David will present the “101 Best/BEST Practices” at the 10th and final BOD Conference scheduled for Aug. 29-30 in Las Vegas.

You can save $100 off the sign-up fee forthe conference by entering the code berns13 when you register at www.bod13.com.

David has announced this will be his last conference, as he is dedicating the next few years solely to writing books.

I have spoken at past BOD conferences, and can guarantee that you will walk away with plenty of insights and ideas.

Less than 20 seats remain for this premier educational event, so I urge you to take advantage of the $100 savings by entering the code berns13 when you register at www.bod13.com.

Not a very nice thing for me to say, I realize, but an important strategy for you to follow when quoting your price.

Name the number. And, then, stop talking.

Too many interior design professionals, even experienced ones who should know better, talk themselves out of a sale by apologizing for,  making excuses for, defending or watering down their fee in some other way after they quote it.

Studies show over 80% of sales professionals in general tend to lower their price before they’re asked to do so.

There’s a clinical word for that:  Stupid.

Stating your price and asking for the sale isn’t about asking for permission, or playing: “Let’s Make a Deal.”

It’s about attaching a value to yourself and explaining how you do business.

Prospects don’t want complicated and convoluted explanations or excuses about why you charge what you charge.

They want  your price.

That, and only that is what you should provide them. No “ifs,” “ands,” and especially, “buts.”

Promise me you’ll never, ever follow your price quote with a “but” phrase. Promise me you’ll ban your “buts.”

Never, ever say something like: “The price is ______, but I can work with you on that.”

Or, “The price is _____, but I really want to work with you, and I don’t want my fee to prevent that from happening.”

Phrases like that are sure signs that you don’t take your prices seriously, so neither should your clients.

They delude your value, and do a disservice to the interior design profession.

Quote your price, and leave it at that.

Is there a chance that your prospects will object to that price?

Absolutely.

Is that a problem?

Absolutely not.

Price objections are buying signals. Prospects have to be at least somewhat interested in your service to even ask about price.

Your chances of closing a deal are at least 30 % higher when prospects question your price.

So, do me a favor.

Calculate your fee.

Communicate it.

And, then shut the heck up.

Fred Berns coaches interior design professionals on sales and marketing strategies.

That remark by a designer in my audience last week in Virginia, comes up virtually every time I address an interior design group.

It defines a dilemma that a lot of experienced design professionals face: now that they’ve developed a successful business, they want to reduce their hours yet somehow increase their income.

Simply put, they want to work less, and earn more.

A pipe dream? No.

A possibility?

Most definitely!

I know plenty of designers, window fashion professionals, kitchen and bath specialists, home stagers,  retailers and others who earn big, big money working 25 hours a week.

Or less.

You can, too, if you manage your time more effectively.

That means focusing on the 3-5 tasks each day that are most likely to increase your profits. It means determining which of your design services will generate the most income in the least amount of time.

And it means reaching out to those clients who can most easily afford those services.

Working too hard for too little?

That, according to the Work Less, Earn More audio program, could mean you…

Waste your time. You’re “busy,” but you’re not profitable.

Give away your time.You don’t bill for all of your time, all of the time.

Charge too little. You don’t attach enough value to what you do.

Look for love in all the wrong places. You work with clients who can’t afford to pay what you need to earn.

Don’t know your business. You’re unaware of what brings in the most money.

Don’t control your business. You’re more apt to play “Let’s Make a Deal” than say: “This is how I charge.”

Don’t delegate. You don’t call on others to do what’s too menial — or too difficult — for you.

Don’t “maximize” appointments. You’re sacrificing income by not asking enough upselling questions.

Bottom line: if you’re earning too little and working too hard, you’re not working smart.

Fred Berns speaks to and trains interior design professionals on time management, and sales and marketing topics

Get  much bigger projects from  much better clients.
Set and get substantially  higher fees.
Overcome any price objection, any time.
Dramatically differentiate yourself.

Those are some of the concepts I’ll cover at 9:30-11:30 a.m. this Friday, April 12 in my presentation in Williamsburg, VA. to ASID’s Virginia Chapter.

The event will be held in the Williamsburg Community Building. For registration details, contact Meredith Hayes, mhayes@reflectionsinteriordesign.com, 804-347-0499

How to boost your bottom line and pump up your profits is the theme of my CEU program, entitled “Supersize Your Sales! 7 Steps to Peak Profits in Challenging Times.”

It covers simple, do-it-yourself sales and marketing strategies to take your interior design business to the next level.

Also featured at the event will be Jody Seivert, who will speak in the afternoon on “Pricing Design.”

Fred Berns speaks on  sales and marketing at interior design events worldwide.

Now that the first three months are behind us, consider this: What’s it going to take to make the next quarter better?

