Creating an interior design marketing plan
You and your clients know that your interior designs are exceptional, but if you’re not marketing your work then you’re not giving it the attention it deserves. Marketing is an ongoing process that evolves with the media and consumer landscape. But the foundation of your marketing plan should always aim for the same goal – to tell your brand story and separate yourself from the crowd. A successful plan will build your reputation, your clientele, and help write the next chapter in your brand story. Here are three essential tips to consider in your interior design marketing plan.
WHO IS YOUR AUDIENCE?
As a business owner, if you haven’t answered this question yet, then you’re just floating aimlessly in the abyss. Simply put, if you haven’t identified your target audience, you reach no one. The more refined your audience profile is, the better. Getting specific allows you to customize your content to take a person through the customer journey, from browsing for interior inspiration, and starting to identify ideas and potential projects for their own space, to actively looking to connect with an interior designer. A successful marketing plan ensures you’re right there, every step of the way and everywhere the client is likely to look, whether it’s through social media advertising or organic posts, to earned or sponsored media coverage, broadcast opportunities or event appearances.
The Pitch: When pitching projects to media, we customize the pitch to each media outlet. Who is their audience, and what kind of content resonates with them? Further to this, it pays to be selective when pitching. You don’t want to dilute the “exclusivity” of your work by sharing the same photos with every editor out there. That’s a great way to get on their bad side. Instead, aim for quality coverage with an end goal of gaining potential clients, whether through first-hand viewership or from word-of-mouth. Discuss again the overall objectives with your PR manager.
Who are you, and why are you here?
This isn’t some deep, metaphysical question. In order to understand who your client is, you first need to understand who you are. What makes you stand out from the crowd of interior designers out there, all vying for that same audience’s attention? What are you known for, and what do you want to be known for? What do you offer that no one else does? Dig deep and identify your niche. This unique characteristic is what you’re really marketing.
Within your marketing plan, have a clear set of goals, such as to:
-Increase local community awareness.
-Get work seen and published locally and nationally
-Be quoted interviewed in key shelter magazines
-Raise referrals and leads
-Gain more website traffic
-Be on first page of Google for “your area of country”
-Improve overall social media reach and followers
Work with your PR professional on a plan that meets your needs and goals.
TELL YOUR STORY.
Despite what they say, a business – and especially a service business – is not just about the client. As a designer, your work is a piece of you; a reflection of you and your brand; that unique characteristic we just talked about. Ensure that shines through in your marketing plan. Given the nature of the interior design industry, this often happens through photography. Project photos tell your story, or at least as much as you’re willing to share. Your photos offer reveal more than just polished, well-lit, beautiful spaces (although that is important). They offer insight into the creative process behind your design and the process, to the mood in the home and of the lives there. When shooting your projects, ensure the photos tell a compelling story, whatever it may be. If you’re not sure, contact us!
Check out our photo blog series for our top tips:
· Photography series, part 1: Should you hire a stylist?
· Photography Series Part 2: Our Top Tips for the Best Interior Photo Shoots
· Photography Series Part 3: How to find the RIGHT photographer, & Our top 6 rules to follow before your sign on
· Photography Series Part 4: Getting Behind the Best Marketing Photos
It’s true that a picture is worth a thousand words – and these days, with the fast spread through social media and the digital space, make sure you’re saying the right ones.
Your projects are your bread and butter, and the photos are a small but significant sample of your work. Bad photos won’t entice editors to take a second look, let alone feature your work. Ensure you leave a good taste in their mouth with content that appeals to their aesthetic preferences and in turn, their audiences. If those audiences generate lots of website clicks, social media engagement or magazine sales, you can be sure the editors will come calling in short order, too.
DON’T GIVE AWAY ALL THE GOODS.
Resist the urge to reveal all your photos or tell the whole story in one fell swoop. This includes social media and your own online portfolio. Instead, we advise be “exclusive” and strategize how you can maximize your exposure and hopefully, your returns. This may mean dripping out your project photos on social and with media a few at a time, or potentially scheduling and investing further photo shoots specific to the magazine that has agreed to feature your work.
The planning process.
We bring success to our clients by creating a detailed marketing outreach plan. Everything begins with this plan, before anything else can happen. Trust in the process and be confident in the plan. We review it every four months, to ensure we continue to meet our clients’ needs and goals, what’s working and what’s not, and identify what and where we are generating attention, and where we can fill any gaps.
