You're not manipulating them, you're guiding them.
Sales can just be guiding and it's for profit, which is great.
That's why you're in business. Nothing to feel bad about here.
Also, This is why I like in my presentations to just present
one strong solution to the client because it's really easy
to sell one solution because you have your heart and soul behind
it. I believe this solution is the
best for you client because I've thought it through all different
ways. Yes, there's an alternate here.
There's an alternate there. If you want to look at it, we
can explore that. But I've already made this
decision for you. In my professional opinion, this
is going to be the best solution for you.
And here's how much it costs. You're now listening to Design
Curious, a place where you creative one, are here to learn
about what it really is like to be an interior designer.
And I'm your host and mentor, Rebecca Ward.
If you're worried about how to succeed in a creative career, if
you're ready to learn your next steps to become an interior
designer, and if you want the satisfaction of doing something
you love every day, you are in the right place.
Grab a coffee, a notebook, and let's dig into today's episode.
Hello and welcome to episode 185 of Design Curious Podcast.
Today on the podcast, I'm talking about 3 mistakes that I
see people making when they're starting their business.
These are also mistakes that I made, so I want you to learn
from them. When you start your design
business, you think that maybe the biggest challenge will be
creating those beautiful spaces that you are dreaming about and
loving. But it's not.
The hardest part isn't the design, it's the business part.
I know that you guys are talented.
I know you care deeply about your projects, but you could
make mistakes that can cost you time, energy and confidence.
And so I don't want you to make these mistakes.
So you're going to learn from me today about that.
So let's get into it. OK?
So all of these mistakes are things that I also made when I
was starting out. And so that's why I'm sharing
with you today to make sure that you are not repeating my
mistakes when you're starting out in your business.
All right, so the first one is letting the client drive the
project. We've talked about this before,
especially when we talked about getting your dream client.
You need to set up boundaries. But the root issue is that you
don't have a clearly defined process, that you're feeling
like an imposter. You are probably a people
pleaser, which I definitely am. I call myself a recovering
people pleaser. And lack of boundaries.
I have worked on creating boundaries in my life, something
that did not come easily to me. I loved reading the Boundary
Boss book, so I definitely recommend everyone to that.
It's on my book list if you're wanting to check that out.
I have a slew of books that we read in my Design Mentor, but
I've made it publicly available, so we'll include that link for
you. A lot of great books on there,
but Boundary Boss is one of them.
Because you are the expert, right?
You are the designer and your client is not.
They are not. They probably haven't done as
many projects as you before, or else they wouldn't be hiring a
designer, right? Designers aren't naturally
empathetic and collaborative, and it's beautiful and people
love that about them. But without structure, your
projects will start to turn into a chaotic mess.
We don't like that. And I was there and I would go
shopping with my clients, even though I did not like it.
And they were indecisive and it would take hours.
And we had no conclusion at the end because every new place that
we went, they were like, oh, I like this one better or I like
that one better. And can we even remember what we
were looking at three hours ago in the other shop?
Probably not. So that's when I decide I'm
going to stop going shopping with my clients.
When you're shopping with your clients, they're really leading
the project because they're walking around the showroom and
saying, oh, I like this. Oh, I like that.
Instead of you walking around and saying we're going to work
with this sofa and this chair or you know, and then we don't even
work with that. We don't design off a showroom
floor. Typically we use wholesale
products. And so but yeah, you don't want
your client to lead the project, right?
You are the designer, you have all the experience, the instinct
to lead them in the right direction.
So just be firm on that unless you really like shopping with
clients. I don't know, some clients, I
think just hire desire because they want a shopping buddy and
they think that's what they're going to be doing is that
they're just going to go to their local home store and, you
know, pick up accessories and pillows and talk about the
fringe and, you know, maybe that lights you up.
So if that it if that does, then that's fine.
You still need to, though, lead the client in the direction that
they should go and be firm about your opinions and say no, that
pillow is not going to work with our color scheme.
We're going to select this one instead.
