IP Law for Interior Designers Part 1: Do You Need A Trademark?

Intellectual Property law, specifically for interior designers, has become a point of interest to me lately. I see a lot of discussions and questions being asked in design groups regarding trademarks and copyrights so I decided to create a series of posts on the topic. I’ve consulted with Keren de Zwart, the founder of Not Your Fathers Laywer, in California and she has some great information for us. Today I’m beginning with trademark basics. I hope you enjoy! The post below was written by Keren de Zwart.

A trademark is a word, phrase, symbol or design, or a combination thereof, that identifies and distinguishes the source of a product. A service mark is the same as a trademark, but it identifies and distinguishes services. Registering a trademark with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) can be an important step in protecting your company’s goods or services. It prevents others from using the same or similar trademark in connection with the same or similar goods or services, provides you with the right to bring legal action for infringement, allows you to register your trademark internationally through the Madrid Protocol, and offers many other benefits. Understanding trademark law is essential to protecting your business.

Protecting your Small Business Brand

Small businesses can benefit from registering their trademarks early in their company’s history to create an identifiable brand as they expand their business. Having a registered trademark creates a distinguishing feature for your brand that is legally protected in the event a competitor tries to use the same or similar mark to confuse customers and potentially divert your business. Building a brand around a registered trademark is important because if you find out months or years down the line that you are infringing on someone else’s trademark or you are unable to register your trademark, this could result in a costly re-brand for your business.

What do I need to know about filing a trademark?

Just starting out with a business plan? Create a concrete idea for your trademark and determine whether you want to register the word (for example, “Nike”) or a logo or design as well (like the Nike swoosh). If your company is in its infancy and you haven’t settled on a definitive logo for your brand, it is still important to register your company name and any products or services you have named. You can trademark the logo separately at a later date. Even if you have not yet used the trademark in commerce, but you have a bona fide intention of doing so, you may file an “Intent to Use” application to ensure your product or service is protected when it does come to market.

One basic, but important, principle of trademark law is that generic terms cannot be trademarked. A trademark is an “identifier of source,” and if a term is too generic to associate with a particular company, it will not be subject to trademark protection.

What if my business, product, or service already exists?

If your company has been in business and has not filed for trademark protection, it is not too late to register your trademark. Registering with the USPTO will provide protection for your goods or services going forward. Furthermore, beyond just a company name and/or logo, every time you name a new product and take it to market, you run the risk of infringing on an existing trademark if you have not confirmed that the same or similar mark is not registered with the USPTO already.

What about my website?

Your domain name on the Internet can be subject to trademark infringement claims. For example, just because a website such as www.microsoftstuff.com is available does not mean you can sell computer products from that site without infringing on Microsoft’s trademarks. However, as the owner of a website, you can create extra protection for your brand by trademarking your domain name.

Think your business is too small to deal with trademark protection? Think again. The best way to protect your business is to register trademarks for your products or services as you create them and to be sure you have your attorney research existing trademarks before you commit to taking a company name, product, or service to market. A trademark infringement lawsuit can be very costly in terms of both monetary liability to the owner of the trademark as well as costs associated with re-branding your product or service if you are found to be infringing on someone else’s trademark.

If you are interested in learning more about Keren de Zwart her website is www.notyourfatherslawyer.com.

Next week I’ll continue with more information on trademarks and in future weeks I’ll have posts regarding sponsored social media posts along with how to properly share another persons work on your social media and what to do when someone else shares your work. If there are other things regarding intellectual property law for interior designers that you are interested in learning more about, please let me know!

Stay safe!

XX, Danae

How to Create an Engaging IGTV Channel

We keep hearing that video is where it’s at and I intend on doing video for my business but I just haven’t gotten there yet. In the meantime, I’ve been doing research and wanted to share with you what I learned about creating your own channel on Instagram.

Posting videos on Instagram is a great way to build engagement, collaborate with influencers and improve your Instagram marketing strategy.

If you aren’t familiar with IGTV it’s a long-form video channel accessible from Instagram. The feature was launched in 2018 and it gives brands the opportunity to make videos longer than typical Stories posts.

So, whether your video is 10 minutes or 1 hour long, IGTV is a great platform to share them. You can even create a series of videos to be released on a consistent basis weather it’s weekly, monthly, etc.

All you have to do is upload your video to your Instagram account. Are you interested in creating videos but are stuck on what content to provide?

1.       You can create tutorials on DIY projects, how to style a piece of furniture or entire room, how to measure a room, any how-to is great. Think about what your clients are always asking you … what size of rug to get, how to hang artwork, how to hang window treatments, etc. Any of these would make a great video.

2.       Take your clients and target market behind the scenes. Video ongoing projects, shopping trips to choose and purchase materials, job site visits, etc.

3.       Host a Q & A session. Similar to the how-to videos, host a video series were you just answer the most popular questions from your followers.

4.       Host a talk show and interview industry leaders and industry partners. Depending on your location and COVID restrictions, this one may be a bit more difficult during this time unless you do a virtual talk show with your guests.

Once you have your videos created and posted to your Instagram or IGTV account be sure to cross promote them. Add your video link to your Twitter, Facebook and e-mail newsletter.

