When a customer calls to place an order for a cake, how do you assist your customer to pick a cake? They usually call with an idea, a party theme...but that is it. I feel like I am asking ten thousand questions as to the creativity and the details of the cake. When I suggest tiered cakes, they don't know what I am talking about...then I confuse them when I ask if they want round square, hex...etc. I guess I am trying to ask if you have a customer choose from certain designs and that is it, or do you get the general idea of what they want and handle the creativity from there? Sometimes I think I offer them too many options and confuse them.
Oh I have troubles with this too! I send people pictures a lot. Or sometimes I just decide I'm going to do what I'm going to do - I'll follow their ideas or theme, but do my own thing.
I feel like I ask so many questions sometimes and I know a lot of people aren't used to that - if you pick up a cake at Wal-mart, u usually do just that - pick it up - you may not care what flavor it is, you may not care too much about the design- and you may just have them write "happy birthday" on it. Perhaps you call ahead and have them spraypaint some design you picked out of a book.
And I'm asking about flavors, how many people, designs, colors, etc etc.... and NO ONE ever thinks of a tiered cake - so I have to show them pictures or tell them I'm going to do something like that. Then sometimes I feel bad b/c I have to tell them how to "dissect" and cut their cake... and I feel like I'm putting too much on them sometimes. However, I hate sheetcakes. I don't really want to do them. So if you want a cake from me, you're gonna have to figure some stuff out and if it's tiered, you're gonna have to learn how to dissect it....
So far my customers have been friends/family - so they usually leave most things up to me.
I would think most importantly you'd need to know how many it needs to serve. Then ask if they have a specific cake/cake style in mind - or if they'd prefer to give you a theme and cost and let you come up with something. Ideally you'd have time to 'pitch' your idea or show them a sketch rather than just hoping they like the final design.
For my friends/family - if we have time (my family is out of town) we sit down w/a few of my Wilton books and look for ideas.
I usually ask after they tell me their "theme," how many guests they're having or how many servings they need. Most everyone I've done cake for has seen something I've done, cookies or cake, and say they trust me to do what I think is best. I'm sure I'll run into the "very picky" client, but hope not too soon. I'll also show pictures if they just have very vague ideas of what they want.
Keep it simple. Don't expect them to understand the everyday language that we use and take for granted. Don't explain over the phone, during the order, how to take apart and serve the cake ... it will scare them away and the conversations with their friends will include the phrase "I just wanted to order a cake, not build a Boeing 707!" You can explain the simplicity of this when the cake is delivered or picked up.
Sample discussion:
"How many people are you expecting?
What flavor cake do you want?
Have you seen a cake similar to what you want? (theme)
Do you have a preference between buttercream or fondant?"
(If they don't know the difference, just explain it simply .... buttercream is "regular" icing and fondant is used for more elaborate decorating.)
Then go into professional mode and suggest what size cakes they need:
"For that many people, I'd recommend a 6" round cake on top of a 10" round cake, iced in pink, with a tiara on top and sparklies on the icing. You can place the Number 5 birthday candle in the center of the tiara. Does that sound ok with you?"
DOn't ask them what shape or what size they want ... .they have no idea. That's why they are contacting you, the expert. They are relying on you to direct them.
Keep it simple.
(BTW, that's the exact conversation I had with my daughter re: my granddaughter's birthday cake, so now you all know what her cake will look like next week! Even tho' my daughter grew up around cakes, she just called me and said, "Kelli wants a princess cake. What can you do?")
If they're calling on the phone, I get the basics: when do you need it? what flavor(s)? do you have a theme or a design in mind? would you prefer a basic round cake, a rectangle (like a sheet cake), or a square cake? do you need it to be very "wow"-looking, or would you prefer something to just be very nice? All of these things are important because it tells me how much effort I need to put in to the cake itself.
Lots of times I will advise a price, but there are times that becomes too expensive for them, then we back off a bit and determine what will work for them. For people who don't want to be up to their armpits in icing, a sheet-type cake is what they get, with a lovely design on the top.
I have a very steady Client who calls me for all 3 of her daughters' birthdays, and for hers and hubby's, as well as friends on occasion. For the girls, she will generally send me a scanned picture of the invitation and we work around that theme. For hubby, generally we work out some great design idea and she lets me loose. In that case, as long as it's chocolate, they're ALWAYS happy!
It just will depend on your Client. They certainly don't expect you to read their minds, do they? Then they'll have to answer a few questions. How else can you make them happy (and make money for yourself)?