OK, The other examples of things that I've let clients lead which
was wrong is when they want their neighbor or their daughter
or some family member or friend come and sit in on the meetings.
The problem here is that usually that friend or neighbor is very
opinionated or else that person would not have had them there.
Likely also the client is susceptible to this other
person's strong opinion and not decisive.
So by having another strong person in the meeting, that's
going to conflict with you. Now from the beginning, you
should be asking your client who the decision makers are on the
project. If it's a couple you know or
both of them going to be making decisions, they should both be
at that presentation, of course. But anyone outside of the house
who's not going to be living in the house probably should not be
at these presentations because they're just going to make
suggestions that they don't have to live with.
And so it's going to be based on that person's experience.
But that person does not have professional design experience,
more than likely. And if they do, then why didn't
they hire that person, right? So just say no when they say I
want my daughter or someone to sit in you.
I mean, you could probably say yes, but they are not going to,
you know, they can't have any input on this presentation
because this is your house. I've designed this project for
you and you need to be the decision maker.
You know, once. Well, we'll have clients who
bring like their kids along and they'll just be sitting in the
background. They're not actually telling us
like no, I don't like that pillow.
Go back to the drawing part, you know, so, so say no to nosy
neighbors and other people who tried to barge in with their
opinions because their opinions don't matter, right?
You need to lead your client to make confident decisions, and he
can't do that if they're getting 20 different directions thrown
at them. OK, so then the other thing that
I did that was a problem, and this is still in the category of
not leading, letting my client lead and not me was with the
schedule. So I would say yes to a Friday
night meeting, Saturday morning meeting when I did not want to
be there and I started to feel resentful of the client.
Even if they were the nicest client, I would still be like,
I'm giving up my Saturday. I don't want to be here.
So that just means that I was crossing the boundary that I
didn't verbalize, I didn't set, and I needed to have my own back
on that. I would be happy to meet with
them Thursday afternoon, no problem.
Everyone's in a great mood, but not me on a Saturday.
So I had to learn to set that boundary and just say no to a
client. And I've had clients come to me
and say like, well, I can only meet in the evenings and on
weekends. And then I I have to tell them
we're not a great match. You'll need to find a designer
who can meet with you in evenings and weekends because
it's not going to be me. OK.
Allowing drastic design pivots after the presentation, I mean
basically that's a redesign, right?
So that rarely happens and often that can happen if you haven't
fully explained the design and or have not exerted that you
believe in what you have designed and that you are the
expert. And so if the client lacks
confidence in you, they might totally pivot away from what
you're showing them. Then you don't want that.
So you need to present confidently and not confuse
having flexibility with professionalism.
And it's OK to say no. Saying yes does not equal good
service. Sometimes saying no is being a
great service to the client because they don't know what
they don't know, right? OK, so they hired you for a
reason and you're not their personal shopper.
You don't need a design committee and you are the
professional. So with this first point of
letting the client drive the project as being a mistake, some
action steps for you can be to create a defined process.
Even if it's simple steps 123 easy to follow, client can
follow that too. Decide who is allowed at the
presentations and then make sure that they know ahead of time.
Establish your meeting hours or your work hours.
Don't answer the phone outside of your work hours.
Don't teach the client that you can break your own boundaries.
Script some boundary language in advance so you don't have to
come across angry or anything like that.
They do cross the line. Just have it all written out in
advance. So that's easy to for you to
follow and easy for them to understand and clarity,
remember, builds trust. So boundaries can only reassure
your clients and it helps you to be a happier designer.
So we all want that everybody wins in the end for that.
So OK, the next mistake kind of touches on something I had just
talked about. Mistake number 2 is forgetting
that you are a salesperson. So like in the presentation
example that a client might pivot away drastically from what
you're showing them, it's probably because you didn't sell
it to them, right? Being a salesperson is actually
a mistake a lot of people make. They don't understand that
design is all about sales. We've had some interviews with
marketing people talking about this before, but when you own a
design business, you are in sales because sales brings in
money, right? Money.
