WhatsApp for interior designers and contractors: project groups, approvals and site visits
How a design or contracting team runs WhatsApp: an enquiry pipeline, a group per project, approvals noted on the conversation and site visits as tasks.
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- By WavesFlo team
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- Published
- Reading time
- 2 min read
A design project runs through hundreds of messages: drawings, photos, material choices, changes and approvals. Without structure a client's 'yes' is a screenshot, and a site decision is lost when the site manager changes. A pipeline for enquiries, a group per project, and a habit of noting each approval give the team a trail.
How should it be set up?
| Need | How | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Enquiries | A pipeline: Enquired, Visited, Proposal, Contracted, Lost | A task for each visit |
| Project chat | A group per project with the client, designer and site manager | Description states who decides what |
| Approvals | A note on the conversation naming the approver and date | Easier than scrolling |
| Site visits | Tasks with dates and owners | Overdue visits show |
| Vendors | Separate groups | Clients do not see vendor talk |
| Handover | Reassign with a note when staff change | History stays |
What does a designer do?
- Post the drawing or photo in the project group with a one-line summary.
- Ask for the decision by name and date.
- Note the approval on the conversation when it comes.
- Set the next site visit as a task.
What about money and drawings?
Quotes, payment schedules and contracts belong in your documents and billing system; the chat records a link or a summary. Large drawings and files belong in a shared folder, not buried in a chat. Prices quoted in a message are a record, so quote only what you will honour.
What does the first month look like?
- Week 1: list live projects and who manages each.
- Week 2: write the description for the project group template.
- Week 3: start noting approvals on one project.
- Week 4: review overdue site visits and change the rota.
What are the usual mistakes?
- Approvals only in screenshots.
- Vendors and clients in one group.
- Prices changed after being quoted in chat.
- Files lost under hundreds of messages.
In WavesFlo's shared inbox a project's client group, its vendor group and the direct chats all sit under the studio's numbers, so the designer who owns the project finds approvals and drawings in one place.
Questions
Can a design team keep project approvals on WhatsApp?
Yes, by noting each approval on the conversation with the approver and date, so it is easy to find.
Should vendors be in the client group?
No. Use separate groups.
Does WavesFlo store drawings?
Files sent in chats are in the conversation; keep master files in a shared folder.