Make sure your video has a hook. People scroll very quickly through their feeds and you want to grab their attention. In your video, be sure to answer the following questions:

1.       What is this video about?

2.       Why should you keep watching?

3.       Optional: Who is this video for?

4.       Optional: How long will it be?

Also, use relevant hashtags in your description. Use your brand colors and make sure your video is longer than what should be in an Instagram story.

For way more detailed information on How to Create an Engaging IGTV channel, please visit https://blog.hootsuite.com/instagram-tv/

Stay safe & healthy!

XX, Danae

10 Tips to Attracting More Clients

Our world is changing and as we work from home, we are trying to figure out new ways to navigate business. People still want to live in beautiful spaces, they still want to purchase new items for their homes and they still want to live their best lives. It’s times like these that force us to pivot and create new innovative ways to continue to push our business forward. Below are some ways I’ve seen other interior designers continue to stay in front of clients and continue to offer services that will keep their businesses thriving in our current climate.

1.       Nurture that email list! Spend some quality time creating some really heartfelt and genuine emails to send to your contact list. Create emails that let your subscribers know that you understand what they are going through, you are here for them if they need anything and outline the ways you can still help them. Start an email series right now that will help them during these times.

2.       Offer virtual consultations. Let clients know how they can still work with you during these times. You may be surprised how many people just need a consultation right now. They are spending more time in their homes than ever and they are sick of looking at it. It’s time for a refresh!

3.       Create shoppable concept boards and renders. Share your favorite products and make money using affiliate links. People who shop your style may be more inclined to work with you.

4.       Share your portfolio. Start inspiring people with your work and share what makes you happy about what you share.

5.       Update and share. Now is the time to get caught up on housekeeping issues like updating your portfolio, creating content, organizing your processes and share what you’ve learned. People connect to you and your story … use this time to share your story and how you are growing and changing during quarantine. What silver linings have you found in this pandemic?

6.       Share your e-design services. Share how people can work with you during this time, outline this process and make sure your target market is aware that you are still working with others. Perhaps you have a remote only service and perhaps you have a remote hybrid service. However you are working with clients at this time, share it!

7.       Create interest. Write a blog post about why now is a great time to update your home, or how interior design can affect your mood or about the psychology of color. Write intriguing posts relevant to the times to get people interested in your brand.

8.       Continue to educate yourself. Now is a great time to start listening to an interior design podcast or to get continuing education through interior design platforms. Many of them are offering free video conferences and webinars at this time. Use what you learn to attract more clients.

9.       Create videos. People have time to watch stuff now so create some fun videos about refreshing a space, your process, choosing the right rug or something else that you know your target market will love.

10.   Be real. You will attract the clients you are looking for just by being yourself. Stick with a positive message, share a sneak peek into your quarantine life and use humor if that’s your thing. Sometimes we are afraid to be ourselves but it’s only when we are ourselves do we find growth.

Our world will forever be changed so we have to adapt and grow. We will be stronger and our industry will thrive.

Stay safe & well!

XX, Danae

NOW OFFERING: e-Design Service for Interior Designers

We know that the way we do business is changing and that can mean learning new skills, offering new services and adapting to how the world around us is evolving.

Several interior designers were already marketing e-design services, so when the world suddenly turned into a virtual world, they were prepared to market a service more conducive to our current situation. Our world will go back to a new normal and people will hire in-house, traditional interior designers once again but in the meantime, we have to pivot.

Since we know the challenges everyone is facing and we want our clients and prospects to continue to do well in the interior design industry, we are now offering an e-design service for interior designers. This service is perfect for interior designers who either:

1.       Don’t currently offer the service because they don’t know how

2.       Don’t currently offer the service because they have no desire to provide the service, but feel like it would be a great option for their clients during this time, or

3.       Currently offer the service and are busy enough to hire someone else to help manage the work load

How it works:

1.       You market the e-design service as YOUR service and charge what you like (we can give you ideas of what others charge for this service so you can see what your mark-up will look like based on the fee we charge)

2.       We provide you with everything you need to do a consultation call with your client and all the instructions on how the process works. Your client won’t know that you have actually hired a design assistant to create the deliverables.

3.       The design assistant will work with you on the deliverables, turnaround time, etc.

What we provide:

1.       An e-Design Client Onboarding Guide created specifically for your business in your brand colors with your logo.

2.       A client questionnaire to send your e-design clients.

3.       A choice of 3 package options that you can mark-up to sell to your client.

4.       Instructions on how to conduct business with e-design clients if you’ve never done this before.

5.       Deliverables for your clients such as concept boards, floor plans, shopping lists, installation instructions and depending on the package purchased possibly a 3d render or photo realistic 3d render.

You can now offer e-design services through a virtual design assistant and your clients will never know the difference!

Are you ready to get started? Either email me at danae@elitedesignassistants.com or schedule a time to chat using my calendar link at https://www.elitedesignassistants.com/scheduleyourcall. I will be happy to answer all of your questions and explain the three packages with pricing along with an idea of what interior designers typically charge for the service so you will have a better understanding of your profit margin.

Please let me know if you have any questions!

Stay safe! Danae

Reorganize, Reassess & Relax

We are living in a crazy time where there are a lot of unknowns and many adjustments that we never dreamed would one day become our reality. It’s important to look on the bright side. If your business has slowed down use this time to organize your home office and/or studio, organize your client files, update your websites and portfolios, create more content, reassess your processes and procedures and take a moment to look at the big picture. How do you want your business to look moving forward?