Good answers to some basic questions.

You don’t need super social media skills or slick advertising or a glitzy new web site or trendy new product lines to make this your “career year.”

You need answers. Answers to questions about goals, what’s working, and what needs to work better with your design business.

Many interior design professionals never consider the kinds of issues raised below. That’s why they’re so unfocused and unprofitable.

What Do You Want to Be when you Grow up?

No-Service-Just-Online-Design.com? Home Depot? Under A Buck Blinds? If not, stop trying to act like or compete with them.   Create your own unique message. Target your own market. You make a great you, but a lousy somebody else.

Why you?

Competition has never been tougher. It’s never been easier to buy elsewhere the design services and products that you sell.   What do you offer that your competitors — especially the lower priced ones — don’t?  Don’t say “good customer service.” Every other design professional in your area talks about the same thing.

Who’s Lovin’ Ya, Baby?

Kojak, the TV cop, raised a key question there. Who are your blue chip clients? How have you built rapport with them? How do you stay in touch with and generate additional business from them?

How Do You Find the Fatcats?

Where and when do you get your best clients? What marketing strategies work best for you? What are you MVP (Most Valuable and Productive)promotational activities?

What’s Makin’ Ya Money?

What are they buying? What’s your most lucrative product or service? How much of your income comes from your design consultations? From product sales? What percentage of your sales comes from residential clients? From commercial clients?

Who’s on Your Team?

Who do you turn to for help when the going gets tough, as it did last year?   Do you have–or can you create–an advisory board with a financial advisor, a lawyer, a business coach? Who are your mentors? Are you aligning yourself with top clients and/or allied professionals?

Fred Berns is a trainer and coach for interior design professionals around the world.

You’ve got mail.

But not just any mail. You have an inquiry from a potential client! You talk on the phone. It sounds like a great opportunity, so you agree to meet in person.

The meeting goes great; you have design ideas swirling around in your head. It sounds like a fabulous project. You go back to your office and spend hours putting together the proposal and hit ‘send’.   Then you wait…and wait…and wait…but you never hear back from them.

You’re crushed. ‘It was such a great fit’, you told yourself.   What went wrong?   You’ve just encountered a tire kicker. Or, a more appropriate title might be time waster.

We’ve all been there. And because I’m all about giving you shortcuts to winning Ideal Clients quickly, I’m going to share a great question to help you uncover a tire kicker before you put your heart, soul and most precious commodity – time – into a potential opportunity.

Hands down, the most successful salespeople I’ve met in my career knew how to ID time wasters quickly.

There are only so many hours in a day, so you must spend them wisely.

Do not delude yourself into thinking that because someone agrees to meet with you, that they have a valid project.   Always ask this question in your first conversation: “Why are you looking to redesign your [space] now?”

The word ‘now’ will reveal what is motivating them to complete their project now vs sometime in the future.

Bottom line: if they aren’t very motivated, they’re tire kickers.   To learn more, register for a complimentary 3-part series, “Three Secrets to Closing Higher Paying Clients Who Love Working With You”.

“Is Design a Dying Profession? 3 Fatal Business Mistakes You Could Be Making, and How to Prevent Them” is the title of the Design Success University webinar scheduled for 6 p.m. Eastern (5 pm CST/ 4 pm MST/ 3 pm PST).

Register here: : http://www.designsuccessu.com/aff.php?p=fber&w=226web.

Why too many designers earn too little will be a focus of the 90 minute complimentary program.

Join in, and you’ll learn:

• What you may be doing that is taking money out of your own pocket

• Why you’re making your clients mad and distrustful, leading them to firing you before the  project is done

• Which of your daily habits could be a sure sign of trouble ahead

• How determination and perseverance can actually be bad traits, damaging your business success -   and what to do about it

• Exactly what makes some designers thrive during “tough” economic times, developing waiting   lists of eager clients – and how you can do the same thing

• How doing less can actually help you make more money – and how to decide what to knock off your   to-do list

• And more

Gail will also share the success secrets of interior design professionals earning $150,000 or more.

Register NOW for Tuesday’s webinar: http://www.designsuccessu.com/aff.php?p=fber&w=226web

Each knew that speaking is a great way for interior design professionals to do million dollar marketing on a shoestring budget.

They each gave a program on remodeling at  home shows in their areas.

Each attracted 35 attendees. Each spoke for 30 minutes.

Cal booked no appointments after his presentation. Sal booked 16 after hers.

Why?

Cal spent his time sharing his vision and philosophy about remodeling, discussing a few trends, and showing 72 Powerpoint slides.

Sal followed the format that virtually guarantees that design professionals will attract appointments  every time they speak. And she showed only  12 slides.

