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INTERIOR DESIGN &
HOME STYLING
Module 14
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14. Module 14: Organizing the business.
Table of Contents
14. Module 14: Organizing the business. ............................................................................................... 1
14.1 Managing Interior Design business .......................................................................................................... 2
14.2 Maintaining professional relationships ................................................................................................... 3
14.3 Charging fees ............................................................................................................................................ 5
14.4 Preparing a portfolio ................................................................................................................................ 6
14.5 Marketing your business .......................................................................................................................... 7
14.5.1 What is marketing? ......................................................................................................................... 7
14.5.2 What are benefits of an interior design service? ........................................................................... 8
14.5.3 Needs and wants ............................................................................................................................. 9
14.5.4 Market research ............................................................................................................................ 10
14.5.5 Examples of target audience segments ........................................................................................ 11
14.6 Low cost marketing techniques ............................................................................................................. 12
14.7 Setting up a website ............................................................................................................................... 15
14.8 Blogging .................................................................................................................................................. 19
14.9 Social media ........................................................................................................................................... 20
14.10 Free PR ................................................................................................................................................. 23
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14.1 Managing Interior Design business
Maintaining professional relationships
Charging fees
Preparing a portfolio
Marketing your business
Low cost marketing techniques
Setting up a website
Blogging
Social media
Free PR
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14.2 Maintaining professional relationships
To establish and maintain a good reputation so you attract a continuous stream of new business, it’s
important to maintain professional and ethical working practices with everyone you engage with. You want
to inspire respect among clients, the public, fellow designers and any suppliers and contractors you deal
with. The following are guidelines. Adopt these approaches right from the beginning.
With clients:
Your contracts and written agreements should clearly outline the scope and nature of the
project you’re undertaking, the services you’re committing to and the payment structure and
methods.
Don’t be too ambitious until you have the right experience. Only take on projects that you know
you are capable of completing to a satisfactory standard.
When you deal with suppliers and contractors on behalf of a client, remember that you
represent your client and your behavior will reflect on them. Maintain professionalism and
politeness at all times.
Make a point of only dealing with suppliers and contractors that give a good service.
Maintain strict confidentiality around any personal information you gather about your clients in
the course of your work. Be honest and truthful in all your dealings with clients
Seek permission from clients before you use any photographs or video footage of projects for
promotion of your business or any other reason.
With suppliers and contractors:
With suppliers you use regularly, agree clear payment terms and discounts, if eligible, and settle
outstanding invoices promptly.
When ordering goods, allow a reasonable time for delivery and have an alternative strategy in
case of non-delivery or unavailability of chosen items.
Engage with all contractors and sub-contractors as colleagues on a team and encourage mutual
respect and cooperation.
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Make it clear, politely, how important it is that you receive a high quality service.
With other designers:
While you are in competition with other designers, never try to interfere with a current
contractual relationship between them and their existing clients.
Never harm a colleague’s reputation by speaking badly of them. Attract business by promoting
and marketing your excellence and skills, not by taking from another.
It is ok to offer a second opinion to a client when another designer has given theirs.
Maintain confidentiality on any information you gather about other designers in the course of
your work.
With the public:
Comply with all federal, state and local laws, rules, regulations and codes governing business
procedures and the practice of interior design in the jurisdictions in which you practice.
At all times, consider the health, safety and welfare of the public in the spaces you design for.
Notify property owners, managers, landlords or public officials about any conditions that could
endanger the health, safety and/or welfare of the occupants or the general public.
Don’t put anything misleading or untruthful in any of your marketing or promotional activity.
Never attempt to sway the judgment of a public official in connection with any project you’re
working on or hope to.
Never be part of any improper or illegal activity associated with a project.
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14.3 Charging fees
Interior designers charge for their work using a variety of structures and models. These depend on their level
of experience and expertise, reputation, client demand and geographic location. They may also vary the fee
structure or rate according to the client base.