If this seems overwhelming, break your business down into categories … Marketing, Processes, Administrative, Follow Up, Employees, Office Expenses, etc. Take a good look at each of these categories and decide where you can make improvements and where you can make cuts. It’s amazing how much you can simplify and grow when you have the time to regroup.

I have a feeling a lot of people are going to look at business a little bit differently once we return to a more normal pace. There will be people who do change the way they do business, there will be some who decide to take on more remote design while there will be others who go all in on traditional full-service design. I’m optimistic that the design industry will be absolutely crazy busy once we can resume our normal lives. Just think of all the people sitting in their homes right now getting really tired of their décor, paint colors, furniture and that stupid wall that obstructs their view or dream of an open floor plan. Those people will be searching for an interior designer.

The design industry will be booming and for those of you ready to handle the craziness, you will succeed. I imagine many people are also reassessing the way they work with employees. They may consider virtual design assistants, part-time employees or remote employees. This situation has definitely given everyone a lot to think about.

Once you’ve reorganized and reassessed, remember to take some time to relax. Our calendars have been wiped out for weeks … catch up on that book you always intended to read, read a good magazine, go for a walk or just breath.

At the end of the day we will come through this stronger and my hope is kinder and more understanding. Free time is a gift so use it wisely.

I know it’s been a difficult time for everyone so I am here for you if you need anything. I hope you are staying healthy and safe! As always, feel free to reach out.

XX, Danae

Should You Join A Buyer's Group?

Are you tired of being shopped by all of your clients? Are you frustrated that your trade discount isn’t large enough to add your markup and still be less expensive than retail? Savvy consumers are shopping everything these days and one of the biggest frustrations I see are interior designers tired of their clients shopping them online.

Buyer’s groups are hoping to change that for the industry. So what is a buyers group? A buyer’s group is a group of similar independent businesses coming together to leverage their combined purchasing power to receive better net costs and terms on the products and services they buy/use.

In the interior design industry, many buyer’s groups are comprised of a small group of designers located in the same region that all know each other. Unless you know someone in the group, they can be hard to find. This is one of the reasons why Heather McManus and her partner Tracey Taylor created Collaborate To Win, LLC. This group is open to interior designers across the U.S. and Canada.

Another major reason Collaborate To Win was created was because Heather became frustrated with vendors threatening to remove her stocking dealer price when she didn’t meet their yearly minimum. She decided it was time to get creative and comprised a way to not only help herself but also her fellow designers.

Collaborate To Win started with five people and has now grown to 150 members and over 200 vendors. Interior designers need to apply for membership on the website and if accepted pay a membership fee of $370 per year, which is about $30 per month. Benefits of being a part of the group include:

*Stocking dealer price plus 10%
* A Facebook group
*Monthly masterminds
*Emergency fund for extenuating circumstances
*Discounted price on coaching

Working with a buyer’s group can not only save you time and money, it can continue to make you competitive in the industry. You will be able to take advantage of new purchasing power due to the pricing and revenue, plus instead of hiring full-time staff to help with sourcing and deciding what to charge, many interior designers can now hire a virtual design assistant at a fraction of the cost to help with their sourcing needs.

According to Heather, Collaborate To Win is comprised of a group of kind, honest and hard-working interior designers. The members really love the group and are grateful for its existence.

For more information about Collaborate To Win, please check out www.collaborate-to-win.com or contact Heather McManus at admin@collaborate-to-win.com.

**When considering working with a buyer’s group please do your research, get references and make sure you understand what your membership entails. There are some excellent groups out there, such as Collaborate to Win, but there are others who may not be structured properly or are not prepared for extenuating circumstances.

XX, Danae

Start Offering E-Design Services!

Now that we are all quarantined from the outside world and spending more time than ever in our homes, we all want to be in a beautiful space. E-design will become more popular than ever as interior designers find creative ways to continue to work with clients and clients desire to make their quarantine spaces more attractive. Let’s be honest, spending time in a beautifully designed space is much better for the soul especially during times like these.

Marketing your e-design service should be an easy sell at the moment. Sign up for my weekly e-mail at www.elitedesignassistants.com and I’ll send you a FREE client/prospect email you can send to your current clients, prospects and email subscriber list regarding your e-design service.

Need more information on e-design for your own business? Here you go!

How does e-design work? (This is a very high-level overview of the process.)

1.       Offer your clients/prospects an intro call and/or zoom meeting to see what their needs are and review your e-design packages. Be sure to explain that in e-design everything is done remotely, so it will not include on-site visits, installation, construction, etc.

2.       Once they choose to work with you, email them your LOA (you may need to adjust this for e-design services) and once it’s received email them a modified version of the questionnaire you normally would in your business. Ask them to include inspiration photos as well as pictures and measurements of the space they want you to design.

3.       Let the designing begin. You can create concept boards, 3d renders and a shopping list for your clients. The shopping list can include links to your affiliate sites for self-ordering or you can offer trade options that you’ll place orders for them as you normally would.

4.       Send your clients the package (concept board, render, shopping list) along with instructions on how to order products and install the design.

