If you have an interior design business, you’re always on the lookout to boost your sales. There are quite a few ways you can do that as there’s always room for more ways to grow. Essentially, you’ll want to make strategic partnerships with suppliers and manufacturers to get early access to great deals, and look for manufacturers that will help bring them business and help bring you business in turn. But how do you actually do all that? We have a few suggestions that might help your interior design business flourish.
1. Practice Word of Mouth Advertising
When your design clients are happy with the services that you provide, they’ll talk about you. But you can spread the word about your business by joining professional associations and groups that can tap you into suppliers and manufacturers as well. Taking part in exercise classes, sports teams or religious organizations can get you new clients, too -- plus you never know who you may meet on the supply side that shares your interests.
Another great way to get suppliers and manufacturers to know who you are is to invite them to an open house at your business where you can show off your design work. A happy hour works just as well. You can also volunteer at any industry open houses, not just host your own. If you do a good job of helping to run the show, you will be top of mind when it comes to making connections with clients and suppliers.
Also try attending a local Chamber of Commerce meeting. And be sure to include those client testimonials or videos all over your Web site, pumping out business cards with the address to the key industry people you meet.
2. Go to Interior Design Industry Events
This might be a no brainer, but you’ll discover new products and inspiration at trade events. They allow you to forge vendor relationships that can help you grow your business. You can also increase your knowledge by going to seminars -- which may help others discover your expertise. Try to attend both large trade shows and more local ones throughout the year.
3. Don’t Be Afraid to Study
As a designer, you’ll want to be sure that you’re staying on top of trends and core business strategies. Some of these strategies will work for you, while some of them may not. However, you won’t know until you try, and there’s no way to know about them unless you actually learn about them. Either take a course, or start reading some business books from people in other industries. You might learn something that you can apply to your own business and make it grow. That could include anything that makes you look more valuable to any suppliers or manufacturers.
4. Use social media
This is a major way people will learn about you in this day and age. Be sure your social media profiles are up-to-date by showing projects that link back to your web site. Facebook is always a great place to connect with potential clients but Instagram is a wonderfully image-rich platform that you should use to showcase your work.
Make connections with industry peers and colleagues, not just clients, to make sure you’re up-to-speed on the latest trends. Friending peers and colleagues will also help bring you more visitors. Make sure you constantly post, which will show that you’re active. Your followers will then remain engaged, wanting to learn about what you have to share next. Find out which platforms work best for you, and use them to spread the word about your business.
Leverage our potential partnership.
If you’d like to get the word out about your design business, we’re here to help. By becoming a partner with Swedish Door, you could open up a world of possibilities. A partner page on our website, access to great deals and discounts, and a contact within Swedish Door to make your ordering process a lot simpler.
Apply to become a partner today and grow your design business with Swedish Door. You can also download our free ebook and 6 tips to grow your design business.
