Boosting Interior Design Sales - Value-based Selling

“Price is what you pay; value is what you receive.”Home fashion has become a rapidly shifting target, with statements ranging from traditional to modern to contemporary; not just from client to client and from home to home, but even within the same home! Staying current with these shifting home fashion trends is a challenge that all of us must face but, with the right approach, can be dealt with effectively.However, marketing and selling your interior design services requires far more than knowledge of current trends in style, colors, textures, and/or finishes.When it comes to selling your products and services, resistance is rarely about the price paid and nearly always about the value received. At the very least, it’s about the perceived value of those products and services. At its core, value is about how well you can solve your client’s problem; what we today refer to as their “pain points”, which is where the above quote makes the most sense.What does your client value?Value-Based Selling is the process of understanding and reinforcing the reasons why your offer is valuable to the purchaser. It's about listening, rather than talking. By asking your potential what they want and need, you:

• Increase the prospect’s confidence in you and your understanding of the situation.
• Discover information that will help you emphasize how valuable your offer is, and how to frame your price appropriately.
• Discover how, why, and how much your offer will benefit the customer, and you’ll be able to connect more effectively, and ultimately land more sales.

Always sell based on the value your design solutions will provides, instead of the cost.For example, the choice of real wood over veneer; hand-crafted workmanship instead of mass produced selections; custom solutions rather than off-the-rack choices; these are all the types of detail that most interior design clients are searching for – yet, in spite of their desire for originality and elegance – you may still find clients who would like to “save a bit here and a bit there” despite your suggestions.To overcome such an inclination from a client, you must focus on the value of the solutions you present: the timeless statement that selected pieces will offer them; the longevity of service received from artisanal craftsmanship; the subtle, time-consuming decorative details included in hand-sewn thin welts, top-stitched seams, and pleating that provide them with the same type of detail and excellence they seek in the couture that appeals to them in their clothing choices, and that must inform their home design choices, as well.Have you learned to focus on value over price in your sales presentations to potential clients? How has this helped you to grow your interior design business?

Some Very Good News for Interior Designers

In her recent column, State of the Industry: Interior Design, Susan Dickenson of HomeAccentsToday.com shares some very good news for interior designers and design firms.“According to [a report by the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) in their] 2015/2016 Outlook and State of the Industry, interior design sales topped $8.6 billion and the dollar value of products specified annually by U.S. and Canadian designers has reached $68.5 billion, a 35% increase since 2010 (adjusted for inflation). Since 2012, the total number of interior designers is up by more than 10,000, an increase of 33%, and design firms have grown by 13,257, an increase of 7.5%. Growth is expected to continue, albeit at a more modest rate of 4% per year, through 2022.Designers interviewed by the ASID, as well as by Home Accents Today over the past year, have been consistent in reporting that while business is booming, the customer landscape and selling channels continue to change, affecting how interior designers are competing for their share of the consumers’ decorating dollars.”Interior Design Market TrendsBeyond these market trends however, the interior design industry is also evolving. What are being labeled as “macro-trends”, Health & Well-being, Technology, Sustainability, Urbanization, Globalization, and Resiliency are beginning to alter the focus and energy of designers as they work to meet the cyclical demands of an ever-changing client base. Just as holistic medicine and wellness training have taken their markets by storm, a holistic approach to interior design is becoming transformative in the marketplace.Further, interior designers are realizing the necessity of using social media for advertising and customer engagement; a trend which can only grow as platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google +, Pinterest, YouTube, and other social sites continue to build traction amongst young and old alike.Finally, the “significance of education and advocacy” among potential clients continues to grow, as both clients and designers seek higher levels of credibility and competency, requiring increased credential licensing and/or designer licensing at the federal or state levelWhich of these trends have you experienced in your design business? Have you begun to focus your energy and creativity on holistic design solutions? Share your thoughts and experiences with us here.

Focus Your Business Vision

What is your vision for the future of your interior design business?Obviously, one of your goals as an interior designer is to help your clients realize their vision of any space they wish to repurpose, reimagine or create from the ground up. In fact, helping them to do so may be your most important function as their interior designer. As a business owner however, that same talent may be just as important – creating and realizing your own vision of your design business.Creating a vision for your business involves generating a vivid mental image of what you want your business to be at some point in the future, based on your values, goals, and aspirations. Having a strong vision of your hoped-for future will give your business a clear focus, and can stop you heading in the wrong direction.

Begin with a Vision Statement

The Vision Statement for your design business should focus on the potential you see for your future, or what you intend that future to be. While your Vision Statement might contain references to how you plan to turn that future into reality, the “how” you will do so is really part of a “Mission Statement”, while your Vision Statement is more a description of the “what” you hope to do; meaning, what the you intend your design business to become.The clearer you’re able to hold the mental image of the future of your business, the more effective your Vision Statement will be, and the more focused your actions will become. Generalizations and vague goals will not work well for you. Rather, think in terms of definitive statements that reflect your values, which will help you outline a path toward your long-term business goals.

What will success look like?

Here are four steps you can take to articulating a Vision Statement for your design business:

1. A typical Vision Statement will be brief and succinct; saying much in just a few words, so those words must be very carefully chosen.
2. The key to a good business Vision Statement is to think of things in a long-term, broad sense, without sounding generic.
3. If you're too specific, you will limit your vision and it won't be applicable ten years down the road: for example, if your current goal for your business is to move into a larger space, that's a vision for the future but it's not the vision for the future of your entire business. It's too narrow in focus.
4. On the other hand, if you say that you want to achieve success – well, any business in the world could say that. It's too generic. The best statement will be clear about who you are as a company as well as who you wish to become.

Here is an example of a possible Vision Statement:“In five years, I want to bill $10 million annually, with a client base of “A-listers”, and a staff of 5 designers and design assistants, located in a home that we have completely renovated in my favorite styling.”The beauty of this statement is that it is very specific, contains realistic goals, and includes a values-based outlook.We’re all familiar with the type of client who says they know what they want, but simply cannot put their vision into words. Of course, since they have you and your training, experience, and talent to fall back on, that’s not an insurmountable obstacle for them. As a business owner however, you have no one to fall back on – you ARE the “last resort” in this situation – with your image and vision of the future of your design business being your only guide.