5.       Once they’ve implemented your design, ask them to provide after photos so you can use them in your before/after portfolio for e-design. I know a lot of e-designers struggle with getting the after photos so maybe offer some sort of incentive to get those. 😊

6.       Send them a thank you and let them know you’re happy to help them again in another space.

Pricing – Just like in regular design, pricing is very different for all e-designers. Many of them offer a variety of packages. Some ideas of pricing and options I’ve seen are as follows:

1.       Full design per room includes concept board, floor plan, paint palette, shopping list, render, written instructions for installation and a 60 day follow up. Priced anywhere from $700 - $1,000.

2.       Design per room includes everything above EXCEPT render. Priced anywhere from $500 - $650.

3.       Refresh per room – this would be refreshing what they have and styling it, you could still offer a small shopping list of items. Priced anywhere from $300 - $450.

4.       You can also offer online consultations, furniture layouts or shoppable boards for specific styles.

There are definitely options for you during this time to still do what you love. There are a lot of resources now on e-design. You can try the Facebook Group called edesign Tribe as a great place to start. Many groups are doing special live training on e-design during this time.

As always, please let me know what you need as I’m happy to help!

XX, Danae

GROW your Instagram Following

I’ve been hearing from a lot of interior designers that are now getting most of their clients from Instagram! Building a following on Instagram takes time and effort but as I was gathering all the tips and tricks below it became apparent that the return on investment is great. Managing Instagram can be time consuming and a job in itself. If you have the time and love it … great! If you prefer to hire someone to manage your social media, that works, too. And if you are getting your clients elsewhere than keep doing what you are doing. There always exceptions and it makes sense to start tracking where your clients are coming from if you aren’t already doing that. It will help you so much in terms of deciding where to spend your marketing efforts and dollars. But if you are interested in gaining a larger following on Instagram please see below.

How to increase your Instagram following:

1.       Be yourself! Being your authentic true self will attract the clients you want to work with. Don’t be afraid to share a little bit about you and your life … your clients want to get to know you! Some people shy away from this and that’s okay … but don’t you like to know a little bit about a person before you choose to work with them?

2.       Share consistently. A lot of successful Instagrammers share at least once per day. Use Planoly or another scheduling app to help you post daily.

3.       Make a plan! Since you have to post daily spend a few hours once a month and set up your monthly plan as to what you are going to be sharing … will it be projects, before & after, chaos, shopping, a day-in-the-life, etc. Creating this monthly plan will help you stay organized and less overwhelmed.

4.       Create a cohesive look with your images.  Look at your grid of 9 and make sure your images flow and look good together. It’s all about the visual on Insta.

5.       Ask for share for shares. Do your research and find people that could share your post and you can do the same for them … some interior designers find that they get more followers when non-interior designer professionals share their Instagram. Think event planners, real estate agents, fashion influencers, photographers, etc.

6.       Engage. This one is super important. Answer the questions and reply to everyone that leaves a comment. You are building a relationship with potential clients and you showing up for them means a lot! They need to be able to trust you and rely on you in order to work with you.

7.       Share where you purchase items with affiliate links. I wouldn’t share where you purchase trade items but if you purchase items from anywhere you can get an affiliate link from them by all means share. You could make some affiliate income just for sharing.

8.       Take advantage of Instagram stories. Instagram stories have become super popular and I still haven’t dived into trying them myself but that is where we need to be to gain more followers.

9.       Use video. People like to see your face; hear you talk and learn more about your personality. We live in a world where we watch people all. the. time. Trust me … if you post it, they will watch it.

10.   Think positive. Consistency and persistence will pay off. It won’t happen overnight, but it can happen! Stay positive, have fun with it and you’ll see the numbers increase.

Remember, time is going to pass anyway, so you can start implementing changes today and see results down the road or you can do nothing and in a year or two be exactly where you are today.

XX, Danae

How A Good Copywriter Can Grow Your Business

The interior design industry is competitive, however, there is more than enough work to go around. So how do you stand out from the crowd? It’s a combination of your portfolio and the story you have to tell that will engage and intrigue your target market to want to work with you.

The copy should reflect your personality, your brand and what your goals and expectations are for your business. We all attract different types of people to our brands … what type of clients do you want to attract?

There are a variety of ways a copywriter can help you grow your business. Below are a few of those ways!

1.       Optimized copy (SEO) – An experienced copywriter is going to maximize the keywords in your copy so that you appear in more searches. There are a variety of popular keywords your ideal clients use when searching for an interior designer. The more of those keywords used in your copy the more likely you will be to pop up in those searches.

2.       Engaging copy - An experienced copywriter is going to be able to take your story and brand and turn it into something attention grabbing and relatable. You want your copy to compel potential clients to reach out.

3.       Tell a story with your images – You may have an exceptional portfolio but you also need copy to tell the story your portfolio or project portrays. Use these stories in your blog posts, emails and social media accounts. And if you chose to show your portfolio in video form … a copywriter can write video scripts for you as well.

4.       Write for recognition – A copywriter can write copy to send to publications, post in Facebook groups and other print and digital media outlets.

5.       Ads – The most successful Facebook ads are the ones that have been carefully curated for maximum attention. Experienced ad copywriters know all the keywords to use when creating these ads.

If you don’t feel like you have the time or money to invest in a copywriter at this time, please remember you can always download email templates from my website for only $15 each. They are located at www.elitedesignassistants.com under the Shop tab. We are going to be adding a bunch of NEW templates this month AND if you want an email written just let me know what you’re looking for. If it’s something I can put on my website then you only pay $15. It’s a win-win!