You need to make a profit to live or else you are
not-for-profit business, which is not what you're going to be
doing. Now if that makes you
uncomfortable, let's unpack being sales.
I mean, typically people think salespeople are not all that
approachable. Nobody likes to be sold, you
know, used car salesman's kind of the imagery that comes up,
but that doesn't have to be you. Sales are really for the benefit
of the buyer, right? You have an inquiry and they
like your aesthetics. So that's the top of your sales
funnel that they've actually reached out to you and contacted
you. Then you talk with them.
It's a great fit. You sell them the consultation.
So you're selling them the consultation.
That is sales. It gives you money, it brings in
revenue. The consultation is the next
step for the client. They get a benefit because
you've come out and you've shared your expertise with them.
You have ideas. Win, win.
OK, next step is that they need to sign the contract and give
you a retainer. So while you're at the
consultation, you can sell the next step, which is the
contract, so you can bring it out.
You can talk to them about how you have this great process.
It's makes your project run smoother.
You don't do any work without this contract because it's
really just the backbone of your business.
You're selling them the contract.
You get them to sign, they give you your retainer.
Then you're going through the design process.
You come up with a beautiful design is going to really
improve their lives. Now you need to show it to them
and sell it to them and say, you know you're selling it to them
something that they want, but they really need to understand
what it is that they're looking at, right?
So you need to tell them why you selected these colors and why
you selected this finish and thinking about it through all
the details of how they're going to live in that house and you
want to have breakfasts in this area.
So let's have these windows larger and we're going to dress
them this way. So that really lets the light
in. And you're selling to them a
lifestyle. And it's not just the items that
you've selected, it's the lifestyle that they're going to
receive, which is great, which is what they hired you for, but
they just need you to explain it to them, right?
That's part of the sales process.
Then they love the design. You've sold them the design.
Maybe you've sold them some furniture along with it and then
you have the specific selections.
You've told them why you're not manipulating them, you're
guiding them. Sales can just be guiding and
it's for profit, which is great. That's why you're in business.
Nothing to feel bad about here. Also, This is why I like in my
presentations to just present one strong solution to the
client because it's really easy to sell one solution because you
have your heart and soul behind it.
I believe this solution is the best for you client because I've
thought it through all different ways.
Yes, there's an alternate here, there's an alternate there.
If you want to look at it, we can explore that.
But I've already made this decision for you.
In my professional opinion, this is going to be the best solution
for you. And here's how much it costs.
So how nice is that for the client that they don't have to
make any of the extra decisions? Looking at three options for
every single chair, for every single fabric, for every single
floor plan, that is overwhelming.
That is not a service to the client.
So I guess I feel strongly about this, but presenting one
solution to the client is really what they're asking for in the
beginning. Unless they're asking like I
need you to send me 3 because I need to see three for whatever
reason. I like to be overwhelmed.
OK, so all of these things, you can assure the client that
you've explored the alternatives behind the scenes, you've
filtered their needs, that your job is to reduce decision
fatigue. So that's why you're not showing
them five different layouts. You can show them one or two if
you want, just to reinforce, because sometimes I'll do that.
I'll just show them the one and then I'll be like, we might have
a whole discussion about it. Yeah, I have a sectional here
instead of two sofas because of this and this.
And then I might pull up that the other sketch that I did, the
not finished beautiful floor plan of the layout with the
other way. And like you can see how this
might block your flow of traffic or whatever reason is I didn't
select that one. You can always pull that up and
show them and that just, you know, that can reinforce even
further that you know what you're talking about.
So they hired you for your professional opinion and don't
hand the job back to them in a PowerPoint and just be like
here, it's all organized now you get to make all the decisions
again. I don't think that's why they
hire a designer. And to be honest with the client
up front, I kind of tell them that's how I work as well so
that they are not expecting to see three different layouts.
A lot of them appreciate that I've done all that filtering out
for them. So they just have to say yes or
no or just say tweak this, you know, less decisions is better
because they're busy with their own job, their own life, and
they don't need to have a million other decisions to do.