A good reputation, varied experience and an impressive list of previous clients will naturally allow you to
have handsome fee structure - what all designers are striving to achieve! While you’re getting there, here’s
a guideline to commonly used fee arrangements:
1. A fixed fee. This is a pre-agreed figure, outside of expenses, which you’ll charge for all your work
on the design project. Specify in your written agreement exactly what it includes, e.g. conceptual
development, layouts, specifications and final implementation.
2. Hourly fee. You charge according to the hours you spend working on the project. Carefully log
and date your time and categorize it on your invoice. Include your visits to site.
3. Percentage of project cost. This usually includes furnishings and services provided by others, if
you’re responsible for securing and managing them.
4. Retainer. The client pays a fee up front at the beginning of a project and the remainder is paid
according to the terms of the contract.
5. Cost plus. This is when you supply a range of furnishings, materials, and services, engage them
at a wholesale price and add a percentage before charging the client, which covers your fee.
6. Per square foot/meter. You charge your fee based on the square footage of the project.
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14.4 Preparing a portfolio
In an interior design business, your marketing potential and your ability to build a reputation is very largely
based on your portfolio of successfully completed projects. Combining a good portfolio with good feedback,
referrals and testimonials will give you a winning formula for growing your business.
From your first project, take pictures. This may be on your own home or a family member’s. It doesn’t have
to be a big impressive scene to make a good picture. As well as full room photos, you need plenty close ups
of particular details and sections of any home to highlight your skills.
As you do more paid work, photograph everything and try to be organized enough to categorize your pictures
for future use. Use your best ones to present to clients in a show book when you’re trying to win a contract.
The most effective portfolio to create is a digital one. With the advantage of a website and social media,
there’s no end to the scope of your reach through attractive collections of pictures.
Build an impressive gallery of completed work on your website.
Use pictures of particular rooms, like bathrooms or kitchens to do articles showing your special
skills in designing spaces that work super efficiently and look sleek and stylish.
On projects where you achieved something worth talking about, blog about the experience and
post pictures.
Gather attractive collections of cool furniture, interesting fabrics etc. on Pinterest pages.
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Ask suppliers and contractors to feature your finished projects on their sites – this will be
mutually beneficial.
Instagram your pictures and encourage friends and family to pass them on.
Post attractive room pictures or intriguing close ups on your Facebook page often.
You have a particular advantage in promoting an interior design business in that it’s such a visual, attractive
and interesting profession and catches the imagination of a huge number of people. Make use of this aspect
of your business by continually building your portfolio. Be discerning about the photos you choose. Only
publish choices that sell your skills and abilities well.
14.5 Marketing your business
There are very few products or services that sell themselves. Ongoing marketing will be an integral part of
running your interior design business. It’s a broad topic and can be daunting at the beginning, but
understanding the principles and how you can implement them is a big help.
14.5.1 What is marketing?
The traditional definition of marketing that many marketing students learn is:
Putting the right product in the right place, at the right price and at the right time.
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This may seem like a rather simple and idealistic view but it does clarify the most important, basic elements
to marketing your business. It gets you to examine what you are offering from a marketing point of view and
see the crucial components through your customers’ eyes.
Marketing is the practice of preparing a good, attractive product or service and positioning it where you’re
easily found by the people you intend to sell to at a competitive price. Once those crucial elements are
decided on, it’s about finding ways to not only tell potential customers about what you offer but marketing
to them in a way that encourages them to buy from you, not your competitors. It’s about knowing and
understanding your market and communicating the value of your product or service in order to influence
buying patterns.
The role of an interior designer in home styling is to add to the quality of life of the members of the
household. You make their lives more pleasurable, more convenient, less stressful and their surroundings
more beautiful, pleasing and fulfilling. But it is important to remember that your role is an added luxury for
most.
As with all marketing, you need to sell the benefits of your service to your clients. You could look at your
marketing as a collection of actions that communicate and deliver the benefits and value of what you offer
to your target audience and manage your ongoing relationship with them.