As always, please feel free to let me know if you need help.

I hope you have an amazing day!

XX, Danae

Tiny Offers to Create Passive Income

I’ve been doing a lot of research on ways to generate passive income by selling digital downloads and some of the research I’ve come across has been very interesting.

One leading digital marketer has been teaching her clients NOT to offer freebies. Yes, that’s right. Even though the popular rule of thumb is to offer a freebie in order to get in front of your target market, this particular digital marketer has found that by offering freebies we are just attracting consumers who are online collecting freebies.

She suggests that we offer tiny offers, whether they be $17 or $27 or $37 … I’m really not sure why they all end in 7 but this is what she recommends. She said that we are more likely to attract our ideal client when we offer them something of value at a small price. They are more likely, than someone who grabbed our freebie, to purchase more from us in the future.

So why does she believe this? When we offer something for free we are potentially attracting way too many of the wrong type of prospects … if someone isn’t willing to spend $27 with us they most likely won’t be willing to spend any money with us. Now I realize that all interior design firms are different and depending on your target market and if you are looking to offer digital downloads this may not pertain to you.

I did find it ironic that she was teaching me about her practice on a Masterclass that she offered for FREE, but that is a discussion for another day. I do know people who have built a successful business offering freebies … offering tiny offers is just an alternative approach to generating more income.

So how does this work? Let’s say you have some valuable information that you are just giving away on your website as a digital download, now you attach a price to it and sell it. I’ve seen designers sell pdfs of design plans, choosing the right paint colors, tips on how to design a room and tips on how to manage their own construction. There are a lot of DIYers out there looking at interior design websites every day and some of them might just purchase your download. After purchasing your download they may just decide to do business with you, and if they don’t, well you still made a bit of cash from their download purchase.

For those of you looking to create passive income, creating valuable downloads and selling them is a great way to increase revenue, increase exposure and increase interest in your business.

Are you ready to start offering a tiny offer? Shoot me an email and let me know how we can help!

XX, Danae

Sourcing Made Easy

As you are aware, being an Interior Designer means juggling a multitude of things from client meetings, to sourcing, invoicing, proposals, dealing with contractors and the list goes on and on. Streamlining processes are crucial to building and maintaining a successful interior design business and so today I’m going to write about sourcing.

Sourcing can be as simple or as complicated as you like, but to simplify things I’ve got a few great tips and tricks for you below.

1.       Narrow down a list of key vendors. I know many interior designers that only work with their favorite vendors … you know the ones. They are easy to work with, offer great commissions and their shipments come on time and intact. Keep this list in your computer or better yet go to each of their websites and save them to your favorites. This way you can have tabs across the top of your website browser that you can get to easily and quickly. If you need help with a list of key vendors … let me know as this could be a blog post entirely on its own.

2.       Keep an ongoing list of your favorite products. I realize you don’t want all your clients’ homes to look the same but there are a handful of items that even the most successful interior designers’ source for multiple clients. For example, I follow a popular interior designer on the east coast who has a very popular blog and from her portfolio I can tell that she loves tulip tables, X benches, anything leopard print, trays and popular design books.

3.       Organize your favorite products in libraries on Pinterest, Excel or another area of your computer. This way when you have a client looking for a kitchen table you can go to your kitchen table cheat sheet to see if there is a great kitchen table there. I realize these lists will always be changing but it’s a great time saver if you spend a few minutes updating it as needed.

4.       Outsource your sourcing. I realize this is hard for some people but when you find someone great who understands your clients’ style and what you are looking for it can be such a huge benefit to your business. Working with a trusted virtual design assistant can be a huge asset to your business.

Hopefully you’ll find these tips helpful in creating a system for sourcing that will save you time and headaches!

2020 Digital Marketing Trends

According to Forbes Magazine, the amount spent on digital marketing in 2020 is expected to reach $1.3 trillion dollars! I said dollars … not doll hairs. That is a ton of money! So what are the trends that interior designers should consider to get their brands out there?

1.       Video, video and did I mention video? Video is going to continue to be a very popular way to get your brand in front of consumers. People love to watch videos and your audience wants to get to know you and how you work.

2.       Partner with an influencer. Perhaps you are not a fan of video and you’d rather partner with someone who already has a large following. Influencers allow their audience into their daily lives and their audience trust them. Be sure to choose an influencer who can accurately represent your brand in order to reach the target market you desire.

3.       Virtual Reality. You can use virtual reality to give tours of the projects you are working on. The real estate industry has been using this tool for a few years now and it’s going to continue to grow in popularity.

4.       Shoppable Posts. People want to be able to click on something they like and purchase it. Create shoppable blog posts or posts to share on Instagram and Pinterest. This is a great way to create passive income.

5.       Polls and Quizzes. People love interaction. Create a fun style quiz or interior design trend poll and use it as a way to capture email address for your email subscriber list. It’s a great way to grow your email list and engage your target market.

6.       Voice Search. The popularity of Alexa has created an opportunity to use long-tail keywords that are worded more like phrases in SEO. So instead of the key words coastal design in California, the long-tail keywords would be Where are the best coastal design interior design firms in California?

These are all great marketing ideas to implement into your business to keep your brand fresh and desirable. Have fun with it and attract more clients along the way.