The format:

1. Area homeowners have a problem.
2. Here are a few solutions
3. Be careful when you implement those solutions
4. If you like what you heard, you’ll love our in-home consultation
5. Sign up now for that consultation.

Sal pointed out that many local residents live in homes that no longer fit their lifestyles, now that their interests have changed, their kids have moved away, etc.

She offered six general remodeling tips, ranging from updating the kitchen to converting an unused bedroom into a home office.

She discussed the “Deadly Dozen” list of most common mistakes committed by do-it-yourselfers.

And she gave attendees the opportunity to register for her in-home “Remodeling Review.”

Cal came away empty-handed because his content was too vague, he showed too many slides, and he offered no “Call to Action” at the end.

Sal converted her talk into appointements and eventual  projects by gaining and maintaining her audience’s attention,  pointing out the perils of “doing it yourself,” and concluding with a clear Call to Action.

Moral of the story: you can covert free speeches into paid projects if you give away appetizers and whet the audience’s appetite for the main course: a consultation with you.

Fail to include a Call to Action, and you may well end up like Cal: a design professional with too much time on his hands.

Fred Berns is an interior design industry business coach, speaker and copywriter.

And it will be if you download my new FREE  report entitled: “13 for ’13: Thirteen Super Success Strategies for Interior Design Professionals.”

Follow 13 simple steps, and 2013 will be your most profitable year ever as an interior design professional.

Download this report, and you’ll get practical and powerful tips on sales, marketing,  time manzgement, fee, customer service and more.

Put it all together, and you have a recipe for a remarkable year.

The tips are terrific, the report is FREE, and the time is now to get your free copy at  http://fredforfree.com/.

Last year was a challenging one for many interior design professional.  Nearly 60% of designers who earned less than $45,000 in 2012, according to the Design Success University Annual Interior Design Fee & Salary Survey.

But that was then, and this is now. And now you’re only 13 easy steps away from a career year.

To get your FREE copy of “13 for ’13: Thirteen Super Success Strategties for Interior Design Professionals,” click here:  http://fredforfree.com/.

Fred Berns is a business coach and copywriter for interior design professsionals..

Too many interior design professionals committed too many business blunders last year, and their incomes suffered as a result. Nearly 60% of designers earned less than $45,000 in 2012, according to the Design Success University Annual Interior Design Fee & Salary Survey.

What matters is not what they lost, but what they learned. My hope is they learned to steer clear of these sorry strategies:

1/ Passing up Possibilities. Obsess over obstacles and you miss opportunities.   Help clients add value — and eventual resale value– to their homes and other properties. Give them design solutions that will reduce their energy bills.   Also, move in where competitors drop out.

2/ No niche. The most financially successful design professionals are the most specialized.   They build their brand and profits by reaching out to specific demographics (say, California’s luxury residential market) and offering appropriate services.   Sure they diversify, but only within their niche.

3/ Forgetting Your Fans. If you’re spending most of your time “prospecting,” you’re wasting it.   You’re seven times more likely to get business with a current client than a prospect. And, it costs five times as much to attract a new customer as it does to retain an existing one.   Your current clients need you more than ever. Serve them.

4/ Falling for the Stall. You can’t afford to let customers use “This Economy” as an excuse not to buy now. Their procrastination is your poison.   Create immediacy by explaining how the current economy is exactly why they should invest in your services now.   Tell them how acting now will assure quicker delivery and help them avoid price hikes, say, for furniture, fabrics, and shipping.

5/ Assinine Assumptions. Predicting what clients can’t afford is bad business. How do you know what’s in their bank accounts?   You do clients –and yourself– a disservice by not offering your best design services and/or product lines because you assume they can’t afford them.   Present your best, before discussing the rest.

6/Wimpy Websites. It’s your most important marketing tool, but is your website securing or scaring away business?   It’s hurting rather than helping you if it doesn’t differentiate you, isn’t updated regularly and is too wordy and difficult to navigate.

7/ Flying Solo. Don’t go it alone. Align with allied professionals by trading referrals, exchanging client lists, and collaborating in advertising.   Hook up with vendors and suppliers, and seek their help with your website, seminars, and other promotional activities.

8/ Holding onto Hardship. Underachieving employees and unprofitable profit lines bring you down. Get rid of them.   Figure out what’s working for you — and free yourself from what isn’t.

9/ Giving in. When you succumb to price pressure and cut your fees, you diminish your value.   Your expertise is worth more, not less in challenging times. When customers question your price, question their priorities — other than the lowest price.   Remind them you can save them time, headaches and, yes, money.

10/ Giving up. What you face when the going gets tought isn’t a problem. It’s a test — of your will, persistence, and courage.

Fred Berns is a coach, copywriter and speaker for the interior design industry.