14.5.2 What are benefits of an interior design service?
Benefits are how your clients feel after receiving the value you give, rather than the physical surroundings
you have put in place. The features of your service are that you transform living environments; the benefits
are what the people in the new environment experience and feel after you’ve done your job.
Surveys have shown that almost all consumer decisions are made 80% on emotional reasons and 20% on
intellectual ones. It’s easy to see why. A guy needs a car to get around in. Almost any car will do the job,
functionally. But how much does his desire for the one he likes come into play when deciding on his
purchase? He’s not just thinking of what will get him to work reliably every day. He’s thinking of what car
looks great and that he’ll look good in, what it will say about him, the attention or envy it will attract.
Big brands are acutely aware of this concept and design marketing strategies to appeal to people’s desires
and wants. They make the connection between emotions and their products, convincing people that their
emotions will be fulfilled by using or having this brand. Customers will feel better.
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14.5.3 Needs and wants
To understand this distinction between the benefits and features of your service more fully, let’s look at
need and wants.
A need is something necessary or functional. The product that meets a need serves a purpose; it does a job.
Our needs are what we need to survive and function in our world. Most products or services that are in
competition with each other will fulfill this function or need. Brands are not differentiated on the basis of
the functions they perform or the need they answer. Functionality is like the minimum requirement for a
product or service to be in the market
A want is a desire for something. A want is personal; it goes beyond functionality and purpose. The added
ingredient of desire when choosing one product over another is what drives consumers to be discerning in
their purchases. It’s in adding this desirability to your service or product that you become competitive;
effective in convincing customers that they want yours rather than your competitor’s goods. The guy
shopping for a car needed transport to get to work. But it was what he wanted that drove him to spend the
extra money on the more stylish/attractive/powerful one.
The more you can create an emotional connection between your service or product and your customer, the
stronger your brand is. The urge behind a want is much more powerful than the urge behind a need. You
don’t just want your customers to need you; you want them to want you. This is one of the most important
elements to bear in mind when planning your marketing strategy.
When you’re selling your service, of course it’s vital to do the best job you can in providing superior
surroundings that fit each client’s requirements. But look beyond how beautiful you can make a home look.
It’s much more powerful to sell to clients the feeling of pleasure to sit in those surroundings, the ease in their
lives because things flow better or the feeling of control they have to work in an area that’s well lit and has
everything they need to hand.
Make use of this language when asking questions. How would it feel if you could sit in this position facing
the view? Would it be less stressful in your everyday life if we rearranged the flow in this way? Do you feel
calmer when you’re surrounded by soothing colors?
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14.5.4 Market research
Before you plan a marketing strategy, you need to gather some vital information about your business. The
most important is:
Your customer profile & target audience
The service or product they need or want that you offer
Your competitors – who else is offering a similar service/product in the same market
Market research is the process of gathering information that’s relevant to your business and is essential
before you set up yours. You may believe you know your market, your customers and your competitors well
but making objective enquiries can often turn up results you weren’t aware of. It can give you valuable insight
into your target audience and potential market and a powerful advantage in pitching your business to make
it competitive.
The purpose of your market research will be to get insight into your potential customers’ needs, wants,
behavior, lifestyle choices, buying patterns and possibly beliefs and to know who else is competing with you
to meet those needs and wants.
Identify your customers
Create a profile of your typical customer.
What needs/wants do you answer?
Will there be different target groups - do your customer profiles fall into different categories?
How many? If your target groups are too diverse it may be difficult to have a clear brand image and market
to each group effectively. Would it be better to choose certain groups to focus on?
Can you reach enough customers to make your business viable?
Know your market
How is the market you’re intending to enter structured or segmented?
Which segments or groups will you target?
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What share do you hope to claim?
Profile your competitors
Do an online search of your catchment area and make a list of all your competitors.
How many offer exactly what you intend to?
Do they have the same skills as you? Can you add any advantage?
What can you offer that your competition can’t?
