The walk round at the end of a decorating job

2 days ago
3 min read

Introduction

Decorating is judged in a way that most trades are not. There is nothing hidden behind a panel and nothing that only a surveyor would notice. The customer can see every square inch of the work, and they will look at it in daylight, at night, and from angles nobody sensible would choose.

The final walk round is where all of that gets settled. Done well it closes the job, secures the payment and produces a review. Skipped, it turns into a drip of messages over the following fortnight, each one slightly less friendly than the last.

1. The walk round at the end of a decorating job should be deliberate

Choose the moment rather than letting it happen by accident. Allow twenty minutes for it.

Do it in good light, with the customer

Daylight if you can, lights on if you cannot. Doing it in gloom guarantees a second walk round later, on their terms rather than yours.

Go room by room in a fixed order

A structured pass feels professional and stops the conversation wandering into things that were never part of the job.

2. Point out your own work

Confidence sets the tone for everything that follows.

Draw attention to the difficult parts

The cut in around the coving, the repaired section, the awkward corner. Customers cannot see effort unless somebody shows them. Point rather than describe.

Say what you prepared, not just what you painted

Filling, sanding, caulking and priming are the majority of the labour and none of it is visible. If you do not mention it, the customer thinks they paid for paint.

3. Invite the snag list rather than fearing it

The list exists whether or not you ask for it.

Ask them to look properly now

Say plainly that you would rather find things together than have them noticed after you have gone. That sentence buys a great deal of goodwill. Mean it when you say it.

Write it down in front of them

Two or three touch-ups is a normal outcome on any job. Recording them calmly signals that this is routine rather than a failure.

4. Be straight about what is and is not fixable

Not everything the customer sees is a defect. Say so calmly and early.

Explain what the surface was always going to do

An old wall, a patched ceiling, a poorly plastered original. Paint reveals what is underneath and cannot correct it.

Separate a defect from a change of mind

A missed spot gets fixed. A change of colour or an extra door is new work, and saying so kindly at the walk round is far easier than arguing later.

5. Close the job properly

The last ten minutes are the ones that get described to other people. Do not rush them.

Leave the touch-up paint labelled

Room, colour, finish and code on the tin. It is the single most appreciated thing a decorator can leave behind.

Ask for payment and the review together

The walk round is the moment of maximum satisfaction. Asking then is normal; asking a week later feels like chasing.

Conclusion

Decorating is fully visible work, so the final walk round is where the job actually closes. Do it in good light, with the customer, room by room in a fixed order, and point out the difficult cut-ins and the preparation — the filling, sanding and priming that made up most of the labour and none of which they can see.

Invite the snag list rather than dreading it, and write it down in front of them so two or three touch-ups read as routine. Be straight about what the surface was always going to do, distinguish a defect from a change of mind, leave labelled touch-up paint, and ask for payment and the review while satisfaction is at its peak.