Getting Along with Contractors

Working with contractors seems to be a major pain point for some interior designers. Contractors and interior designers can have very different work strategies that can cause issues on a project. I’ve visited with a lot of contractors and interior designers over the years and this issue continues to come up.  So I started thinking … what are some best practices when dealing with contractors?

1.       Start off on the right foot. With any relationship, it’s best to lay all your cards on the table from the beginning. When you meet with a contractor, you both need to discuss your goals and expectations for the project. If you want the contractor to be considerate of your time, then you should be considerate of theirs as well. Stay open-minded and flexible … we all know these projects rarely proceed without a hitch.

2.       The squeaky wheel gets the grease. When you are discussing the goals and expectations ask the contractor how they best like to communicate. Some of them need you to stay on top of them, and others hate constant communication. A lot of times you can get a lot done by being ‘top of mind’ and other times an irritated contractor could decide to put your project on the back burner, however, in most cases, I did find that a charming persistence helped move the project along.

3.       Show appreciation. If the contractors you work with feel appreciated, they are most likely to work well with you on your projects. Occasionally drop off their favorite cookies or bring them their favorite coffee. Small appreciative gestures can go a long way.

4.       Ask how you can make their life easier. I’m not saying you should kiss butt, however, life is so much easier when people get along. Maybe there is a minor change you can make in the way you work with a contractor that can make a world of difference, but you won’t know if you don’t ask. Each contractor goes about his/her job differently and let’s face it … we always want to be on the good side of the contractors.

5.       Learn to manage personalities. I’m going to make an educated guess and assume that if you are a great designer you are great at managing your clients. Managing contractors is the same thing. There is a stigma among contractors that interior designers expect them to be miracle workers or that contractors don’t take interior designers seriously. Many contractors feel that interior designers set unrealistic expectations for their clients. If you know something can be done and a contractor is giving you grief over it by all means stick to your guns … the contractor is being paid to do a job. If a contractor is really dragging his/her feet then talk to them about it, come up with some kind of solution … again, the contractor is being paid to do a job.

6.       Create a team-like atmosphere. Contractors don’t like to feel like they are working for an interior designer. The contractor and the designer are working for the client, therefore the contractor and interior designer are a team and if there is a team-like atmosphere where both of you bring something valuable to the table that can go a long way!

At the end of the day, what I’ve learned is certain personality types work well with others and occasionally you can run into a personality type that doesn’t work well with anyone. If you are working with a contractor that is an absolute nightmare then by all means … find another contractor. As long as there is a mutual respect and appreciation you never know what your team can achieve! Or perhaps, contractors and interior designers are like cats and dogs … however, I have seen a lot of cute photos of cats and dogs getting along. 😊

2020 Business Bucket List

Wow, I finally got back to blogging after the holidays! I didn’t realize how much I needed a break until I took one. Doesn’t it feel great to occasionally do nothing? Don’t get me wrong, I am a very motivated and a slightly Type A kind of person but as busy I tend to keep myself it does feel good on occasion to just let it all go. In fact, I realized that this year I need to delegate more. I need to give myself more breaks so that at the end of the year I don’t feel like I need several weeks off to regroup.

When my virtual assistant and I had our most recent meeting to discuss goals and how I wanted the business to grow this year I decided it was the perfect time to start handing more things over to her and boy did it feel great.

Before our meeting, I sat down and wrote a list of all the thing I love to do, all the things that must be done and all the things that I’d love to hand off. For 2020, I’m focusing more on taking risks, no regrets and living large. It was time to review the business bucket list so to speak and it felt great. The older I get the more willing I am to just go for the gold.

Have you had time to sit down and decide what you want your 2020 to look like? I realize we are three weeks into the new year, yet I imagine if you are busy like me wrapping up the end of the year responsibilities, February 1 feels more like the start to the new year.

If you haven’t already, schedule some time in your calendar before the end of the month and create your list of goals for 2020 … or your 2020 Business Bucket List. Post your bucket list where you can see it and be ready to cross things off as you accomplish them. Bucket lists are fun and rewarding, so dream big. Life is an adventure and your business is part of that life. Want to see a sample 2020 Business Bucket List?

1. Start an email subscriber list

2. Create a list of rock star vendors

3. Attend KBIS

4. Hire a virtual design assistant

5. Have an article published in an interior design magazine

6. Do an interior design segment on a local news channel

7. Pitch a new design show to HGTV

Let’s all be more adventurous this year and accomplish dreams we never thought possible! Feel free to share your bucket list with me. Sometimes accountability is key!

XX, Danae

2020 ... Let's Light It Up!

Can you believe that 2019 is almost over? This year has flown by and although I’ve had a lot of fun and growth in my business, I am really looking forward to 2020!

2020 is going to be an exciting new year in the interior design industry. If you are looking forward to growing your business here are some great idea to consider for the new year!

1.       Email subscriber list. When it comes to social media, the number one fastest growing way to get more clients has become the email subscriber lists. There are so many people competing for real estate on social media platforms that it has become increasingly difficult to be seen. So why not market to the people who want to hear from you? Why not market to your exact target market? Even a small email subscriber list can generate you more business than trying to market to the masses on social media.

2.       Local workshops. People love being educated, which is why courses are become extremely lucrative. Courses take a lot of time and energy to develop, market and maintain and although they work great for some designers if you prefer to generate local business then create a workshop for your target market. Local workshops are a great way to get in front of a lot of potential clients and be able to tell them about yourself and teach them something they can do in their own home.

