Interior Design Business Success: A 7 Step Process
It doesn’t take magic to build your business in competitive times. It takes seven steps.
So many interior design professionals struggle so hard to cope with the challenging economy. But so few earn top dollar.
Those who do run their businesses a gazillion different ways.
Yet, many embrace the same seven sales and marketing concepts.
Master some of these, and you’ll have some success. Master all of them, and you’ll have lots.
1/ Toot Your Flute. The most important sale you can make is the Personal one. Blow your horn, and communicate with confidence.
Your “Only” (“I’m the only local designer who…”) is the key to your YOU-nique Selling Proposition. Decide what only you can do, and prospects will buy only from you.
2. Sell “Now” as Well as “Wow.”
If procrastination is a problem, creating immediacy is the cure.
When prospects want to “think it over,” they don’t view your design services — or you — as a priority.
Convince them that now is the very best time to invest in your design services.
How? Explain that you can immediately assist them to enhance the resale value of their home, avoid price increases, save on utility costs, etc.
3/ Focus on the Future.
Tell them what to do now (call, buy this, download that) and what to do next.
Convert contacts into contracts by asking questions, pinpointing pain, and offering your service as the remedy.
Set up your next shot: discuss the next project before finishing the first. Upselling, cross-selling and other strategies lead to long term relationships.
4/Aim High.
Don’t mix with the minnows when you can catch the cahunas.
Look, act and charge the part of a uniquely-qualified,one-of-a-kind design professional. Develop and distribute a bio that spells out your specialness.
Then, when you’re face to face with a fatcat, save the best for first. Offer your best before the rest, showcasing your biggest-ticket services and products.
5/Build a Buzz.
Start conversations on Facebook and Twitter, share news and views on Linked In, pique their curiosity on YouTube.
And, by all means, blog on. Blog posts are great for search engine rankings, and business.
Other cool ways to communicate your credibility: write articles and present seminars.
6/ Wow ‘em With Your Website. Make it speciall, but keep it simple.
Play up your brand, benefits, and bio. Keep it current(with blogposts, articles, etc.) and interactive (with search boxes, Q&A columns, etc.), and make the site easy to navigate.
Include killer keywords and terrific testimonials.
Make it measurable: track who is finding you, and how.
Brevity is best: the average website visit is 4 seconds, 2 clicks. And your Home Page should rock, since 50% of your visitors will never go beyond it.
7/ Persist.
Never, ever give up.
Fred Berns is a leading sales and marketing coach, trainer and copy writer for interior design professionals.