Clients will trust you more of this process as you're taking
them through the sales process and they can say yes.
And if you get them to say yes on little things, that can help
get them to say yes on bigger things later on that they are
building trust with you along the way.
And designers aren't just selling products, they're
selling clarity, confidence, Peace of Mind.
So action steps for you is to get comfortable talking about
money, practice explaining your reason.
So if you need to do your presentation to a friend or
family member first before you show it to the client, that
might be good practice if you're not used to doing presentations,
because then they might ask some clarifying questions that you
might not. You might have assumed your
client would understand, but they don't.
And so you'll know what areas you need to elaborate on or have
more understanding around so that your client increases their
confidence in you. Stop apologizing for your
pricing if you're doing that. The price is what it is.
And remember, sales is a service when it's done ethically.
So that is mistake #2 that people make.
And then the last one that I see a lot, and I did part of this
starting out was not making the business official.
So I did make the business official in certain ways.
When I first started up, I did not get an LLC.
I did not know I needed business insurance right off the gate.
But the other things I did do, so that I was going to say is
that some, this is what I see often is that people don't get
their LLC or have insurance, but sometimes they don't track their
sales tax properly. They don't hire a bookkeeper or
they mix their personal and business accounts and tiptoe
into business. So that's the problem, you need
to make your business official from the start.
If you're doing a business, either you're doing it or you're
not, right? So let's reduce your risk and
personal liability or penalties with taxes.
Make sure you have cash flow and there's no confusion around
that. And you want to look
professional to your client. So be sure and have some
systems. And you know, having a
bookkeeper doesn't have to be a full time person.
They can just come in a couple hours a month to get you cleaned
up. Then it's another person on your
team. And then also you can start
saying we as a company. It kind of gives you a different
perspective when you're telling your clients we do this and we
do that. When it's just you, you have a
hard time saying we as a like a royal sense, you know, of your
company. So having a bookkeeper on hand
can help you understand that you actually are a team of people
coming together to create this design for the client.
And of course, you don't want to have any fear around money when
you're first starting out making your business official.
So if you want to be taken seriously, you have to take
yourself seriously first. You know that design is creative
and business is structure, and you need both if you're going to
have your own business practical starter list for you.
And we do a lot of this in boot camp if you need some to help
you along the way to get all these things checked off.
But a few of the things that we cover is to form an LLC.
We had a great podcast episode on this with llcattorney.com.
So we'll link back to that so you can listen to that.
It's very helpful and it's a great company.
I've had a lot of people coming through boot camp work with them
to set up their LLC and you want to set up a separate bank
account so. Make sure you're doing that.
Set up your sales tax permit, get your business insurance, get
a basic bookkeeping system and a Britain contract.
Always, always so many different ways that a contract is helpful
to you not only for your liability, but clarity for you.
And then it also gives you backbone and structure for your
business. So all of those things are
necessary when you're wanting to make your business official.
And if you haven't done any of those, then reach out to me and
I can help you make sure that you have accountability on
getting those set up. So don't make any of these
mistakes that I made when I was starting out and hopefully you
can learn from me and avoid them.
So if you are making these mistakes or you have made some
of these, then it doesn't mean that you're not a talented
designer. It just means that you're new
and that you need to adjust your approach so we can fix all of
these things. Every designer has lessons that
they've learned over time, but the faster that you can embrace
this, the more mature your business will be and the more
confident you'll be. So if you are wanting help with
that, you can join my design mentor or you can get on the
wait list for launch your business boot camp.
Or you can also listen to the webinar that I recorded for you.
It's called From Passion to Profit and five many mistakes
that people make. So more mistakes that I want you
to avoid so you can learn what those are in the links in the
show notes. All right, that's all I have for
you this week. Next week we'll have another
great episode. And until then, stay creative.
Thanks for listening. If you love this episode, please
leave a rating and a review. This helps me reach other
curious creatives like you. If you have a topic request or
would like to contact me, simply head over to my website
ourawarddesign.com or e-mail me at podcast@ourawarddesign.com.