3.       Video. Everyone wants to see you, get to know you and watch you. Yes, we’ve become a society of voyeurs and reality tv is influencing the way people conduct business. Create videos about before and after projects, shopping for décor, working with contractors, working with the clients … whatever you are comfortable with, start sharing videos.

4.       Thinking of you cards. I know a lot of people send holiday cards to their past clients, if you aren’t doing this you should consider it. It’s a great way to drum up more business from them. They see your card and think … I need to hire them to do my kitchen, or whatever it is. If you don’t send holiday cards you might consider a thinking of you type card that you send a year or two after you’ve worked with them. Staying in front of people is how you get them to hire you again and some say repeat clients are the best clients.

5.       New packages. Look back on the last few years of your business, is there a service or package that was far more popular than others? Are there a few services you offer that clients no longer ask for? Refresh your offers to reflect what your clients are asking for today. Also consider offering new services that align with your new goals for the year. Perhaps you want to include e-design, redesign or staging into your business for the new year.

Whatever you decide to do for 2020 you need to be thinking of it now. Write down your goals, update your website and social media and get ready for the best year ever … it’s only 21 days away!

Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas & Happy New Year! I wish you the most amazing end to 2019 and the most exciting beginning to 2020!

XX, Danae

Create Your Own Subscription Box

Subscription boxes are fun and they are popping up everywhere! People love a surprise in the mail every now and then so how can interior designers cash in on this popular sales technique?

Create an interior design subscription box that your clients or prospects can order. Use this box as your marketing as well, this is especially a great way for e-designers to promote their services as they can be used by anyone anywhere!

So how do you start a subscription box service?

First think of a great idea. Who are your customers? Who is your competition? What is your niche? What is your brand? If your niche is farmhouse than do a monthly curated box of farmhouse style accents. If your style is coastal then come up with a coastal box. You can curate a box for any style. Need ideas for what to put in the box?

1.       Candles

2.       Place mats

3.       Pictures

4.       Small vases

5.       Kitchen hand towels

6.       Cloth napkins

7.       Coasters

8.        Old books

9.       Small décor items

10.   Decorative fillers like pine cones, sea shells, rocks … whatever relates to your style

11.   Marketing materials – your business card, maybe a monthly How To guide – How To Style a Coffee Table, How to Style a Master Bed, etc. Also include coupons for your services.

Figure out your price point. How much do you think your target market is willing to spend per box per month? Home décor boxes typically run anywhere from $29.99 to $59.99 per month.

Build a prototype. Once you’ve come up with ideas to put in the box and your price point, it’s time to build a prototype. Most boxes offer 4-6 items per box. You’ll need to come up with vendors, a box, marketing materials, the items in the box, etc. A lot of businesses build a prototype, market it, start getting orders and then build the rest of their business.  

Marketing. You’ll need to create a website for your new business or add this site to your existing interior design site. Once the site is up, start marketing on social media.

Ship your boxes! Ship your items to your customers and listen to their feedback. You want to build the best box for them and the great thing about a subscription boxes is that it’s a new box every month, so you have the opportunity to switch up the box as needed.

I realize this is a high-level overview of starting a subscription box business. if you’d like more information please see the article at Cratejoy in the link below.

https://www.cratejoy.com/sell/guides/how-to-start-a-subscription-box/

Cratejoy is sort of like the Etsy of the subscription box world. You can sell your subscription boxes on Cratejoy for more marketing exposure.

Just remember - do your market research. There are several home décor boxes out there already. See which ones are the most popular and why? Is there a hole in the market? Is there something else people are asking for and aren’t receiving?

Have fun with your box. Building a subscription box service could be a really fun venture!

 XX, Danae

Create an Online Dropshipping Store

Dropshipping has become a very popular way for people to run online stores. It enables you to create a site and sell products without having inventory or even paying for the products until they are sold. Interior designers are creating their own online stores using dropshipping.

How to start a dropshipping business:

1.       Find a supplier. You will need to find dropshipping suppliers to work with. Oberlo is a marketplace that allows you to find products that you can sell online with dropshipping and according to them the home décor industry will be a $664 billion dollar industry by 2020.

Other dropshippers to consider for home décor: Eastwind Wholesale Gift Distribution, Koehler Home Décor, Park Designs, Wholesale Interiors, Sage Brook Home, Aspire Home Accents, Classic Touch Décor, Designs Direct, LLC, Home Spice.

2.       Build your store. You can use Shopify, Squarespace, Weebly, GoDaddy or BigCommece. If you decide to use Oberlo (mentioned above) they work hand in hand with Shopify.

3.       Market your website. Create a marketing plan and post your website on social media, your blog, email subscriber list and anywhere else you can to gain exposure.

When looking at marketing your dropshipping business some trends for 2020 to consider are:

*Mobile sales are significantly increasing which means people are using their phones more than ever to purchase products. Make sure your site is mobile friendly!

*Business owners are optimizing their website’s home pages and turning them into product pages. Sell the products front and center instead of having a Shop tab.

*Video descriptions of products are going to start showing up more and more on websites.

*Another random note that may or may not help with creative brainstorming when trying to figure out what to sell on your site – subscription boxes and personalized products are on the rise. Consumers love personalizing items and millennials love subscription boxes. Stay tuned in December for a post about creating subscription boxes for the interior design industry.

