How To Launch Your Interior Design Business In 2018

Spread the love

Isn’t it interesting that some people in life just know things. Instinctively, they seem to know just how to set out a plan and a strategy for success and they prove time and time again that they are successful. I’ve come to believe that in life, those kind of people are the teachers, they have a gift and they really do well to encourage and teach their not so gifted friends (ahem! ).

I have an Irish friend who is like that (I live in South Africa and Irish is cool for us). Just the other day we were sitting together at the coffee shop – he was asking me some of those tough questions that he likes to ask. “So darlin’ what’s your plan here, what’s your vision?” he says while I stumble along briefly outlining what this endeavour may look like if I achieve what I set out to do. “Without a plan my girl, you are going to fail, do not set yourself up for failure, you can do anything you set your mind to”. Yeah yeah, we watch those movies and they have us for about five minutes believing that anything is possible before reality sets in and we start thinking about the money we need to get this thing off the ground, or our lack of marketing skills or a hundred different reasons why not.

If you know that this is what you want to do, that you have a good visual eye and that you enjoy putting together interesting interiors. If you know that your knack for doing this has made many people look at their own spaces after you have had occasion to modify, even to the tiniest element, then… isn’t that what you think you should be doing?

There is never a better time than now. Get together your plan for success. Write it down. Once you have a written outline of your plan, you have something to put into the outline.

First, understand who your client is. Aim your arrow for a specific client base – who is the ideal client for you, aim high and you will get there, it will take some hard work but you’re worth it.
Have a realistic income range to achieve, goals are made to be raised so, be realistic and grow in steps until you have doubled your income range.
Consider your time! This is one of my biggest problems! I never calculate my time and under quote for my services, it’s not smart but if I don’t keep a calculator with me and factor my hours into the quotation, I am lost.
Put your skills out there – nobody is going to know what you’re able to do if you don’t show them. We live in the age of exhibitionism, exhibit your work! Facebook is free and used by just about everyone alive. Use your visual flair to make it pop and then take the time to put photographs on Pinterest, it’s a wonderful platform for those of us that are visually stimulated. You are able to categorize your portfolio into rooms and colours and soon you’ll be pinned more times than a real notice board.
Look bigger than you actually are. At the start, no one will have faith in your business because you have no track record or testimonials. With is why you need to look like a real company and not someone working in their back bedroom. Got your mobile number on your website? Remove it and cough up for a landline number that redirects to your phone. Haven’t got an address or even worse, have a residential address on your website? Use virtual office to register your address.

These are just some tips to launch your interior design business, as my friend says “you are only ever limited by your own misconceptions of your abilities.” He was right you know, I have a very successful home décor and furniture manufacturing business. By following all of his guidelines and taking the time to think strategy, we are growing our product range and our ability to see the opportunity that lives inside of our talents.