Search through local newspapers and magazines in your field and look at the advertisers. Who are they?
Who can afford the most expensive ads? Why? What are the current trends?
Collect competitors’ brochures/price lists/special offers. What are they charging? Can you be competitive?
What is the market rate for your skills?
Is there enough demand for another business in your field?
Can you create new demand?
What trends can you see?
Can you identify or anticipate emerging trends?
14.5.5 Examples of target audience segments
An interior design service could be necessity for busy people who just don’t have the time to spend on the
searching, planning and decision making involved in renovating, remodeling or decorating a new home. This
is one segment of your target audience.
Another segment will be people with high spending power. Once you get some experience, your most
lucrative business is likely to come from an audience that has robust spending power to avail of it.
People at the top end of your market are great admirers of quality and can spend lavishly on what they value
and appreciate but not necessarily across the board. Be sensitive to this and try to learn personal preferences
and personalities. They like you to speak well, using correct grammar. They admire drive, ingenuity and good
salesmanship.
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They are more than likely to be progressing in age. Try to connect with things they relate to, like particular
music eras, visual styles etc. Connect your business and services with these anchors to develop a sense of
common bond so you build trust, but be genuine. Make your service an experience that adds to their
experience.
Look for opportunities to market your services in places they frequent or shop – the right clothing stores,
restaurants, charities, wine shops, spas, investment services, private banks, caterers, personal shoppers, real
estate agents etc. People who already do business with this target audience are happy to look good by
recommending another excellent service that enhances their lives. Align your business with the services this
target segment already goes to.
14.6 Low cost marketing techniques
Most new businesses run on a tight budget and can’t afford expensive marketing consultants but there’s a
lot you can do on a small budget to help market your Interior Design business. Some cost-free promotion
can even be more effective than paid advertising and promotion. Here are a few ideas.
Use your personal contacts to springboard your business
Take full advantage of all your personal contacts to spread the word about your new business. Make a list of
all your face book friends, school or college contacts, colleagues and ex-colleagues, club or sporting contacts,
relatives and neighbors. Be excited and enthusiastic. Describe what you’re doing in the best way you can
without being too pushy. Encourage everyone to visit your website and engage with your social media
presence.
Ask everyone who they know who’s planning to buy a new home, remodel or renovate and ask them to
recommend you. To get your business rolling, offer an interior design service for a reduced cost in return for
testimonials. This starts to build your track record and credibility. We don’t recommend offering a
completely free service as planning an interior design is a very big commitment which you will need some
payment for and you may not be valued if it’s free.
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Ask for testimonials
Testimonials are powerful endorsements of you and your business. Every time you design an interior, ask
your client to write a glowing testimonial showing how happy they were with your service. Encourage them
to list all the aspects and details that show the benefits they felt from using your service. Put these on a
testimonials page on your website, post on social media along with photos and quote the best lines on the
back of your business cards. You could use a line on your letterheads or on the home page of your site. The
more good testimonials you gather, the more you build a strong brand and popular business.
Ask for referrals
This is probably your most valuable form of marketing, firstly because referrals are cost free and secondly
because they are so powerful. A referral is when someone you know or an existing client recommends your
business to someone they know. People place so much trust in a recommendation from someone they know
that a very high percentage translates into new business.
The most obvious source of referrals is people for whom you’ve provided your service and who
are happy with the results. As an extra incentive, offer a discount off their bill if you get two
other bookings from their referrals.
Friends and family. Even though they may not be customers, their faith in your capabilities and
qualities could be enough to convince people to use your service. Keep them up to date and
aware of what you’re doing regularly.
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Former business colleagues. People who’ve seen how well you work will be happy to
recommend you.
Your suppliers, services you use and any other business you deal with, even occasionally, can
pass the word around to their contacts about you. If you, in turn, recommend their businesses
the mutual benefit will encourage ongoing referrals.
Links on your website. Having links to related businesses on your website and asking them to
link to yours grows your online profile and is another way of giving an endorsement to your
business.
