Finding Value in Skills

Do you ever feel like the public doesn’t place much value in interior design anymore?

YES!

I know. It’s what everyone says.

The funny thing is when I was at a marketing conference in April, an accountant stood up and said, “No one values accountants anymore.” And someone else stood up and said, “No one sees the value in custom dresses and clothing anymore.”

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Dealing with Imposter Syndrome

I don’t have enough experience to take that project.

Why would clients listen to my advice?

I’m charging too much and client’s won’t pay me for my time.

Imposter syndrome rears its ugly head pretty regularly. I see it in other designers and more potently, I notice it in myself. Why would anyone listen to me? I battle it pretty regularly. I’m pretty sure most of us do.

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Setting the Tone

It has taken me a long time to realize that it is up to me to set the tone. I was recently at a conference and the energy from the crowd was truly amazing. I’d never seen so many people enthusiastic and pretty much saying that this was the greatest conference ever. (Which if you’ve ever sat in a large bland hotel ballroom, in uncomfortable seats, and intense air conditioning you know is quite an accomplishment.)

I am generally a reserved person. I look before I leap.

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13 Ways to Help Indecisive Clients

Have a client that keeps changing their minds? That selection after selection they want to see more options and it’s stalling the process?

While you may want to chalk this up to being your client’s personality, there are steps that you can take before and during the process to help curtail this.

I’ve presented you with some ideas below that you can use to keep clients focused, keep your project on schedule, and get to that beautifully designed home that you both want.

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Understanding the Client's Design Aesthetic

Here's a question I've been thinking about as I just signed a client and encountered this situation.  How do you navigate the beginning of the concept & design process with a client who has almost zero reference points?  Who can't identify a style they like, doesn't have inspiration images, doesn't provide many answers on questionnaire, and house is essentially a blank slate?  Especially if this is an e-design client and you can't go through a laborious process of discovery?  I'd be curious to hear your thoughts.  

Thanks,

Sam

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Getting a Client to Sign Your Contract

I realized something yesterday, interior designers have a hard job made harder by having to do something that is not our strength to get to the work that we do excel at. Interior designers have to “sell” our creativity. We literally have to do something that, let’s face it, most of us hate doing before we can do what we love. Getting a client to sign your contract and all the stuff to get to that point can be a struggle.

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Dealing with Income Ups & Downs

One of the things that you must deal with when running an interior design company is the cyclical nature of the business. Some times of the year are naturally slower than others. Depending on where you’re located seasons, holidays, school schedules, and daylight savings time (I’m not sure about that last one, but I wish it would go away) can have an effect on the flow of work into your design firm. This means that we all likely have to deal with income ups & downs.

As a smart business owner, you must plan for this. So what can you do when you’re dealing with inconsistencies with your income?

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Giving Free Interior Design Advice

“My own business is still young and the thing I feel like I struggle with the most is the very first client consultation.  My struggle is this: how to get the client without giving away too many ideas.  Clients all want to hear your ideas of their space or your inspirations but sometimes I feel like they take your initial suggestions and run away with it without me.  How do I inspire confidence and trust with out giving too much away and getting the client to sign that contract?”
Thanks! Kaitlyn

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Cultural Appropriation in Interior Design

As I think back amongst “trends” in interior design over the past few years, I think of Kuba & Mud cloth, Handira, Suzanis, Juju hats, Indian block print, Hmong fabric pillows, ikat - design elements that are considered exotic, eclectic, ethnic, global.

But these design elements are “exotic” in the generic sense of “other” or “different” and in their rise to trend, most people didn’t know or didn’t care about the origin or cultures behind what was simply considered an interior design trend.

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The Difference Between Markup & Margin

Today, I’m going to touch on some accounting principals, markup and margin. These are two terms that you may have to think about when you’re calculating profit and pricing in your business. These are numbers that you should be familiar with and how they play into your business because they can help with your profitability.

Markup and margin are not the same, even if occasionally you may hear them used in the same way.

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How to Create Interior Design Packages

Creating interior design packages can be great additional revenue streams in your business. They can be quick ways to generate a bit of income without a huge time or effort commitment from you. It’s also nice to have an option for prospects who contact you, but may not be a fit for your signature service or meet your project minimums.

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How to Scale Your Interior Design Business

So, you want to scale your business this year? Or maybe next. Or sometime in the future.

Some people start their interior design business without any idea of where they ultimately want to take their business, they may not even realize they are actually starting a business. They are just working IN their business, head down, trying to get something off the ground. And often, the business takes off because of all their hard work and they are just along for the ride, rather than steering the ship.

So first, you need to steer the ship.

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Is Interior Design turning into a Commodity?

Sometime within the past few months I came across the headline: “Online Interior Design - How To Hire A High-End Designer For The Fraction Of The Price”. Ugh. Yes, let’s just keep making design cheaper and cheaper.

First, let me say, this is a complicated economic and societal issue that I am certainly not going to solve in a blog post, I’ll probably not even scratch the surface. However, I do want to get you thinking. Thinking about your contribution to the interior design industry.

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10 Daily Must-Dos

There have been lots of studies and reports on habits, success, and productivity. Many emphasize the importance of repetition and dedication. Habits take time to become habits. To become a master at your craft it can take 10,000 hours (or more). Productivity can be increased by creating and using systems. This is where things like the Pomodoro Technique, time-blocking, habit-stacking, task-batching all came from.

Despite this being an extensive topic, today, there is something really simple that you can do to increase your success and productivity in your business. Something that will help you form habits, gain success, keep you focused, and up your productivity.

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