Starting up an interior design company is tough work. It is a saturated marketplace and can often be difficult to get noticed. Below are a few tips to help start your company and stand out from the rest, creating a solid client base.
Every year a lot of individuals will set off to begin an interior design business and will then find themselves downhearted since it is a hell of a lot tougher than people believe. Shows such as The Block attract everybody with a passion for designing, and whilst I love to see people diving in head first into the fire it is very good to have some knowledge about the way to start successfully.
Yes, you may have a fantastic eye for particular layouts or designs but it is not referred to as a business for nothing. There is a massive difference between having the ability to make your house look fantastic and beginning a successful interior design style firm.
Construct a Super Slick Website
No-one will take you seriously as a designer if you cannot actually produce a website that’s extra special. Clients are always searching for you to show to them that you’re forward thinking with your style strategy and this has to be reflected throughout the board, from the website to your own outfit and so forth. It is well worth investing in this area greatly as you start your interior design company.
Take the time to discover a fantastic web designer or find out as much as possible about making a fantastic website yourself. If you are going down the DIY route I truly suggest that you check out Squarespace or WordPress. Both these websites are super easy and simple to use. Squarspace in particular is fantastic for portfolio kind websites with great templates and the ability to customise it to match your brand. There is a one-time monthly fee which includes hosting so you do not have to worry about paying for that separately. Additionally you will find higher priced alternatives which include customising your URL (domain name).
Do Some Early Projects at No Cost
You won’t get anywhere in the event that you start a company with graphics to showcase your jobs (more on this in a sec). But obviously that means you want some jobs actually completed from the first location! Locate 1-3 new customers that are ready to allow you to work your magic and re-evaluate your layout fee on the premise which you’re able to have complete creative control you have the creative licence to style as you wish, either with beach style homewares, art deco or whatever it is you like. I mean, no inside design project is FULL creative control since in the end of the afternoon you’re designing for real people but try and discover the ideal customer who’ll be up for expressing your own style.
Have Fantastic Photography
Your design work will live and die by its own photography. You cannot start as an interior designer if you don’t have some photographs displaying your jobs, it is as straightforward as that. Commercial property management recognises that photography is an important part in selling houses, just as it is selling a project/job to a potential client.
Do not rely on shooting it yourself unless you are extremely confident in this. Hire a proper interiors photographer to photograph finished jobs. They’ll understand all the ‘on trend’ angles to make it magazine fashion, and they’ll have the ability to light it and edit it to make your work seem the best it could. Again this is a place seriously worth investing in. Commercial real estate in Melbourne has seen great benefits of utilising a great photographer, even in selling industrial type properties.
Be certain that you inform your photographer what you’ll use the photographs for as they will be able to make sure you receive the ideal size of picture. For example, how a photographer would take on a design job for the web will differ to some magazines (dimensions and shape wise).
Know What You Are
Are you currently an interior architect? An interior designer? Or maybe an interior stylist? There are large differences between them all and you will want to convey that very clearly – what customers should expect from working together with you. This way you won’t wind up attracting customers who need you to totally redesign their home when you specialise in decorating and styling.
These terms still get confused a whole lot so please be very certain you know which one you are. The number of people that search how to become and interior stylist (designing photo shoots for manufacturers, decorating houses) when what they want to be searching is interior designer (designing a home or commercial space – layouts, etc.)
Know your Perfect Customer
You’ve got to get a complete clear cut vision of who your ideal client is. Without this you won’t have the ability to convey that you’re the ideal person for the job and cut through the wishy washy designers out there which do not understand the particular client’s needs. Maybe you concentrate on luxury style households in a particular location or maybe your strength is working together with trendy creatives in subtropical up and coming places working on beach styled themes with coastal furniture.
Obviously you want to learn your own brand values and style to begin bringing those perfect customers in. In case you don’t understand this or you are unsure then you’ve got a whole lot more work to do before you venture out there and start your business.
This is one of the largest problems across the board of not just interior designers but everyone wanting to start up a small business. The number of people who do not have any clue what their brand is. All that really does is put you with a very general customer base that’ll fall apart later on. Your marketing efforts will likely be lost and an unnecessary.
If you understand your brand and your perfect client then completely brand yourself in a means that will bring in these individuals. Think market and discover your speciality. Do not think ‘oh but what about my friends mum who said she wanted an interior designer’. No. She is not your perfect client and you will just wind up with a headache plus a job that you cannot do because it is not a representation of your own style or specialty. If you are a Perth interior designer then stick to Perth initially and then branch out into other states as your customer base grows.
By taking into account these few tips you will be on the right track to owning a successful interior design business.