Encourage positive comments on social networking and business review sites. They can feed you
new clients. You have little control over these but can ask satisfied customers if they’d be happy
to post their experiences. Do your best to avoid anything that could inspire someone to write a
negative one. If it does happen, try to redeem your image as soon as possible by giving such
good service you can ask for three more excellent ones to limit the damage!
Join a business network
Once you’ve set up your business, another great way to kick start trade is by joining a business network or
local Chamber of Commerce. A network group is a small number of business people who work collectively
for the good of everyone in the group. They take any opportunities they can to recommend you and you do
the same for them. Many businesses thrive on these leads alone. There are probably many choices in your
area and joining costs vary. Some are focused on specific sectors; check whether they suit your business
before joining.
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14.7 Setting up a website
Today, a website is a must for all businesses, no matter what their size. Before customers decide to come to
you they are highly likely to have done online research, even those who got a personal referral. Your website
is your online shop window, your chance to look appealing, be appealing and reassures the up-for-grabs
customers that you will answer their needs and wants better than the competitors whose sites they will also
check out. You can use it to show yourself off at your best and build valuable credibility. If you don’t have a
website you’ll look inadequate to clients so it’s a necessary investment but probably not as costly as you
think.
Your website is catering to two audiences:
1. Your customers & potential customers and
2. The search engines, of which Google is persistently king.
You need to keep both happy and interested.
If you’re on a limited budget, you can design your own website, cost free. User friendly website design tools
you can learn to use like WordPress, Wix, IMCreator and more have readymade templates which you
customize with your own content. Create.net offers a free 30 day trial and a range of low cost monthly fees
thereafter. Once the site goes live, in most cases you will have to pay a yearly hosting fee but this is very
affordable. Template master have a huge range of templates from many DIY site builders.
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Creating good content
The bulk of the content on most sites is written material (copy) and pictures. You can add to these and bring
the site alive by posting blogs and videos. There are tools you can use to post free blogs like Google Blogger,
WordPress and Typepad. Add further interest by linking your site to your chosen social media applications.
Picture content
To fill your site with professional, attractive photos that show the kind of business image you want, there
are lots of sites that stock thousands of suitable shots like Thinkstock, GettyImages, Shutterstock, Fotolia
and 123rd. You’ll also be able to build your own collection of photos - use these in your gallery and social
medial, with permission from clients, and use professional ones on your web pages.
The copy
Producing good written content can be harder than you think. If you can afford it, hand it over to a
copywriter. They are skilled at using the right words, avoiding waffle and promoting the best selling points
of your business in a way that’s compelling. It will read well and look professional. Another advantage is
speed. Most web designers will tell you that waiting for content, to be ready, is the biggest reason for delay
in getting a site up and running.
If you do want to give it a go yourself, here are a few tips:
Even though you want to please both search engines and your customers, write with your
customers in mind. Search engines are becoming more and more insistent that content is of a
high standard, relevant to your site’s audience and answers what they’re searching for.
Keep sentences and paragraphs short. Aim for sentences of no more than 10 words and break
up large blocks of text into smaller, individual paragraphs.
Write like you’re taking to one person, your typical dream customer.
Don’t write about the features of your business. Instead, emphasis the benefits. Try to get your
customer to feel how much better her life will be after using your service. E.g., instead of “I use
a new computer program to plan your color scheme” say “Enjoy your evenings in surroundings
that are soothing and peaceful.”
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Avoid starting sentences with “we” or “I” as much as possible. Instead, start with a verb. E.g.,
instead of “I can plan every aspect of your remodeling.” Write: “Switch off while all the details
of your interior transformation are carried out smoothly and quickly.” As much as possible,
speak to your customer, not about yourself - use the second person narrative.
Adding a frequently asked questions page is a really good way to avoid time spent on repeated
enquiries and search engines rate it well.
Keep in mind that you need to regularly add new content to keep it feeling fresh and the search
engines ranking you well. Keep a note of ideas you can add weekly. A blog is a great way to fulfill
this function.
