12 and 3.

Some critical numbers, there.

12 is the number of reasons why you and other design professionals may earn less than you’d like.

And 3 is the number of days left to register for a tele-seminar that will help you resolve those issues.

It’s called The 12 Reasons Your Earn Less than You Could…and Should.

It’s scheduled for 11 a.m. – noon, Eastern time (10 a.m. Central, 9 a.m. Mountain, 8 a.m. Pacific) next  Tuesday, July 1.

The investment is only $35.

What you’ll hear are the 12 key obstacles that are getting in your way, holding you back and paralyzing your profits.

You’ll also hear simple strategies you can use NOW to overcome those obstacles.

You won’t have to leave your home, office or showroom to get practical ideas for unblocking your design business and career — and dramatically boosting your income.

 All you need to do is dial in and enter your pin number.

For registration information on the 12 Reasons tele-seminar,
click here: http://fredberns.com/TeleSeminarJuly12th.html

Clients find a way to afford things they attach the most value to.

How good are you at sharing your value with your clients?

Don’t waste time assuming that clients can’t  afford your costliest carpets or countertops or cabinets.

Focus, instead, on why they should make the investment in them…and you.

And if  clients still think you’re too expensive?

All that means is that they don’t view you as a priority now.

And that means you must educate them to a greater extent about your value — why they should view you as priority

Do you feel it’s not enough to earn “not enough?” That you work too hard to earn too little?

If so, it’s time to figure out what’s holding you back from making more money in your design career. An upcoming information-packed tele-seminar will help you do that.

The 12 Reasons Why You Earn Less Than You Could..and Should is the title of the tele-seminar scheduled for 11 a.m. – noon, Eastern time (10 a.m. Central, 9 a.m. Mountain, 8 a.m. Pacific) on Tuesday, July 1.

The investment is only $35.

You won’t have to leave your home, office or showroom to learn how to immediately pinpoint your problem areas and dramatically increase your income.

All you need to do is dial in and enter your pin number.

Here’s your chance to identify the obstacles that block your progress and diminish your profits.

Here’s your chance to learn simple strategies to overcome those obstacles.

Here’s your chance to learn how to earn the income you want and deserve.

 For registration information on the 12 Reasons tele- seminar, click here:
http://fredberns.com/TeleSeminarJuly12th.html http://fredberns.com/TeleSeminarJuly12th.html

Who are you to decide what your clients can’t afford?

Do you often presume what’s not in the budget of those you serve?

Hey, what’s up with that? How can you be so sure what they’ll spend?

How can you know, ahead of time, that they won’t invest in your most expensive design services?

Or that they won’t spring for your highest ticket products?

Maybe you worked with them before, but how do you know what they’ll do now?

You don’t.

The automatic assumption that a client can’t afford your priciest product lines is asinine.  And, it’s an excuse.

It’s an excuse for not confronting the challenge of selling “Up.” It’s an excuse for not promoting yourself. It’s an excuse for not Going for the Gold.

Don’t make excuses. Make plans.

Plan to communicate with confidence about your most expensive services and products — and about yourself.

Why? Because it will bolster both your confidence and your sales.

Lots of design professionals are spending lots of time  worrying about the economy.

I noticed that in Sun Valley, ID. the past few days, when I spoke to the Intermountain chapter of ASID. And I expect more of the same tomorrow, when I address an NKBA chapter in Atlanta.

Design pros keep telling me there’s a lot to worry about.

The economy is struggling. The real estate market has tanked. And, they say, it’s much more challenging to get new clients — and to convince your current ones to make a move.

Everywhere I go, I hear a lot about what isn’t working in our industry.

The problem with all of that worry and concern and negative thinking is that they take time. And energy.

Seems to me that a much better use of that time and energy is to think about how to serve your best clients better.

Those clients need you now more than ever.

They can’t afford, in these challenging times, to waste their time and money on less qualified designers, kitchen and bath professionals, window fashion specialists and others.

They can’t afford to work with those who don’t and can’t get it right.

Those clients are especially concerned these days about enhancing the value of their most valuable asset: their home. They need your guidance and advice to help them do that.

There is considerable value in your expertise, and you should “price” it accordingly.

That’s a message I shared in Sun Valley after polling audience members and discovering an hourly fee range of only $60 to $175. 

That’s much less than they’re worth, I told them, and much less than they could charge and should charge.

High end clients should hire ASID designers.

That’s the point of an article in a recent issue of the tony, upscale Colorado Homes & Lifestyles magazine.

The article, entitled “Why Hire an ASID Designer,?” quotes members of the organization’s Colorado chapter.

“ASID designers are trained to keep in mind the health, safety and welfare of the individuals they are designing for,” writes Carol Koplin, the chapter president.

Adds Jean Dole: “An ASID designer creates the vision, pulls together all the materials and services, then executes and manages the vision.”

There are those unaffiliated design professionals who question the need to belong to the world’s “oldest, largest and leading professional organization for interior designers.”

But don’t tell that to Carol Moore.

Joining ASID “is a milestone in interior design,” writes Moore, a member since 1998 and a designer who serves clients in Vail and Aspen.

Jean Dole agrees, adding that: “Making that investment is saying that you think it’s important to maintain high standards, qualities and practices. You’re saying you’re going to be there today, in a month, in a year even.”

This is no time to let your marketing slide.

This is no time to rely solely on “word of mouth.” Or to just count on your work to sell itself.

This is no time to be your own best kept secret.

Not with this economy. Not with this much competition.

This IS time to market smart, and promote yourself extensively.

I offer three outstanding self-marketing books to help you do that.

Sell Yourself! 501 Ways to Get Them to Buy from YOU! – this blow-your-horn, toot-your-flute success textbook shows you how to differentiate yourself, communicate with confidence, and present yourself with pizzazz. http://fredberns.com/Products_SellYourself.html

Celebrate Marketing- an anthology including dozens of low cost and no cost promotion strategies for those looking to do million dollar marketing on a shoestring budget. http://fredberns.com/businessbld.htm

Confessions of Shameless Self Promoters – strategies, secrets, shortcuts and stories from 68 self promotion gurus. Learn how to promote yourself in your online marketing, branding, price negotiations, & more. http://fredberns.com/businessbld.htm

Get ready, get set, get going with your marketing. These books will help you do that.

Warning! The words you use…can be used against you.

That’s especially true when phrases you use with prospects and others you seek to influence cast doubt about your convictions and know how.

Design professionals are often guilty of such credibility-killing comments as…

Kill these self-sabotage words, before they kill your chances of making an positive impact. A good strategy: simply begin your sentence after deleting the negative phrase.

Instead of saying: “You might not believe this, but I”ll get this kitchen remodel right the first time.”

Say: “I’ll get this kitchen remodel right the first time.”