Happy Baking,
Odessa
If they're calling on the phone, I get the basics: when do you need it? what flavor(s)? do you have a theme or a design in mind? would you prefer a basic round cake, a rectangle (like a sheet cake), or a square cake? do you need it to be very "wow"-looking, or would you prefer something to just be very nice? All of these things are important because it tells me how much effort I need to put in to the cake itself.
Lots of times I will advise a price, but there are times that becomes too expensive for them, then we back off a bit and determine what will work for them. For people who don't want to be up to their armpits in icing, a sheet-type cake is what they get, with a lovely design on the top.
I have a very steady Client who calls me for all 3 of her daughters' birthdays, and for hers and hubby's, as well as friends on occasion. For the girls, she will generally send me a scanned picture of the invitation and we work around that theme. For hubby, generally we work out some great design idea and she lets me loose. In that case, as long as it's chocolate, they're ALWAYS happy!
It just will depend on your Client. They certainly don't expect you to read their minds, do they? Then they'll have to answer a few questions. How else can you make them happy (and make money for yourself)?
Happy Baking,
Odessa
I love the way some of you word your questions!
For instance, saying "Have you seen a cake similar to what you want?" makes people think differently than, "Do you have a design in mind?"
I would have to agree (from other customer experiences) that keeping it simple is key- people who know exactly what they want will tell you without much questioning. Others feel that they are paying you to do the design- have confidence in your own talent and creativity!
Edited to add: I find it easier to ask these in-person or on the phone. You get a much better feel for what the person would like that way! Also listing these questions in an e-mail may seem like a lot to some people, but on the phone it doesn't seem that way at all. Know what I mean?
I agree you should keep it simple. I don't know how many times I have heard people say there are too many choices and they can't decide. (At the grocery store, restaurant, department store, etc.) Me, I'm thinking, what are they nuts? Gimme lots of choices! But then, I'm not "normal". 
I ask the usual: servings, flavor & theme. I have been lucky that all of the stuff I have done so far my customers have told me to "just be creative". I like the freedom to be creative, often times I dream about the cake design at night and know exactly what I'm going to do when I wake up in the morning. I don't really like doing sheet cakes either, they are kind of boring. JMO
I love the way some of you word your questions!
For instance, saying "Have you seen a cake similar to what you want?" makes people think differently than, "Do you have a design in mind?".....
I've spent most of my life in a sales or customer svc line of work, so I learned the psychology of why questions are phrased they way they are (oh the stories I could tell of why life insurance salesman phrase their questions the way they do!)
But seriously, the "have you seen....." question asks the person to look in their memory .... a place they are comfortable with and can go there immediately. The "Do you have a design in mind?" question makes them go to their imagination file and see what they can come up with on the spot .... and most people go into "duh!" mode rather than fire up their imagination and creativity part of their brain. (Unexplored territory for most!)
Instead of asking "what kind of icing do you want?", you give them a choice of 2. Never give them too many choices ... and always limit it to 2 to a decision: "Do you want A or B?" Never ask "Do you want fondant, or white buttercream, chocolate buttercream, almond icing....what?" If it's a multiple question, you give them 2 choices PER DECISION. (Decision 1) Do you prefer fondant or buttercream? BC? Ok. (Decision 2) vanilla or chocolate BC?
(Wow, this is good stuff! I should write a book! .... is 3 paragraphs considered a book?) 
Indydebi, if you just took all of your posts, copied them and organized them into chapters, you would have a wonderful book of "How to succeed in business!"
I would buy it!! 
Everyone here had such great ideas. Most people who will call you to place orders, don't know sheet cake sizes or how many they serve. Don't know types of icing, rarely have a theme in mind, etc. Keep the lingo simple. If I get the hint that the client is very picky, I ask if they would like to arrange a meeting, and look at some photos, or bring photos of something they saw online etc. This way they have a better idea of what they are getting. I also offer to make a sample cake (at a charge or course), if they are self proclaimed picky cake people!
I've had so many orders where people said "I dont care, just put some icing on it and make it look nice." Those are the people who end up being blown away by the taste/look and end up referring you tons of people!
In addition to the questions I've listed above, I also will ask "do you have a theme for your party/reception/wedding/event?" This is really helpful to ask if your Client doesn't have any design or creative decisions they can throw at you right away. It's a great "jumping off" point, and can lead to lots of great ideas .....
edited to add: Once you know the "theme" they are working with, you can begin to make suggestions of things you think would work or that you would be comfortable doing for them. This helps to give you more control over what it is that you will do.
Odessa
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