SEO Search engine optimization
Once your site is ready to go live – your domain name is registered and you’ve arranged hosting – your next
task is to get it noticed. It’s rather like a catch 22 situation - in order to get noticed by your customers, i.e.
appear high up the list when people search for your type of product/service in your area - you must first be
noticed by the search engines. To be noticed by search engines, one of the important criteria is to have lots
of visits to your site.
(Multiple visits from the same IP address don’t count.)
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You’ll need to spread the word to as many people as you can to visit and use all pages on your site to build
the traffic to it so you feature in results. Once you have a steady volume of users and you update with
relevant content regularly, you should be able to maintain good visibility. If you’re a member of a networking
group, ask everyone there to visit your site, linger on each page and use all functionality.
More tips for helping your search ranking:
If you’ve used web designers, they will help with the technical elements of SEO.
List yourself in Google’s ‘places for businesses. This allows you to create a Google Local Business
Listing, free of charge.
Emailed newsletters are a trusted way to entice people to visit your site. Before this works for
you, though you’ll need to build an email list of interested customers.
Link to other sites relevant to your business and ask them if they will link to yours.
Keywords - as search engines respond to the kind of language the user uses, not necessarily what
you’d choose, make sure all your page titles, headings and copy match this language. Before you
finalize your copy, ask several people who might use a service like yours what words they would
use in a search. These should be included as your keywords as often as feels natural through
your copy.
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14.8 Blogging
One of the most effective and beneficial things you can do to improve your website’s performance, and
therefore your business, is blogging. Advantages:
Unlike your website, which contains static, limited information - even though it might be
excellent information – a blog is unlimited in the variety of information and interest it can offer.
Because of this, putting real life stories, interesting observations and attractive photos can
attract a very wide audience.
Many blogs are accidentally found while a user is searching for something else.
What you put in your blog, if it’s of interest, can be quoted, linked to and sent on to others at
any time, even long after you’ve written it.
You can immediately see reaction to what you’ve posted in readers’ comments and get an insight
into how your blogs are being received out there.
Blogging is a great way to build your influence as an expert in your field. Little by little, post after
post, you can show customers you’re the one to go to and gain competitive advantage.
It gives you an opportunity to feature a particular product or service from a new angle and see
how it affects bookings.
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14.9 Social media
Two of the biggest advantages of social media tools for an interior design business are:
Its limitless potential reach
Its cost effectiveness
A recent study by the Internet Advertising Bureau in the UK found that almost 80% of consumers were more
likely to give repeat business to companies they were familiar with on social media.
For little or no cost, you can use social media to introduce yourself to the online community, build a
reputation, attract followers and entice consumers to use your services. You can also choose to pay to
advertise your business. Much of the effectiveness of social media in spreading good news about you and
your business is due to the human desire to share experiences and stories – word of mouth.
Be consistent with your presence. Don’t start with a flurry of activity and then realize you can’t afford to give
social media that level of time. Keep your posts at a steady stream and a pace you can manage while you get
on with running your business.
Cross sell yourself – promote your social media presence on your website, cards, stationery, brochures,
advertising, news features and promotions. Gather an email list so you can grow your relationship through
newsletters and referral programs. To get a following going, it may be worth some investment. Facebook,
Twitter and LinkedIn now offer low budget advertising which allows you to specify the profile of person
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you’re aiming at and their interests. They will suggest posts and followers and you only pay when your ad is
clicked on.
Social media for Interior Designer
As interior design is so visual, Instagram should be at the top of your mind when promoting your business.
Take pictures on all your projects and share shots of everything interesting and eye catching, like helping a
client to choose colorful fabric for bedroom drapes, the detail on a bespoke piece of furniture or the latest
modern door handles.
Use it to also show your individual sense of flair. Your customers are looking for someone with a good sense
of style and great taste; and with an ability to understand other people’s preferences. Feature some of your
own taste and choices in any artistic field without being too personal and show scenes where clients look
really happy with what you’re doing together.
