What Needs to be True to Book Interior Design Projects with Five & Six-Figure Design Fees
Updated September 2023
If you’re not booking interior design projects with five and six-figure design fees, don’t blame it on your market or your clients. Many things have to be in place to book those bigger projects that everyone so desires. And best of all: these things are all in your control. Woop woop.
Without further ado, here’s what needs to be true to book interior design projects with five and six-figure design fees (that’s design fees in the five and six-figures, not project budgets).
01 | You want projects with larger design fees
Some designers feel like the only way to run a design business is by offering full-service design services only, or by taking on large scale projects. But for some, that feels so out of alignment with their lifestyle, capacity, and their design skills. Oftentimes the pressure alone is too much (more money = more responsibility = more pressure).
If you don’t want to book projects with five and six figure design fees, then obviously you won’t. (And you can still be successful making hundreds of thousands or multi-millions a year).
But if you DO want to book projects with five and six figure design fees, these next things are critical to be in place within your business first.
02 | You’ve done other high-quality projects and you’ve got the marketing to prove it
Your clients aren’t going to hire the cheapest carpenter they can find to add trim, custom built-ins, moldings, and architectural details to their multi-million dollar homes. (And if they are, then you probably don’t want to work with them anyway!!).
A client who will pay five and six figures in design fees is looking for a designer who has done the same caliber of work as what they are looking for in their home.
Now notice, I didn’t say “you’ve done other HUGE projects or big budget projects”. You can absolutely have experience with smaller projects and smaller budgets and still showcase the superb quality of your design execution.
So be sure:
You’re comfortable with and capable of delivering a high-quality design that is worthy of a five or six-figure design fee, and
You’re showcasing those high-end projects in your marketing and in your website portfolio.
If your design chops aren’t there yet, that’s okay. Keep taking projects and continue to get better. As you get better, you’ll be able to increase your fees.
03 | You consistently market your business and ask for the sale
Speaking of marketing, if you’re not consistently doing it, you probably fall into the feast-or-famine trap that many designers do. When you’re busy, you’re slammed and have no time for marketing. Then when the projects wrap you have nothing in the pipeline leaving you terrified and worried your business is going under.
Designers who book five and six-figure design fees prioritize their marketing, EVEN when they’re slammed. They showcase their work, explain their services, and let prospects know what next step they should take (like book a call, fill out their inquiry form, dm them for more info, etc.).
And if you’re relying on Instagram as your only marketing platform (I have designers who book huge projects from Instagram so it can absolutely be done), you’d be wise to market on a platform you own: like your website and by building an email list (we love Flodesk, read all about that here).
04 | You have relationships with and access to high-quality vendors and reputable contractors
Clients who have bigger budgets typically want high-quality custom items and features in their homes. They definitely don’t want their house to look like every other house on the block.
This is why, as a designer, it’s important to spend time building accounts and relationships with high-quality vendors that will offer endless customizations, and reputable contractors who are at the forefront of the market with build trends.
This goes back to the marketing: when your portfolio is full of high-quality projects with one-of-a-kind elements — custom-designed millwork, original art you have scouted — clients who value those things will seek you out.
05 | You invest time and money in your business
Sorry to say, but I’m not going to invest $10,000 or $100,000 in a designer’s services if they don’t have a portfolio, professional photos, a website, a process, or anything showing the result they can deliver. If you want to demand high fees (and you want people to feel confident in paying you those fees without batting an eye), it’s critical to invest in things like:
Professional photography
A professional website
Timeless branding
Well-written website copy
Outsourcing your drawings, graphic design, marketing, etc. (anything you’re not good at!)
06 | You have well-packaged design services, so you can clearly communicate to clients in a way that builds their confidence
Your clients will see you as the expert you are and will have trust in your authority to take complex projects from A to Z. If you were a design client, would you rather work with a designer who’s just winging it and can do anything for anyone, or someone who has a proven process for getting results and specializes in your exact type of project?
Once you have the benefits of each of your services clearly mapped out, communicating those results to prospects and clients will be a breeze. Prospects will easily be able to see your value and know you are the right fit for them.
07 | You have an elevated client experience process that aligns with a higher design fee and provides your client with a white-glove experience
Clients who value and will pay for the services of a professional will do it if it saves them time, money, or stress. They’ll also pay more for clear communication, ease, and convenience.
When you create an elevated client experience, prospects and clients will anticipate that you will have higher fees and be willing to pay them because they VALUE anything that makes their lives easier.
And guess what? When your client experience is on-point, you’ll have clients referring you from day one all the way through to the end of their project (versus what is typical: your experience falls flat, but your end result is great, so opportunities for client referrals are missed for months/years before the client realizes how awesome you are).
When you know your process (and know how amazing it will be for your clients), you’ll stand behind your higher fees with total confidence.
08 | You have the capacity to take on a large project
Okay, this is an important one. If you keep saying YES to small one-off projects you don’t really enjoy or don’t allow you to deliver your best work because the client fit isn’t good, then you sure as heck won’t have time to take on larger projects with higher design fees.
So if you’re totally slammed and you aren’t putting clients on a waitlist, you definitely won’t have the bandwidth to take on bigger projects.
09 | You have the systems in place to seamlessly manage all the details of a large project
Clients will pay for ease and convenience, and if every interaction with your company feels hard and confusing, they likely won’t WANT to work with you, regardless of your price.
If you want to book larger design fees, it’s important to use software, systems, and processes to make the experience (and your workload) seamless for you and your clients. And, using software that is built for designers will provide you with all the tools you need to look professional.
*Signing up through my affiliate link means I may receive a small commission at no cost to you.
Software programs to make your life easier and your client’s experience better:
A project management software — we love Asana
A scheduler — we love Acuity
A CRM — we love Honeybook and Dubsado
A product management software — we love Design Files, Studio, Houzz Pro
10 | You have clear boundaries that support you and protect your time, allowing you to operate in your zone of genius
If you’re always bogged down doing work that’s outside of your scope and outside of your process, you’ll never attract projects with bigger design fees.
Why?
Because you’ll be burned out. You won’t have time to market. You won’t have time to focus on elevating your client experience. You won’t have time to bring on help. And if you do get an inquiry for a big dream project, you’ll be so buried, you won’t even want it — anything more on your plate would crush you.
On the flip side, if you have clear boundaries that support you and your time, you’ll attract clients who will respect those boundaries.. You’ll have the time and space to market to those dreamy clients. You’ll WANT those big projects and feel capable of taking them on. You’ll have built efficiencies into your process so it’s easier to deliver.
So, if booking interior design projects with five and six-figure design fees is your goal, run through the above list and see what’s missing. If you can check them all off and you’re still not booking those bigger projects, my guess is your marketing is not speaking to the clients who will pay those higher fees.
This is why we always start with the client experience process when we work with new clients. Once you know your process, it’s easy to see the value and the results you bring to your clients. Grab my complimentary Signature Client Experience Blueprint here and start refining your process today.
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