A dropshipping store can be as lucrative as you like if you do the marketing, social media and get the word out there. It’s a huge undertaking and if you don’t have the time … well you know where to go. :)

Earn Passive Income with an Online Store

Many interior designers make just as much money, if not more, on the commission off the products they are selling to their clients than they are on their design fees. There are only so many hours in a week to be able to create designs so a great way to grow your business is by selling products.

You can earn a great passive income by creating an online shop where your clients and target market can shop goods that are curated by you.

Curious how to get started?

1.       Set up trade accounts. I’m guessing most of you have several trade accounts set up already so research which vendors allow ecommerce sales. These are the vendors you can work with in your online shop.

2.       Create an inventory plan. Every vendor will be different in what they require for order minimums and re-order minimums. Start small and grow from there meaning start with small inventory number but a larger range of products.

3.       Create your site. There are a lot of ecommerce site templates you can purchase to make this part easy. Popular ecommerce site builders for small business are Squarespace, Shopify, Weebly and GoDaddy. You will need to calculate shipping costs so have your weights and dimensions on hand. Once your inventory and shipping are loaded connect your site to your preferred payment processor and you are ready to roll.

4.       Add content. Consider SEO when typing in descriptions for your items and use professional looking photography.

5.       Market your site. Showcase your site on social media, your blog, in a video, to your email subscriber list and anywhere else you get exposure.

There are a lot of great articles and videos online that will help you create a gorgeous ecommerce site. However, if you need help you may want to consider hiring a professional with experience creating ecommerce sites for small businesses.

If the above sounds too complicated another option might be to consider using a dropship service where you don’t have to worry about inventory for your online store. I’ll share more information on dropshipping next week!

4 Trending Revenue Streams for Interior Designers

There are several ways to create income as an interior designer other than just offer your typical services and trade products.  Depending on your situation some of them may be more inline with your current business. A few of the most popular ways I see interior designers growing their businesses today are below.

1.       Affiliate income – You can become an affiliate for several vendors selling furniture, home décor, art, fabric, window treatments and everything else your clients are already purchasing. Add your links to social media and start making sales from people who don’t hire you for your services. I know interior designers who have created mood boards with shopping lists and posted them on Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, their blog and subscriber email to make more sales.

2.       Courses – Online education is huge and there are people all over the world making millions of dollars selling their online courses. It is a lot of hard work to create a course, market it and manage it but you can create one course and sell it over and over again, even while you sleep.

3.       Online stores – You could create your own store and sell a variety of things such as a book you’ve written, fabrics or artwork you’ve created, refurbished furniture pieces and a variety of other things.

4.       Coaching – Online business coaching is another growing industry and there are many people who benefit from working with a successful interior designer in the industry. Your target market will pay for your mentoring, expertise and knowledge to help them gain success in a quicker fashion than if they were to have to reinvent the wheel themselves.

I’ve personally seen interior designers successfully implement the options above into their businesses. At the end of the day you’ll yield the best results with the options your most passionate about. With any of the above you won’t make money overnight but with some time and dedication you have the potential to make more money than you ever thought possible.

With the new year quickly approaching, what are your goals for your business for 2020? Are you ready to add another revenue stream?

Grow Your Business with a Copywriter

Copy sells and a huge part of marketing is the copy. Your target market is reading about you on your website, social media platforms, subscriber emails and any other vehicle you use to get your message out to the world. Unfortunately, very talented and skilled professionals can be missing out on business solely based on the copy they are using.

Often business owners are amazed at how much a copywriter assists in driving sales. Every piece of your marketing requires copy. Below are just a few things that you need copy for and with great copy they all have the potential to generate sales.

1.       Blog posts

2.       Emails

3.       Website content

4.       Search engine traffic

5.       Marketing pieces/advertisements

6.       Social media posts

7.       Client stories

8.       Video scripts

I understand not everyone is interested or feels they have the budget for a copywriter but consider this; Are you comfortable writing copy? Is writing copy the best use of your time? If you aren’t comfortable writing copy are you willing to put in the time to learn? In the long run, hiring a copywriter can actually save you time, money and increase your sales. It’s all part of the investment back into your business that is necessary to grow.

Your copy is what sets you apart from the rest – let’s say you are an amazing interior designer specializing in residential coastal design in California. And potential clients are looking at your website and social media along with another really good coastal designer in California. The work is similar, maybe your processes are similar, so they are going to go for the better copy. Which copy spoke to them more and which copy drew them in and made them excited about doing business with an interior designer.

Your copy can also be what got you noticed in the first place. You had great copy, so they looked at your work and stayed on website or navigated to your website. Even with individuals who have images to show for their work, the copy is still what people read. Unfortunately, it doesn’t work to just throw a bunch of images out there with zero copy and hope to get sales, people want to read about you and your story.

Please always feel free to email me with questions about working with a copywriter. Or if you want to start small you can always purchase emails from the Shop on my website for only $15 per email. We have several emails but a few of them are:

1.       Is Hiring an Interior Designer Worth It?

2.       5 Easy Steps to Update Your Living Room

3.       How High to Hang Artwork

4.       How to Choose The Right Sized Rug

5.       Thank you for subscribing (this is an email you’d send after someone subscribes to your email)

6.       Email Client Review (this email asks your clients to leave a review and where to leave it)

Remember, copy sells!