional help.

15. What can I expect to happen after I’ve completed the Experiment?

We’ll send you a post-completion questionnaire at the end of the fifth week, to find out how you fared in the Experiment. Hopefully you’ll drum up a new client and project, so you’ll be busy working on that, at least in the short term.

You can also start to embed the new habits you learned as part of your regular routines, so you can keep generating new leads - and nurturing prospects into clients - going forward.

The skills you learn will continue to serve your practice long after the Experiment is over.

You might also discover some gaps in your current systems and processes, and it may become easier to determine what your next best move should be.

In Module 4, Rachael will share a list of services and training options that may suit your circumstances, depending on what you’d like to focus on next.

And if you’re not sure what to do next, you can ask Rachael for insights and pointers.

If you have other questions that we haven’t answered here, feel free to email Rachael to ask them.

And if you’d like to apply for the Shake + Stir Experiment, you can do that here.