This app can also do wonders for your interiors business. It’s a perfect medium to showcase the range and
scope of your creativity with very little effort. Create boards that show off your most visually impressive
rooms, corners, color schemes, furnishings and finishing touches. Not only can you wow people with great
pictures, you can truly show your styling ability by carefully putting together interesting collections and
combinations. You could create storyboards that show the progression from sources of inspiration to the
finished artistry. Potential clients can look at how you transformed other interiors and realize how much you
could do for their lives.
As well as your website, consumers will expect to see your Facebook business page to get a closer look at
who you are and what you’re about. With over a billion active users, it’s by far the biggest social networking
platform there is. You can make your page a vibrant storyboard by posting lots of relevant, interesting
content; that visitors will be likely to ‘like’. Use photos, video clips, and promotions. Short, visual posts have
the most impact. Post other lifestyle features that your audience would also be interested in to show you
keep up to date with current trends in all areas.
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Linked in is like an online CV or Resume, but more interactive. Creating a LinkedIn profile gives you the
chance to show your collection of qualifications, skills, talents and experience. It also allows you to network
with people that fit the profile of customer you’re looking for and other people in business you’d like to
engage with. You can also invite endorsements from former colleagues. By searching for groups connected
to your business you can participate in conversations, answer questions, offer tips and share common
information, all of which grow your reputation.
Twitter has taken over as one of the single best ways to generate new business online. It gives you an
unprecedented opportunity to build relationships with individuals who may be interested in what you have
to offer. Before you can expect any relationship to turn into a booking, though, you must create trust and
credibility without looking like you’re really trying.
You can attract new followers by sharing interesting things that would catch your customers’ attention, like
the latest interior trends, a new range of furniture, stylish bathroom ware or the most popular colors for
living rooms. Pay particular attention to those who follow your conversation, comment or re-tweet your
information and connect when it feels appropriate so you can develop the relationship further. Statistics
show that people are much more likely to do business with those they have some kind of relationship with
than those they don’t.
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14.10 Free PR
This is the relaying of information to the public about you and your business that you hope will impress and
influence them to use your service or buy your products. In other words, it’s good publicity. It’s allowing the
public to hear third party endorsement of you, your product or your service. While advertising says “I’m the
best!” PR says “I hear she’s the best.”
Look for PR opportunities
Always be on the lookout for opportunities for free PR but think before jumping in and use them wisely. For
example, radio chat shows are an ideal way to get free publicity. Listen for any discussions where you can
offer a service or solve a problem. For example, a couple is being interviewed on radio about how they had
to cancel plans to move to a bigger home due to a reduction in earnings. You could offer to remodel their
current home free of charge and ask if the radio station will follow up on the story. (This time the level of
exposure would be worth doing it free!) This could yield you a wealth of marketing opportunities – local
newspapers or TV stations might also follow the story. Not only are you getting excellent publicity on the
radio, you can tweet all through the preparations and post the clip of the remodeling on your website and
Facebook page, blog about the process and post the pictures in a collage on Pinterest. A whole PR campaign
from one phone call! Engage your creative thinking and look for other opportunities to get your business
featured in media and activities in your area.
Give free information
Giving free information on your website or in leaflets has become so much a standard practice it’s almost
expected but it is good PR. Yes, many people will take the information and run - you won’t benefit from their
custom. But others will follow up and give you business.
Being open and generous with information you could charge for might seem counterproductive but it helps
your ranking in online searches, gives you credibility and increases your profile. It also creates a good
relationship between you and your audience. People love getting something cost free. Existing clients feel
you’re giving something back in return for custom and potential clients feel good about you, trust you and
are more willing to become a paying customer. You could give some tips on choosing the right kitchen units,
fabrics or what’s important to remember when choosing a room color scheme. It may make people realize
how much there is to planning an interior and decide to employ you. You may also gather customers by
accident when they stumble on you when searching for something else.
